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06/06/2026

Week 2 | Creating a place with purpose

The weather has thrown everything at us this week, but when you’re building something that will make a real difference to young people, it’s easy to keep moving forward.

A big shout out to and for their incredible craftsmanship and attention to detail. With a few adaptations and some careful welding, the pergola is now up and beginning to find its place within the garden.

The structure is taking shape, the trees are in, and the space is starting to tell its story.

Next week we move onto planting and begin softening the garden, bringing even more life and character to a place that will be enjoyed for years to come.

A project built with care, for a community that deserves it. 🌱

01/05/2026

We went looking for diamonds this week, not the polished kind, the ones most people walk straight past.

29/04/2026

When Jamie shared the scheme, it was clear this was going to be beautiful.

Even in plan, it had a feeling.

Our job was to build it well.

Narrowing paths draw you through the space. Young birch will soften the route over time. A mixed traditional hedge row including hazel etc…. sets the boundary, something that will settle and become part of the garden, the best kind of boundary!

Oak used for the pergola, left to weather and sit quietly but proud within the space.

A minimal palette. Gravel, timber, steel, soil and planting doing the work.

Raised beds bring in a productive layer, a garden to use, not just look at.

What we’ve built is the framework. The rest comes with time.

Everything will establish, soften and begin to take on a life of its own.

26/04/2026

Some gardens are worth backing from the moment you hear the idea.

Young Designer of the Year garden, inspired by Silo, is one of them.

We had already spent time looking into the ethos behind and what stood out was the integrity of it all. The food, the space, the materials, the people behind it. Everything felt considered. Everything had purpose. That kind of thinking is something we can get behind.

So when Abi asked us to be part of the build, we did not hesitate.

With products from and .forms Oyster Concrete, this garden is being shaped around materials with real depth and a story worth telling.

Looking forward to building this one.

Designed by

24/04/2026

There’s a difference between using materials and understanding where they come from

Monday and Tuesday, we got to experience that firsthand in the Netherlands with , , and alongside a group of designers and builders all pushing the industry forward

We started at Schellevis. No photos inside, but watching raw material become form and understanding the process behind a product we specify was something else. It’s the part most people never see

Then onto in-lite where lighting completely transformed the space. What started as food and drinks quickly became conversations and ideas around how light can guide, connect and shape a garden at night without overpowering it

The next day at Adezz we were taken through their process from powder coating to warehouse and HQ. Everything felt considered. Not just the products, but the environment they’ve created around them. A space built for collaboration, creativity and community

That’s what stood out most

These companies aren’t just making products, they’re building identity and a community around what they do

It also highlights what we’re losing in the UK. Craft, industry and connection to how things are made

There’s a real opportunity to rethink that and build something better

We left inspired not just to design better gardens but to build something bigger around them

22/04/2026

A concrete car park. Minutes from Chelsea. Worlds apart.

We’re proud to be working with .world , Lancaster Youth Hub, , and the young people who use this space every day to co-design and build something that should have always been here.

This project starts with listening. Workshops led by the youth have shaped the brief, trees, privacy, play, fruit, flowers, places to sit, space to grow.
Simple asks. Big impact.

The response is equally bold:
large trees, layered planting and strong forms to shift this space from hardstanding into something rooted in place.

This is about more than a garden.
It’s about access.
About who gets to experience nature.
About closing the green gap!

A permanent space for biodiversity, learning, wellbeing and future opportunity.
Designed with the community and built by a team of people that share the same values!

And we’re just getting started.

If you’re a supplier, designer or landscaper who wants to be part of something and help in anyway possible, get in contact!

12/04/2026

Late delivery. Weekend build. No shortcuts.

The oak for this pergola Designed by turned up behind schedule, which meant giving up a weekend, not ideal when family time matters. But this is the reality of building well… you adapt and get it done right.

And to be fair, working with oak like this makes it easier to show up. Solid, honest, unforgiving in the best way. Every joint exposed, every line considered.

Quick lunch reset at and straight back into it.

Structure’s now in and already changing how the space feels, more defined, more grounded, more intentional. Planting goes in next and that’s where it really starts to come alive.

This is what we’re about:
Good people. Proper materials. Thoughtful design. Built to last.

09/04/2026

Good gardens are built through considered materials and time.

Last year we attended a talk on regenerative building led by , an evening centred around materials, responsibility and landscapes.

It was also where we first met

A year later we’ve spent the past few weeks bringing one of Jamie’s gardens to life. A calm, carefully considered design gradually taking shape for some wonderful clients.

While clearing the site we uncovered an old wall hidden beneath overgrown shrubs, a small fragment of the site’s history now revealed. clay pavers, mild steel edging, chestnut fencing, traditional hedge laying and oak sleepers shaping the space.

Planting goes in next week.

06/04/2026

We love working with reclaimed and natural materials, not just for how they look, but for how they make us think.
It’s easy to pick something off the shelf and follow a set of instructions. But when every piece is slightly different, it forces you to slow down, assess, and actually design.
That’s where the best work comes from.
The imperfections, the variation, the history in each material, it all adds up to something far more considered. A garden that feels real, not manufactured.
Better for creativity.
Better for the environment.
And always a better story!

01/04/2026

Hampton Court already feels like a long time ago, but the story behind “Before the Concrete Setts” keeps growing.

What started as a show garden was never meant to stop there. The whole idea behind it was about starting a conversation, about habitat, community and how landscapes can be shaped before development locks everything in.

So it feels right that the next chapter is beginning!

have kindly opened part of their grounds to the community, and together we’re now beginning to design and build a new space there.
We’ve recently secured funding to start putting plans together and will be bringing the community into the process as the project develops.

We’re also really looking forward to collaborating with on this one and can’t wait to see how the Design & Build turn out! Bringing together Steve, Surrounding Counties and Didcot Town feels like the start of something special.

What started as a show garden is now becoming part of a much bigger story and we’re excited to see where it leads. Thank you for the Photos 📷

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Oxford

Website

https://surroundingcounties.co.uk/

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