Patios & Paving in Locks Heath means working with 1970s to 1990s estate development on former strawberry-growing farmland — flagged or slabbed areas laid on a proper base for garden use rather than vehicle loading. What that means on the ground in Locks Heath is many original driveways across the estate reaching the end of their life at roughly the same time. Where it earns its keep is seating areas, paths and gardens rather than driveways carrying regular car weight; the honest caveat is that base preparation underneath still determines whether the slabs move or crack over time.
About Patios & Paving
Patios and general paving cover flagged or slabbed areas — concrete, porcelain or natural stone units — laid on a mortar bed or a compacted sub-base, jointed and pointed, and built for garden use, seating areas and pathways rather than the sustained vehicle loading a driveway carries. The choice of unit size, colour and pointing style is usually driven by matching or complementing the house’s existing hard landscaping and the garden’s actual use, and a patio’s long-term performance rests on the base preparation underneath it just as much as any driveway does — a slab laid on a thin bed over unprepared ground will move and crack regardless of the material chosen.
Best suited to: garden seating areas, paths, and outdoor spaces meant for foot traffic and furniture rather than vehicles
Less suited to: any area that needs to carry regular car or van weight
Ground & property in Locks Heath
Locks Heath was built out across the 1970s to 1990s on what was formerly strawberry-growing farmland, and because so much of the estate went up in the same era, a large number of its original driveways are now reaching the end of their life at roughly the same time.