Resin Bound Driveways in Kents Hill

Kents Hill is one of the planned grid squares on the eastern side of Milton Keynes, with most homes built from the late 1980s onwards around cul-de-sacs, landscaped verges and the redway network. Driveways from that era were very often laid in concrete block paving or tarmac, and after twenty or thirty years many have settled in the wheel tracks, lost their jointing sand or sprouted weeds along the edges.

That raises a question we hear a lot: can resin go straight over block paving? In most cases we advise against it. Block paving is designed to flex slightly, and any movement in the blocks tends to show through a resin layer as cracking. Where the blocks are tight, level and well supported, a properly prepared overlay can sometimes work, but more often the honest answer is to lift them and build a firm, permeable base. We tell you which applies after looking at your drive, not before.

Older tarmac is a different story. If it is well bonded, free of potholes and has not sunk, it can make a good base once cleaned and primed. If it is crumbling or patched in several places, it comes out.

• Settled wheel tracks: a sign the sub-base has moved, so we check its depth before deciding anything.
• Weeds at the edges: often a sign the edging restraint has failed and needs replacing.
• Shared access: where drives meet at the end of a close, we plan joints so your resin stops neatly at the boundary.

Kents Hill is within the area of Milton Keynes City Council. A permeable resin drive on a permeable base, or one that drains to your own garden, generally does not need planning permission. If your home has specific conditions from when the estate was built, it is worth checking your deeds or asking the council before you start.