New Driveways in Wavendon

Wavendon has changed a great deal in recent years. Alongside the older village houses there are now large modern estates, and many of their owners inherited a driveway chosen by the developer for speed and cost. Some are smaller than the household now needs, some were finished in a surface the owner never liked, and a few have settled or cracked within their first few years.

For newer homes, the first check is paperwork rather than ground. Estate roads are sometimes still waiting to be adopted, front gardens may be covered by covenants, and a management company may look after verges and shared areas. Any of these can affect what you are allowed to change at the front. It is worth reading your deeds and, if you are unsure, asking the estate's management before you plan a bigger drive.

If your house is only a few years old, look at the new build warranty and the developer's own aftercare terms before replacing anything. Driveways are often excluded or covered only for a short period, but it is worth knowing for certain, especially if the original drive has sunk or cracked early. Photographs of the problem, taken before any work starts, are useful whichever way that turns out.

For older village plots the questions are different. Long approaches, gateways between hedges and uneven ground are typical, and access for lorries down a lane needs planning. Wherever the home sits, our survey covers levels, existing services, the edge of the road and how the new surface will drain.

• New estates: deeds, covenants and road adoption checked before design.
• Village plots: access, hedges and gateways measured and protected.
• Crossings: any new or wider dropped kerb approved by Milton Keynes City Council.
• Services: a duct for a future charger or gate power laid during the build.

Planning permission for the surface follows the usual front garden rule: permeable surfaces, or those draining onto your own planted ground, are normally fine, while a solid surface larger than five square metres running to the road usually needs an application. Some newer estates also have their own drainage arrangements, so we design falls to work with them rather than against them.