Which areas of Norfolk do you cover?

We work across Norwich and the surrounding Norfolk area, including Thorpe St Andrew, Sprowston, Costessey, Hellesdon, Old Catton, Wymondham, Attleborough, Dereham, Great Yarmouth, North Walsham, Cromer, Sheringham, Holt and Fakenham. If you are not sure whether we reach you, call 01603 858680 and ask.

How much does a new driveway cost in Norwich?

There is no single figure — the price is set by your ground conditions more than the surface you choose. Tarmac is normally the least expensive per square metre, block paving sits in the middle, resin bound is usually the highest. Every quote we give is free, fixed and itemised, and states the sub-base depth.

How long does a driveway take to install?

A tarmac driveway usually takes one to two days. Block paving takes three to five days for a typical domestic driveway. Resin bound takes one day over a sound existing base, or three to five days if a new base is needed. Wet weather or frost can extend all three.

Do I need planning permission for a driveway?

If you are laying more than 5m² of impermeable surface in a front garden, you need either planning permission or a drainage solution that keeps the water on your own property. Permeable surfaces such as resin bound normally avoid this. If you are creating a new access from the road, you will also need a dropped kerb from Norfolk County Council.

Do you charge for quotes?

No. All quotes are free and carry no obligation. We visit the site, look at the ground conditions and drainage, and give you a written itemised price.

Driveways, Paving and Landscaping in Great Yarmouth

Great Yarmouth sits low, close to sea level, with a high-water table and salt wind off the North Sea. Driveways here fail from the bottom and the edges, not the top. Expert Paving and Landscaping designs the drainage first, then lays block paving, resin bound or tarmac over a base built for wet ground.

Request a Free Quote

Planning a coastal driveway in Great Yarmouth? Don’t risk pooling water or poor sub-base drainage. Call the team that works across Great Yarmouth and east Norfolk on 01603 858680 for a site assessment and an itemised written proposal.

Why drainage decides everything in Great Yarmouth

Great Yarmouth sits low and close to sea level, and the water table is high. That changes the job in a way most homeowners are never told about.

Inland, a soakaway takes surface water down into the ground. Here, if the water table is already close to the surface, a soakaway has nowhere to send the water — it fills, backs up, and the driveway sits in it. A driveway designed such as Tarmac for Norwich clay and dropped onto a Great Yarmouth plot without rethinking the drainage will not last.

The answer is not one surface over another. It is designing the drainage for the plot first — falls, channel drainage, and permeable construction where it suits — and then choosing the surface. That is the conversation we have on site before we quote.

Red and brown clay block paving patio laid in a herringbone pattern with contrasting charcoal soldier course border, concrete slab foreground, and wooden perimeter fence

Curved block paved driveway with dark border edging and integrated tree planter leading to a residential house front

Red brick house exterior featuring a front garden area bordered by a manicured green hedge and residential street background

Coastal weather and driveway edges

Salt-laden wind off the North Sea is hard on edges. It is almost never the middle of a driveway that fails first — here it is the perimeter, where the restraint is weak or absent. Proper edge restraint, haunching in concrete, is not an optional extra on a coastal property. It is the difference between a driveway that holds its shape and one that spreads at the sides within a few years.

Planning permission and dropping kerbs in Great Yarmouth

Planning

Great Yarmouth Borough Council handles planning permission. The standard rule applies: more than 5m² of impermeable surface in a front garden needs permission or a drainage solution. On a plot with a high-water table, that drainage solution needs thinking about properly rather than defaulting to a soakaway.

Dropped Kerbs

Handled separately by Norfolk County Council, with a £193.92 non-refundable application fee and construction at around £3,050 by the council's own contractor.

Driveway and paving services in Great Yarmouth

Frequently asked questions

Does the high water table limit which driveway I can have?

It limits the drainage design more than the surface. A soakaway needs somewhere to send water and on a low-lying plot it may not have anywhere. We survey the levels and drainage first, then recommend a surface that works with them. Our guide to planning permission for a driveway in Norfolk explains how the drainage decides whether permission is needed at all.

Is resin bound a good idea near the coast?

Usually yes, because it is permeable. It needs a sound base and dry, mild conditions to lay, so we schedule it around the weather more carefully here than inland.

Who handles planning permission in Great Yarmouth?

Great Yarmouth Borough Council. The dropped kerb is separate and goes to Norfolk County Council, which charges its own non-refundable application fee.