Landscape Project Brief Preparation Checklist

Write down which parts of the garden the household actually walks through, and which corners nobody has visited since you moved in.

Designers reshape circulation first, and an honest account of where people already go is worth more than an idealised description of the plot.

Look at where people naturally stop and stand outside, whether by the back door, at the washing line or near the shed, rather than where you imagine they might sit.

Seating placed where nobody instinctively pauses tends to go unused, however convincing it looks drawn on a plan.

Record how the space is used when the weather is poor, including where wet boots, muddy paws and dripping coats currently end up.

Wet-weather use exposes the practical failures of a layout, and it is the part of a brief owners most often leave out entirely.

Consider whether the garden gets used mainly in the morning or the evening, and write down which part catches usable light at that time.

Orientation decides which corner is pleasant when you are actually outside, and that may not be the corner with the finest view.

Note which routine tasks the current layout fights against, such as carrying bins out, dragging a hose or getting a mower to the far end.

Routine friction is what people complain about after a project, and it is straightforward to design out if it has been written down at the start.

Write down whether the space has to work for young children, older relatives, pets or visitors with limited mobility.

Who uses a garden changes surfaces, routes, gradients and gates, and it is far harder to accommodate once a layout has been settled.

Accessible routes, step design and handrails outside are matters for a qualified professional who can assess your specific levels and surfaces.

List the plants, trees and shrubs you would be genuinely upset to lose, and mark where each one stands before anybody starts sketching.

Retained planting shapes a design from the outset, and identifying it early is far more effective than discovering it during a site visit.

Ask a qualified arboricultural professional about the condition of any established tree, and confirm locally whether it carries any protection.

Note any structure you intend to keep, such as a shed, greenhouse, wall or pergola, and write down its condition as you observe it.

A structure assumed to be staying often turns out to be in the way or in poor repair, and saying so early keeps the conversation honest.

Record which existing hard surfaces you dislike and why: slippery when wet, uneven underfoot, glaring in sun, or simply the wrong shape.

Naming the specific failing gives a designer something to solve, whereas saying a surface is ugly leaves the real problem unaddressed.

Write down whether anything currently on site was inherited from a previous owner and you hold no paperwork at all for it.

Undocumented structures, ponds and buried features tend to raise questions later, and flagging them early avoids surprises during design.

Consider whether a feature you dislike is quietly doing a job, such as a bank holding soil back or a hedge taking the force out of the wind.

Removing something that was working can create a bigger problem than the one you set out to fix, so its function is worth noting first.

Anything that appears to be retaining soil or supporting a level change should be assessed by a qualified professional before removal is planned.

Note where you have already tried to fix something yourself outside, and what actually happened, so the same approach is not repeated.

A failed previous attempt is useful evidence about the site, and it often points at an underlying cause nobody has looked at.

Be honest in writing about how much time the household is willing to give the garden, and whether that is likely to change before long.

Planting density, lawn area and the choice between clipped and loose planting all follow from this answer more than from any style preference.

Ask who currently mows, prunes, weeds and clears gutters outside, and whether that person is happy to carry on doing it.

Upkeep usually falls to one member of a household, and a brief written without asking them tends to produce a garden they resent.

Consider whether anyone in the household actually enjoys gardening, or whether the space simply has to survive periods of neglect.

A garden designed to be tended and a garden designed to be forgiving are different propositions, and mixing them satisfies neither.

Write down whether outside help is expected for upkeep, and which specific tasks would be handed over rather than done by the household.

Knowing which jobs leave the household changes what a designer proposes, particularly for hedging, lawns and anything needing regular clipping.

Record where garden waste currently goes and whether that route still works once there is more planting producing clippings.

Composting space, bin access and the route out of the garden are usually settled last, when the layout no longer leaves room for them.

Note whether hand watering is realistic during a dry spell, and write down where the nearest outside tap actually is.

Distance from a water source is a strong predictor of which parts of a garden survive establishment and which quietly fail.

Any new outside water supply or irrigation connection should be discussed with a qualified professional, and local requirements confirmed.

List everything that currently lives outside or needs to, including bikes, bins, tools, fuel and garden furniture, and note where each sits now.

Storage requirements are almost always underestimated, and an inventory is far more reliable than a general sense of needing a shed.

Write down how bins travel from where they are stored to where they are collected, and whether that route cuts across the part of the garden you want to enjoy.

The bin run is one of the most commonly overlooked constraints in a domestic garden layout, and it tends to be awkward to resolve once paving has been laid.

Check whether laundry is dried outside and whether losing that facility would matter to anyone in the household.

Drying space competes directly with seating and planting for the sunniest, most sheltered part of a plot.

Record where the meters, stopcock, external vents and any flue are, and note that nothing planned should block access to them.

These are easy to overlook when they sit behind planting or a store, and blocking them creates problems long after the project ends.

Access to meters, vents, flues and isolation points is a matter to confirm with the relevant utility and a qualified installer.

Consider whether deliveries, wheelbarrows or a mower need to pass between the front and the rear without going through the house.

If the side passage is the only route, its width quietly governs what can be brought into the garden for the rest of the property's life.

Note what the space needs to hide, such as an oil tank, an outdoor unit, a compost heap or a neighbouring view you would rather not see.

Screening requirements affect sightlines and planting positions, and they are much easier to resolve while the layout is still fluid.

Walk the garden at different points and note which areas sit in shade and which are exposed, rather than relying on memory.

Recollection of light is unreliable, and shade patterns determine both planting choices and where a seating area will actually be pleasant.

Write down where wind funnels through the space, such as a gap between buildings or an open corner, and where it is noticeably calmer.

Shelter often has more effect on whether an outdoor space actually gets used than owners expect, and it is rarely mentioned in a brief unprompted.

Identify which neighbouring windows overlook which parts of the garden, and be specific about how much that actually bothers you.

Screening ambitions drive a great deal of planting and structure, so it helps to know whether privacy is a genuine requirement or a mild preference.

Collect images of outdoor spaces you like and, more usefully, write a line under each saying what specifically appeals about it.

A designer gets far more from your reasoning than from the image itself, and it prevents a look being copied for entirely the wrong reason.

Record what you dislike about the current appearance in plain words, including materials that look tired or sit badly against the house.

Dislikes are usually more precise than likes, and they narrow the field of materials faster than a folder of inspiring photographs.

Consider whether the garden should read as an extension of the house or as a deliberate contrast to it, and write down which you want.

This single decision guides material choices, planting formality and where the boundary between built and planted areas is drawn.

Note where you would want to see your footing after dark, particularly on any change of level or along the route to a gate or bin store.

Lighting positions are much easier to plan while routes and levels are still being discussed than after surfaces have been laid.

Outdoor lighting and any external electrical work should be designed and carried out by a qualified electrician, with local requirements confirmed.

Write down whether anything outside needs power, such as a shed, a pump or a workshop, and note what already appears to run out there.

Knowing the demand early allows trenching to be coordinated with groundwork rather than cutting into a finished surface later.

Never assume an existing outdoor cable is sound or suitable; ask a qualified electrician to establish what is present before anything new is planned.

Consider whether light spilling into neighbouring windows would cause friction, and note which directions are sensitive.

Light spill is a frequent source of neighbour complaints and is far easier to avoid at the design stage than to correct afterwards.

Record whether you want the garden to remain visible from inside the house after dark, or whether you would rather it disappeared.

This changes whether lighting is aimed into the garden or kept low and local, and it affects glass reflections seen from inside.

Check where a mobile signal or wireless connection already reaches, if the space is expected to be used for working or studying outside.

Connectivity determines where a garden room or working corner could sensibly go, and it is simple to test before any layout is fixed.

Write down whether cooking or heating outdoors is part of the ambition, so it can be discussed early rather than bolted on at the end.

Outdoor cooking affects shelter, surfacing, storage and the position relative to doors and neighbouring windows.

Any outdoor appliance involving fuel, gas or a flue must be discussed with a qualified installer and confirmed against local requirements.

Put the parts of the brief in the order you would give them up, and write that list down before you hear any proposals at all.

Priorities decided under pressure tend to favour whatever was discussed most recently rather than what the household actually values.

Note which elements would be disruptive to add once surfaces are laid, such as anything needing a trench, a base or a connection.

Separating the reversible from the effectively permanent tells you where a decision genuinely has to be made now.

Consider whether the project could sensibly be split so that groundwork and services happen before planting and finishing.

Splitting work along a logical line keeps a later stage possible, whereas an arbitrary split often means redoing part of the first stage.

Write down anything genuinely fixed, whether a use, a retained tree or an access route, and mark it clearly as non-negotiable.

A short list of true constraints is more useful to a designer than a long list of preferences with no indication of weight.

Record who in the household must agree before a decision counts as settled, so proposals are not reopened repeatedly.

Unclear decision-making is one of the most common causes of drift, and it is easily resolved by agreeing it in advance.

List any work planned on the house itself that could disturb the garden afterwards, so the order of works can be discussed sensibly.

New planting and paving are frequently damaged by later building work, and sequencing is a conversation worth having before anything is committed.