Rutland Driveways & Landscaping 07312 132517 Site visit
Stone-faced garden room office with bifold doors onto the patio
Rutland · Stamford · Oakham

Garden rooms

A garden room is only as good as its base.

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5 yearWritten guarantee
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8 yearsTrading in Rutland

A garden room is only as good as its base. We build the slab or foundations and the drainage, arrange power with a registered electrician, and build or install the room; many fall within permitted development depending on size, height and distance from the boundary.

Base
Slab or foundations
Planning
Often not needed; we check
Guarantee
5 years, in writing

Our 2026 guide prices where shown. Your fixed price comes in writing after the site visit.

Garden rooms

The rules

Outbuildings are usually permitted development if they are single storey, take up no more than half the garden, and are no more than 2.5m high within 2m of a boundary. Listed buildings, conservation area side gardens and Article 4 villages such as Langham can change that, so we check first.

Garden rooms

What we build

Stone-faced or timber-clad rooms with bifold doors, offices, gyms and studios, with a proper base, insulation and power.

Recent finishes

The kind of finish we build

Stone-faced garden room office with bifold doors onto the patio
Stone-faced garden room office with bifold doors onto the patio
Porcelain terrace, lawn and lit borders behind a modern stone home
Porcelain terrace
Lit porcelain terrace and outdoor sofas behind a stone house at dusk
Lit porcelain terrace and outdoor sofas behind a stone house at dusk
Porcelain patio with a sunken lit seating area and lawn
Porcelain patio with a sunken lit seating area and lawn
★★★★★

Rated 5.0 from 37 Google reviews

“Well what can I say about Rutland driveways that would make you seriously consider using them for your project I contacted them had a meeting with the team who was very informative with the level of inspiration I had ideas they had ideas and recommendations we bounced ideas to come up with the best option possible for my …”

Steven · Drive, walkway, patio and garden — Google review

“Rutland Landscaping did a fantastic job creating the Stone Garden patio at the rear of our garden. They arrived on time, worked efficiently and were exceptionally courteous throughout. Everything was kept clean and tidy, and their attention to detail was excellent. …”

CJ · Stone patio — Google review
Read the reviews
Questions

Things people ask us

How much does a garden room cost?
We don't publish a single guide price for garden rooms, because the size, the base, the building itself and the power and drainage it needs vary so much from job to job. We look at the site first, then give one fixed written price for the base, drainage, power and building together, so there are no separate trades to chase.
Do I need building regulations for a garden room?
Not usually if it is under 15m² internally, or under 30m² and at least 1m from the boundary or built of non-combustible materials, and is not used for sleeping.
Do I need planning permission for a garden room?
Usually not, if it is single storey, in the rear or side garden behind the front of the house, and with other outbuildings covers no more than half the garden. Within 2m of a boundary it must be no more than 2.5m high; further away, up to 4m with a dual-pitched roof or 3m with any other roof. Listed homes, conservation area side gardens and Article 4 villages such as Langham can need permission, so we check first.
What base does a garden room need?
A garden room needs a level, solid base that will not move, because if it shifts the doors stop closing and the joints open up. That usually means a reinforced concrete slab on a compacted sub-base, or concrete pads or strip foundations for heavier stone-faced rooms. Ground screws suit some lightweight timber rooms on firm ground. We check the ground with a test hole, since clay, fill and roots each change what is needed, and plan drainage around the room.
Can I sleep in a garden room or use it as an annexe?
Not without approvals. Under permitted development a garden room must be used for purposes incidental to the house, such as an office, gym or studio, and cannot contain bedrooms. Using it for sleeping brings it under building regulations for fire safety, insulation and escape, and making it a self-contained annexe or a separate home usually needs planning permission too. If you want guest accommodation, say so at the start so it can be designed and approved for that.
How do you get electricity to a garden room?
Usually with an armoured cable buried in a trench from the house to a small consumer unit in the room. A new outdoor circuit is notifiable work under Part P, so it must be installed and certified by a registered electrician, who will check the house supply can take the extra load, especially for heaters or a hot tub nearby. We dig and reinstate the cable trench as part of the groundwork and arrange the electrician.
Can a garden room have a toilet or sink?
Yes, but it adds work. Water comes through an insulated pipe in a trench from the house, and the waste has to reach a foul drain or sewer, which depends on levels and how far away the nearest connection is. New drainage is controlled under building regulations, and if the drain run is long or uphill a pumped system may be needed. A toilet or kitchen can also start to raise questions about it being separate accommodation.
Can I use a garden room as an office all year round?
Yes, if it is insulated and heated properly. A garden room used through winter needs insulation in the floor, walls and roof, double-glazed doors and windows, a vapour control layer to stop condensation, and a heater or air-conditioning unit sized for the room. Without those, it will be cold in January and too hot in July. Ventilation matters too, as a sealed room with a person working in it all day builds up damp.
Will a garden room get damp?
Not if the base and the build are done properly. Damp in garden rooms usually comes from ground water wicking up through a slab without a damp proof membrane, rain splashing up walls that sit too low, or condensation in a poorly ventilated room. A slab with a membrane, the floor set above the surrounding ground, a drained area around the base and a vapour control layer in the walls deal with all three.
What affects the cost of a garden room?
Size, the type of base, the materials and what goes inside it set most of the cost. A stone-faced or brick room on strip foundations costs more than a timber-clad room on a slab, and bifold or sliding doors, insulation standard, heating, power and any water or drainage all add up. Access matters too, as everything has to come through to the back garden. We price your room in writing after the site visit.

Request a site visit

We measure up, check levels and drainage, and send a written proposal with the build-up, the programme and one whole price. No pressure and no follow-up sales calls.

Request a site visit Call 07312 132517
☎Call 07312 132517 Site visit