Richmond Professional Landscaping looks after business premises, schools and shared developments in Ham, drawing on 29 years of residential and commercial work. Tucked between Richmond Park and a sweeping bend of the Thames, Ham is home to Ham House, built in 1610 and one of the best-preserved houses of its period, as well as Ham Common with its cricket pitch, pond and woodland.
Most commercial outdoor space here is modest but busy. Shops along Ham Parade, schools, care settings and managed housing estates all rely on grounds that stay safe, tidy and welcoming through every season. Many of these sites sit close to listed buildings or protected trees, so careful planning matters as much as good workmanship.
Commercial work covers landscape design, hard and soft landscaping, paving, communal garden upgrades, drainage and ongoing grounds maintenance. As an APL Accredited Member, the company plans each site around access, opening hours and the people who use it every day, so improvements arrive with as little disruption as possible. Clear written schedules and quotes keep managing agents and business owners informed at every stage.
Ham's commercial outdoor spaces range from shopfronts and small offices to community facilities and shared residential grounds. Richmond Professional Landscaping plans each one around how the site is used, its existing layout and who looks after it.
A commercial entrance needs surfaces and planting that cope with constant footfall and look sharp every morning. Offices, shops and hospitality venues often gain from redesigned entrance paths, low-maintenance borders, privacy screening and paved seating where space permits.
Natural stone, porcelain or block paving with good slip resistance keeps entrances safe in wet weather, while planting is chosen to keep signage and sightlines clear as it matures.
Communal grounds have to work for many households at once without getting in the way of access or maintenance. Shared lawns, new paths, structural planting and tidier boundaries between outdoor areas are common requests.
Work is planned around existing buildings and mature trees, with paving, turf and shrubs chosen for the space, the expected use and the managing agent's upkeep budget. Hard-wearing materials keep service charges in check.
Schools, care homes and community buildings need outdoor space built around accessibility, supervision and safe walking routes. That usually means clearly defined paths, gentle gradients, hard-wearing lawns and sheltered seating. Raised planters bring gardening within reach for everyone.
Surfaces, level changes and plant choices are checked with vulnerable users in mind. Works are scheduled around timetables and visiting hours, so the site stays open and safe throughout.
Most commercial sites stay in use while landscaping goes on around them. A clear site plan covers pedestrian access, vehicle movements, deliveries and temporary working areas before any digging begins. Signage and barriers go up on day one.
Work zones are fenced off from occupied areas, finished sections reopen as soon as they're safe, and noisy tasks are timed to cause the least disruption to staff, residents or customers.
Commercial landscaping in Ham covers construction, planting, improvements to existing grounds and the ongoing care that keeps them looking right. Every service is planned around the site's use, safety and long-term upkeep.

Established grounds need regular care to stay safe and presentable. That can mean replacing worn turf, renovating tired beds and adding seasonal colour around entrances and communal spaces. Bare patches are reseeded or returfed before they spread.
Richmond Professional Landscaping checks the soil before new turf or plants go in, adding topsoil or soil improver where needed. Establishment watering and mulching are planned from the start, so new planting settles quickly.

Hedges give privacy, boundaries and screening, but overgrowth soon blocks paths and entrance sightlines. Cutting, pruning and weeding are timed around each species and the bird nesting season.
Where planting has declined, overgrown shrubs are cut back hard or replaced, and fresh mulch keeps weeds down between visits. Clear routes and tidy edges make the whole site feel cared for. Cuttings are cleared from site the same day.

Good commercial design ties outdoor space to the buildings around it. Ham shows the range, from the Parkleys estate, completed in 1956, to Langham House Close, an early brutalist development finished in 1958.
Entrances, paths, seating, screening and planting are laid out after a measured survey, with circulation, mature plant sizes, paving finishes and future maintenance considered together. The result is a site that is easy to run day to day.
As a general UK guide, hard landscaping such as paving typically costs £90 to £220 per m² and soft landscaping £25 to £60 per m², with full redesigns at £200 to £400 per m². London and the South East usually run 15 to 25% higher, and poor access can add 15 to 30% to labour.
Maintenance costs depend mostly on how often visits happen and what each one covers. Busy entrances and communal lawns may need weekly attention in the growing season, while quieter sites manage with fortnightly or monthly visits.
A written schedule sets out mowing, hedge cutting, weeding, leaf clearance and seasonal planting, so site managers know exactly what each visit includes.
At the 2011 census, the Ham, Petersham and Richmond Riverside wards had 1,918 flats and 1,368 terraced homes, so shared outdoor space matters to a lot of residents. Upgrades are priced feature by feature, as the table shows, so managing agents can plan work in stages. Shared lawns and entrances are usually the first features residents notice.
Communal landscape feature
| Typical work |
|---|---|
Shared lawns
| Soil preparation, levelling and turf installation |
Communal entrances | Durable paving and coordinated planting |
Shared pathways
| Surface replacement and drainage improvements |
Boundary areas
| Hedge planting, fencing and screening |
Seating spaces | Paved surfaces and planted borders |
Each Richmond Professional Landscaping quote separates groundwork, materials, planting, drainage, waste removal and any maintenance package. Access arrangements, working hours and traffic management are listed too, because they affect labour time on busy sites. Optional extras such as lighting or seasonal planting are priced separately, so the essentials stay clear.
Payment stages and any exclusions are agreed in writing before work begins.
Commercial grounds can be improved a phase at a time, which keeps entrances open and spreads spending across budget years. Drainage, groundwork and safety-critical paths come first, with planting and decorative features added later.
Each phase is designed to look finished in its own right, so the site never feels half done between stages. Planting phases are timed for autumn or spring, when new stock establishes best.
Ham sits between Richmond Park and the Thames, with historic estates and varied ground. That context is useful at the planning stage, though every decision rests on what the survey finds at the site itself.
Much of Ham sits on a low river terrace, with ground rising towards Richmond Park. It lies within the London Basin, where London Clay bedrock sits beneath deposits of gravel, sand and clay.
Existing levels, drainage outlets, ground conditions and delivery routes are all checked before excavation or foundations are specified. Being close to the Thames doesn't, on its own, mean a site has drainage problems or a high water table.
Ham has several conservation areas, including Ham Common, Ham House and the Parkleys Estate, and the Great South Avenue links Ham House to the common. Work near these settings may need extra checks.
Before excavation, tree work or boundary changes, the Richmond Professional Landscaping team confirms if conservation controls, Tree Preservation Orders, listed building consent or planning permission apply. The council decides each case on its own merits.


Ham Lands, a Local Nature Reserve of former river meadows, owes much of its character to gravel extraction that ran from 1904 until 1952. Further north, the riverside meadows at Petersham are grazed by cattle to this day, and both places inspire wildlife-friendly planting around shared grounds.
Native shrubs such as hawthorn and holly suit many sites, while perennials, ornamental grasses and evergreens add structure and seasonal interest. Soil, light and upkeep budgets shape the final list.
Ham sits about a mile south of Richmond and two miles north of Kingston upon Thames, with Upper Ham Road and Petersham Road carrying most of the traffic. Delivery routes, parking and material storage are agreed early, so lorries don't block entrances or residents' access.
Work areas are set out to keep staff, visitors and the public safely apart from machinery, and the programme is confirmed before work starts.