Stone patios, retaining walls and complete outdoor builds — serving Instow and the surrounding Torridge, North Devon area from our Barnstaple base.
Instow sits on the Taw–Torridge estuary between Barnstaple and Bideford — fifteen minutes from our base — and its seafront and the lanes behind it hold some of the most sought-after property in the area.
The Georgian and Victorian houses along Marine Parade, the sailing club, and the premium homes looking across the water to Appledore make Instow a village where buyers invest seriously in their properties — extensions, renovations and full rebuilds done to a high standard.
Much of the village sits within a conservation area, and the estuary frontage brings its own exposure issues, so work here needs both sympathetic detailing and materials that stand up to the salt air.
The landscaping that transforms a property isn't decking and a few sleepers — it's structural: stone retaining walls that terrace a sloping garden, properly built patios and steps, boundary walls that frame the house. That's hard landscaping, and it's where a stonework specialist produces something a general landscaper can't.
We design and build complete outdoor schemes: natural stone patios, curved and straight retaining walls, steps, piers and boundary walls, with all the excavation, drainage and groundwork handled by our own plant and team. Our coastal landscaping work at Putsborough shows the standard — large-scale, exposed-site stonework finished to a level that matches the property behind it.
On sloping and coastal sites especially, what's below ground decides whether the scheme lasts — footings, drainage behind walls, ground stabilisation. Because we do our own groundworks, that side is engineered properly rather than hoped for.



A large part of our work comes through architects, and it shows in how we operate: we price accurately from drawings, build exactly what's been designed, raise the practical questions early rather than mid-build, and keep sites clean and organised enough to walk a client around at any point. If your landscaping project in Instow is architect-designed, we're comfortable being tendered against anyone.
The capability behind that is unusual for a contractor our size: stonework specialists in-house, our own plant and machinery, and experience across heritage restoration, full stone new builds and complex structural work. From a commercial natural stone facade for Tesco Express to complete barn conversions and coastal builds, the same in-house team carries every project — which is why the finish is consistent and the programme holds.
Stonework, brickwork, groundworks and finishing handled by our own team — not a chain of subcontractors.
Diggers, dumpers and machinery owned and operated by us, which keeps rural and awkward sites moving.
Traditional masonry is the heart of the business — the standard of our stonework carries through every job.
Barnstaple based since 2015, working across Torridge, North Devon — ask around, our work speaks for itself.
“Absolutely stunning work”
— Craig Cronin“Transformed our garden completely”
— Melissa Barker“Exceeded every expectation”
— D. NewmanHard landscaping is our strength: stone patios, retaining walls, steps, boundary walls, driveways groundwork and complete garden restructures. For planting-led schemes we'll tell you honestly if a garden designer is the better fit.
Yes — sloping and exposed sites are where we do our best work. We run our own excavators and plant, so terracing, retaining structures and access on awkward ground around Instow are all manageable in-house.
Always. A retaining wall without drainage behind it is a wall waiting to fail. We engineer the footings, backfill and drainage as part of every structure we build.
It varies hugely with the site, the stone and the scale, so we quote individually. Call George on 07841 933038 for a free site visit and a no-obligation quote.
Call George for an honest conversation and a free, no-obligation quote. We'll visit the site, talk through what's possible and price it properly.
Call 07841 933038