Fencing Forest Town
Picket, closeboard and composite fencing, gates and railings across Forest Town, Newlands and Clipstone. A lot of our work here is front garden boundaries — picket runs along the pavement where the 1 metre height rule applies — plus standard closeboard on concrete posts round the back. Send your measurements and a photo for a quick provisional price, or book a free measured survey.
*Terms and conditions apply to our 12 month guarantee.
Recent Fencing Jobs in Forest Town
Front boundaries and back boundaries are two different jobs on the same street. Here is some of the work we have completed around Forest Town.
A front boundary that keeps the view
Picket is the usual answer on a front garden. It marks the boundary and keeps children and dogs in without walling the house off from the street, and at this height it stays inside the 1 metre limit that applies where a boundary fronts a highway.
Working round what is already there
A street lamp mid-run and a mature laurel hedge behind. On a pavement boundary you cannot simply set posts where the spacing wants them — the bays get worked out around the obstructions first, which is why these runs get measured rather than counted.
Closeboard and new concrete posts
Round the back, the priorities change: privacy, height and longevity. Closeboard on new concrete posts with gravel boards, run along a conifer line where the roots make post positions awkward. See fence panels.
Fencing and Gates in Forest Town
Forest Town was built for the colliery and it still reads that way. The older streets are laid out in regular terraces and semis with open front gardens onto the pavement and long, narrow rear plots behind. Newer building towards Newlands and the Clipstone road has the same front-garden pattern with a bit more room.
That front boundary is where most Forest Town fencing enquiries start, and it is also where the rules are tightest. A rear garden fence can go to 2 metres without asking anyone. A front boundary onto a pavement is limited to 1 metre, and that catches people out constantly.
Front Garden Fencing and the 1 Metre Rule
Permitted development in England allows a fence, wall or gate up to 2 metres at a rear or side boundary. Where the boundary adjoins a highway — and a footpath running beside a road counts as a highway — the limit drops to 1 metre. Go above that and you need planning permission, whatever the neighbours have done.
It is why picket is the standard answer on a Forest Town front garden. At around 900mm it sits comfortably inside the limit, it marks the boundary, and it keeps a dog or a small child off the pavement without turning the front of the house into a compound. The runs in the photographs above are exactly that.
Two things worth knowing before you order. Height is measured from ground level on the higher side, so a fence on top of a low wall or a raised verge counts the whole thing. And if the fence returns down the side of the house away from the road, that section is usually back under the 2 metre allowance — so a front boundary and its side return can legitimately be different heights.
We are not planning consultants. If your boundary is unusual, or the property is listed or in a conservation area, Mansfield District Council's planning team will confirm your position and it costs nothing to ask.
What We Install in Forest Town
Rear Boundaries
Behind the house the job changes completely. Height and privacy matter, nobody is looking at it from the street, and the sensible answer is nearly always closeboard or featheredge panels on concrete posts with gravel boards. Concrete does not rot at ground level, which is where timber posts fail first, and a gravel board keeps the bottom of the panel out of wet ground.
The complication on the older Forest Town plots is mature planting. Conifer and leylandii roots make post positions awkward and sometimes mean a bay has to be set slightly off-centre to find ground you can actually dig. That is a survey question rather than a photograph question.
Getting Rid of the Old Fence
Forest Town is Mansfield District Council. The brown bin will not help — garden waste is a paid annual subscription running April to March, at around twenty collections a year with none in January or February, and it takes grass and prunings rather than treated timber. The council does not collect side waste either, so stacking panels next to the bin achieves nothing.
Bulky waste collection is an option for a small amount, at roughly £16 for one item and £29 for two or three, up to ten items. A full boundary of panels, posts and gravel boards makes that slow and expensive.
Whose job is the disposal?
The tips are run by Nottinghamshire County Council, not by Mansfield District, and they treat old fencing as DIY waste: two 50-litre bags or one item per visit, nothing over 2000mm × 750mm × 700mm, and four visits per household every four weeks. A 6ft panel is over the single-item limit on its own.
Nottinghamshire County Council also states that where waste has arisen from work done by a tradesperson, disposing of it is that tradesperson's legal responsibility. A fitter who leaves the old fence stacked on your drive has not saved you anything.
We take ours with us. Registered waste carrier, licence CBDU474286. If you would rather keep the timber, we will price the job without removal.
Why Choose Nottingham Fencing
We are a local, family-run firm run by founders Adam and Stephen, with over 15 years' experience fitting fencing across Nottinghamshire.
- We will tell you the height limit before you order. A front boundary onto a pavement is 1 metre, and it is better to hear that from us than from a planning officer afterwards.
- Bays worked out around obstructions. Street lamps, service covers, established hedges and tree roots all move post positions. That gets resolved at the survey.
- The old fence goes with us. Registered waste carrier, licence CBDU474286.
- Gates built to the opening rather than trimmed down from a stock size.
- Supply only if you want it. Picket, panels, posts, gravel boards and composite sold on their own.
- Insured and guaranteed. Public liability insurance in place and a 12 month guarantee on our work.*
*Terms and conditions apply to our 12 month guarantee.
Areas We Cover Near Forest Town
We cover Forest Town and the surrounding area:
Get a price for your Forest Town fence
Send your measurements and a photo for a quick provisional price, or book a free measured survey and we will come and look at the run properly.
Fencing in Forest Town — Common Questions
How high can a front garden fence be in Forest Town?
Generally 1 metre where the boundary adjoins a highway, and a footpath running beside a road counts as a highway. Anything taller needs planning permission. Rear and side boundaries away from the road are allowed up to 2 metres under permitted development. Mansfield District Council's planning team will confirm your position free of charge.
Why is picket the usual choice for a front boundary?
Because at around 900mm it sits comfortably inside the 1 metre limit while still doing the job. It marks the boundary, keeps a dog or a small child off the pavement, and does not block light or the view of the house the way a solid panel would. It is also cheaper per metre than closeboard.
Does a wall underneath count towards the fence height?
Yes. Height is measured from ground level on the higher side, so a fence sitting on a low wall or a raised verge counts as the whole thing together. A 400mm wall with a 900mm picket on top is a 1.3 metre boundary, which is over the limit on a front garden fronting a highway.
Can the side of my fence be taller than the front?
Usually yes. The 1 metre limit applies where the boundary adjoins a highway. Once the fence turns down the side of the house away from the road, that section normally falls back under the 2 metre allowance. So a front boundary and its side return can legitimately be different heights, and often are.
Can you fence round a street lamp or a service cover?
Yes, and on pavement boundaries it comes up regularly. Posts cannot simply go where even spacing would put them, so the bays get set out around the obstructions first and the panels made to suit. It is one of the reasons we measure these runs on site rather than pricing from a photo.
Can I put old fence panels in my Mansfield brown bin?
No. The brown bin is a paid garden waste subscription for grass, hedge trimmings and prunings, not treated timber, and it does not run in January or February. The council will not take side waste either. Old panels need a recycling centre or a registered waste carrier.
What fencing works best behind the house?
Closeboard or featheredge panels on concrete posts with gravel boards. Posts fail before panels do, and they fail at ground level where timber stays wet, so concrete removes that failure point. A gravel board keeps the bottom of the panel clear of the soil and lets a damaged panel be swapped without disturbing the posts.
Do you supply fencing in Forest Town without fitting it?
Yes. Supply only is available on picket, closeboard and featheredge panels, concrete and timber posts, gravel boards and composite boards. Measure your post centres rather than the visible gap, tell us the run length and height, and we will price the materials for collection or delivery.