Macclesfield, Bollington & Prestbury borders (SK10 / SK11)

Sandstone patios, steps & driveways in Macclesfield, Bollington & the Prestbury borders.

Up here on the edge of the Peak District the winters bite harder than in Stockport. We build stone cottage courtyards in Bollington and family patios in Upton Priory and Tytherington to cope with it: every slab primed against frost, every joint filled with a compound that will not wash out.

Curved natural sandstone patio with charcoal sett edging, curved brick steps up to a raised terrace and lavender borders beside mock-Tudor houses

Natural sandstone & brick steps · the look Bollington owners often ask for

20–25 MinutesFrom Hazel Grove down the A523 through Poynton

Kerridge StoneMatched to the local buff gritstone of Bollington’s cottages

SBR PrimingA bonding coat on every slab so frost cannot lift it

Cheshire EastWe check Bollington’s conservation areas before we quote

01 · BOLLINGTON’S OWN STONE

Kerridge stone cottage gardens, laid to last another century.

Look up from Palmerston Street and you can see where much of Bollington came from: the quarries on Kerridge Hill, below White Nancy. The mill workers’ cottages, the walls along the Macclesfield Canal and many of the old yards are built from that buff, hard-wearing gritstone.

When a cottage garden in Bollington or Kerridge needs a new courtyard or a flight of steps, Indian sandstone or grey porcelain can look out of place next to that stonework. We lay new or reclaimed Kerridge stone flags instead, at £240 per m² all‑in, and bring samples so you can hold them against your own walls.

Reclaimed flags vary in thickness, so we bed each one individually on a full bed of mortar and trim the underside where needed. It takes longer than modern slabs, and we say so on the quote.

David and Callum Mercer holding a sample slab beside their rotary laser level — David & Callum bring sample stone to every survey

02 · HIGHER GROUND, HARDER WINTERS

Why a Macclesfield patio needs more frost protection than a Stockport one.

Water that gets under a slab freezes, swells and pushes it up. The more nights the ground freezes and thaws, the faster a badly laid patio breaks up.

HeightUp to 250m+ at KerridgeCentral Macclesfield sits well above Stockport, and gardens on the Rainow and Kerridge side are higher still.

FrostsMore freeze-thaw nightsShaded north-facing gardens below the hills can stay frozen all day in January.

SoilClay over gritstoneHeavy clay in Upton Priory and Tytherington; thinner soil over rock towards Bollington, sometimes needing a breaker.

Our answerSBR slurry on every slabA polymer bonding coat brushed under each slab locks it to a full mortar bed, so there are no gaps for water to freeze in.

CouncilCheshire EastBollington and parts of Macclesfield have conservation areas; we check before suggesting materials for a front garden.

03 · RECENT SK10 JOBS

A hillside cottage and a family patio, with the invoices.

Sloping garden cut into three lawn terraces with treated sleeper walls and stone slab steps, with green hills behind

Final Invoice: £8,970

KERRIDGE ROAD, BOLLINGTON (SK10)

Three sleeper terraces, four reclaimed Kerridge stone steps & a 12 m² stone landing on a steep cottage garden

Walls + landing21 lin.m + 12 m²

On site8 working days

How it adds up21 × £210 + 4 × £420 + 12 × £240

"Our garden was a bank you had to climb on all fours. Now there are three flat lawns and stone steps that look as if they have always been there. David even found reclaimed flags from a yard less than two miles away." Catherine & Ian Wardle, Bollington

Finished light-grey porcelain terrace with a flush threshold drain, LED step lights and an oak sleeper bed

Final Invoice: £6,765

UPTON PRIORY ESTATE, MACCLESFIELD (SK10)

34 m² porcelain family patio on heavy clay, with 5 m of channel drain at the doors

Area34 m²

On site6 working days

How it adds up34 × £185 + 5 × £95

"Our last patio heaved after one hard winter. This one went in during November, came through a fortnight of frost straight after, and not one slab has moved." Rachel Tomlinson, Upton Priory

04 · HOW WE WINTER-PROOF A PATIO

Six things we do differently on higher, colder ground.

Dig below the topsoil, every time
We go 214mm down for a patio and take out all the soft topsoil, which holds water and freezes.
A membrane under the stone
A woven sheet stops clay squeezing up into the stone base when it gets wet.
150mm of compacted stone
Crushed limestone (MOT Type 1) compacted in two layers, so there is a firm, free-draining bed.
A full bed of mortar, no dabs
Every slab sits on solid mortar across its whole underside, so there are no hollows for water to collect.
SBR priming coat on each slab
Brushed on immediately before laying, it glues stone or porcelain to the mortar so frost cannot prise it off.
A fall away from the house
A gentle slope (about 1 in 80) takes rain off the patio before it can sit and freeze.

05 · MACCLESFIELD QUESTIONS

What SK10 & SK11 homeowners ask us first.

Do you cover south Macclesfield as well as Bollington?+

Yes. We cover SK10 (Bollington, Kerridge, Tytherington, Upton Priory, Prestbury borders) and SK11 (including Broken Cross and Weston). Most Macclesfield jobs are 20 to 25 minutes from our yard.

Can you match the stone on our Bollington cottage?+

Usually, with Kerridge stone flags, either new or reclaimed. Reclaimed stone is the closest match on older cottages but supplies come and go, so David checks what is available before he quotes and shows you the actual flags.

Will you lay a patio in the middle of winter?+

We dig and build the stone base in most weather, but we do not lay slabs on mortar when the temperature is below 3°C and falling. On cold days we cover fresh work overnight with frost blankets. If the forecast is bad, we tell you and move the laying day rather than risk it.

Our Tytherington drive slopes down to the road. Can you still do block paving?+

Yes. Permeable block is our usual choice on sloping drives at £140 per m² all‑in, because the blocks grip well and the joints let water soak in rather than race downhill. We add a channel drain across the bottom so nothing runs onto the pavement. On very steep drives we advise against resin, which can be slippery when wet.

We live in a Bollington conservation area. Does that change anything?+

For a back garden it rarely does. For front gardens, boundary walls and anything visible from the road, Cheshire East may prefer natural stone over porcelain. We check the rules for your street and suggest materials that will not cause problems.

Porcelain & sandstone patios Retaining walls & steps Alderley Edge & Prestbury (SK9 / SK10) Poynton & Disley (SK12) Knutsford & Mobberley (WA16)

Bonding slurry being brushed across the underside of a porcelain slab before laying

FREE SITE SURVEY

A patio built for Macclesfield winters, with a fixed written price within 48 hours.

£0 upfront depositMaterials paid on delivery, labour on sign-off
10-year frost-heave guaranteeIn writing, on the sub-base and drainage
Stone samples brought to youKerridge, sandstone and porcelain side by side

Call 0161 570 8698 Book a Free Site Survey