Fencing in Prestbury

The houses and gardens in Prestbury

The centre of Prestbury has barely changed in form since the later medieval period. Period cottages, thatched roofs and 16th-century townhouses run through the historic streets, and on Deep Street the Grade II listed Thatched Cottage carries square-panelled oak framing on a limestone plinth under thatch. Roughly 60 Grade II listed buildings and structures sit in that small core, with two Grade II* as well, so a high proportion of village-centre properties are listed or stand within a listed building's curtilage. Around the core, Prestbury grew through the 20th century as a favoured residential area, profiting from the shortage of accommodation in the spa town itself and from the racecourse the Cheltenham Racecourse Company established at Prestbury Park in 1902. Those estate gardens are fenced in timber.

Digging in Prestbury: the practical bit

Charmouth Mudstone is the mapped bedrock, so most gardens here are Lias clay: heavy digging, water standing in the hole through winter, baked hard by August. Cheltenham Sand and Gravel lies over it in patches, including the north-eastern corner of Prestbury Park, and that gravel holds groundwater after wet weather, in bands that shift over short distances. The Cotswold limestone aquifer to the east keeps water moving west through the catchment, so holes on the racecourse side refill as fast as you dig. We bale them, use a stiffer mix and haunch the concrete above ground. Towards Cleeve Hill the clay turns stony with escarpment brash and the breaker comes out. In the village core, panels and spoil go through the house or a side passage.

The boundaries you already have

Prestbury runs on two boundary materials. In the historic core it is Cotswold stone walling, recorded as a distinctive feature that shapes the character of the conservation area. Stone fails by bulging, by losing its coping, or by dropping a section after a wet winter. Removing an existing wall, fence or gate inside a conservation area is controlled, so that job starts with a check with Cheltenham Borough Council before a tool comes out. On the 20th-century estates it is close-board and lap panels, much of it the same age as the houses, which is why one failed panel is usually the first of several.

Everywhere we cover in Prestbury

Prestbury village historic core · Deep Street · Prestbury Park and Cheltenham Racecourse · the 20th-century estates around the old village · Cleeve Hill (GL52 3) · Southam (GL52 3)