Why are Opinions polarised Within the UK Landscaping Industry?
Having been involved in the landscaping industry for nearly six decades, it is not surprising I have seen many changes within the working methods, improved tools and mechanical equipment, transport systems and material handling techniques. This article is written from a purely personal viewpoint – changes I have seen – and should be read as such.
Traditional hand tools of every kind, changed after centuries of use and became labour saving machines and electronic gadgets – everything from pruning equipment to mature tree planting, lifted from the ground and transplanted without damage, to surveying calculators operating at the touch of a button. Vacuum lifting tools handling heavy weights effortlessly on site and in the yard are an accepted norm nowadays.
This natural progress in additional safety and reductions in labour needed for the task due to new equipment is only a small part of the real changes that have occurred since the 1960s.
Despite unprecedented professional growth, the industry now appears increasingly divided – philosophically, commercially and professionally. This paper explains likely reasons for this polarisation.
The Nature and Style of Landscaping BusinessesSince the 1960s
After the Second World War, there was a state of limbo in horticulture. Before the war, many estates and builders ran their own in-house teams of what we would call landscapers today. They were mainly stonemasons, bricklayers and carpenters, schooled in wall building and laying paving and pathways. Training was essentially retained within the company, with full-term apprenticeships and an obvious career path for the future.
During the 60s, several larger style landscape companies formed, mainly working with landscape architects, with few garden designers offering their services to the public.
In 1972, a small group of landscapers transitioned away from the Horticulture Trades Association (formed in 1899) and formed The British Association of Landscape Industries (BALI) (www.bali.org.uk) which quickly grew as an organisation, including many affiliates as well as commercial and domestic contractors. Most of these companies worked with landscape architects and a growing number of garden designers.
In 1981, a small group of garden designers, keen to display their work at the Chelsea Flower Show Designer tent – previously exclusively for landscape architects only – founded The Society of Garden Designers (SGD) (chair: Peter Rogers) who worked mainly in the private sector. The SGD rapidly grew into a large organisation, now known as The Society of Garden and Landscape Designers (SLGD) since 2025. (www.sgld.org.uk)
In 1984, a previously under-developed source vehicle for raising horticultural industry standards was formed – The Institute of Horticulture – granted Chartered status in 2014 (now The Chartered Institute of Horticulture) which was aimed at specialists of all kinds, often academic, but including a number of influential landscapers. (www.horticulture.org.uk)
In 1995, The Association of Professional Landscapers (APL) was founded, firstly as a small group of contractors, who rapidly grew as they were incorporated into the Horticulture Trades Association. The APL has a small number of affiliates, and a growing number of garden designers among its membership. It is predominantly populated by those companies working within the domestic sector. (www.landscaper.org.uk)
Finally, in 2016, The Professional Garden Consultant’s Association (PGCA) (www.pgca.org.uk) was founded to include a wide range of experts and specialists under one umbrella, each member being an individual, not a company. The PGCA is not a trade organisation per se, but is a Register of vetted and approved experts in their own fields, including several accredited expert witnesses.
As you can see, the landscaping industry has evolved over half a century to become a well resourced professional industry, with senior members of the various associations/societies regularly appearing at formal Government level and speaking in House of Commons committees. From a work force of garden builders working under instruction by others to become a major industry, with a value of horticulture to the country in excess of £38 billion pounds (Horticulture Trades Association) (2023). It is major contributor to the UK Exchequer, with a capacity to continue growing if well nurtured by those involved.
How has the Structure of the Landscaping Industry Changed over the Years?
Although this is a broad statement, made without any real evidence beyond by my own experiences in landscaping, the old style companies who trained staff by formal apprenticeships and in-house mentors, ensuring a through-flow of individual crafts-people skilled to the standards set by the firm, largely altered through a number of different social and economic changes, the majority of which could be laid down to money and costs of running such companies.
The following statements will, hopefully, explain why I believe that the domestic landscaping industry in the UK is becoming more polarised, in my opinion.
Since the 90s, and perhaps earlier, coinciding with the growth of labour-saving tools on site, and societal changes whereby apprenticeships were largely replaced by Government edict to become compliant with regulations including schemes such as the Youth Employment Programme (trainees were known as YOPS) the traditional routes were beset with legislation, creating a major vacuum in young people coming through the system.
According to various sources, including LANTRA Skills Assessment (2021) the issue of an aging workforce and training pipeline weaknesses have produced a national shortage of labour.
Legislation over the past three decades has increased, or revised from regulations designed for the commercial sectors of both horticulture and construction, with rafts of mandatory and advisory rules that affect the domestic landscape industry.
The most important of these sets of rules is the Construction (Design Management) Regulations 2015 (CDM) which evolved from the original set devised for the building industry in 1994. CDM, whilst predominantly concerned with health and safety, it calls for a Construction Phase Plan, including risk assessments and method statement (RAMS) tying all participants of a contract into a legally structured document.
British Standards have been rewritten or altered to bring a wide range of descriptive written documentation into the landscaping industry, mainly since 1990 (BS 4428:1989 – General Landscaping Works) with many others from 2010 onwards. The most important British Standard as far as the landscaping industry is concerned is BS 7533: 101 and 102. (103 is currently being produced) covering design and installation of paving.
Whilst British Standards are guides, and not legally binding, if they are mentioned in a contract, they become mandatory and failure to comply may be deemed a breach of contract. They also form the foundation for the legal premise of Industry Best Practice which may be applied in dispute cases.
Social and societal changes within the legal industry have also evolved, including legislation surrounding finances. The Consumer Protection Act 1987 and the Consumer Rights Act 2015 bring great responsibilities to bear on contractors when dealing with contracts and customers.
HMRC are making great efforts to prevent money laundering and tax evasion, hoping to reduce the amount of taxation fraud. Their efforts may be laudable, but greater pressure and onus is placed on bona fide companies, whilst the grey economy continues unabated.
The Landscaping Industry is Becoming Split into Two Professional Cultures
With the structural changes over recent decades moving away from mentored training opportunities within large companies, there are many more smaller firms, with less chances of having a hierarchal staff policy due to the limited size and scale of their operations
According to Property Daily (2020) there are 88,000 landscape operatives in the UK, and 19,500 businesses. This number is expected to rise to 24,000 in 2026 (Google). Approximately 1,000 are accredited and vetted members of either the APL or BALI (the only two organisations that have in-depth vetting procedures including ensuring full compliance with all regulations and have sound financial arrangements in place).
Whilst there are many firms who do not wish to join any organisation, and fully comply with all laws and legislation, carrying out high class construction work, they do not appear to have any impact on polarisation, as they are quietly successful.
Customers too, have an impact on the selection of their chosen contractor. Some prefer to work under a strictly controlled set of terms and conditions, with every due compliance in place and an agreed programme of works, many are happy to employ a landscaper on nothing more than a Facebook or Instagram account, with unverified recommendations deemed sufficient to hand over thousands of pounds to strangers, without any documentation – not even a receipt. (As an expert witness, I can personally verify this is not an uncommon event).
It sometimes seems that the UK landscaping industry is not one profession – it is several overlapping professions sharing the same projects. This is the quiet reality of the situation, created by customers who are either unaware of their responsibilities or are happy to rely on other factors to protect them, such as household legal cover insurance, or the online dispute resolution services to protect them in time of dispute.
Since Covid, the number of firms offering landscape services has increased from 19,500 to a projected 24,000 in 2026, and to continue growing. The balance between professionally accredited companies to non-accredited firms is expanding.
Despite the huge increase in legislation and requirement for due diligence and compliance, the gulf between accredited and unaccredited firms is getting wider.
As previously discussed, the opportunities for training and mentorship have reduced over the years, whilst the need to understand and comply with new regulations has grown.
Formal training opportunities have decreased, with Government Colleges unable to keep up with landscaping skills due to shortage of skilled trainers and reduced finances, plus pressure to diversify into other disciplines such as equestrian and golf course studies, so the need for more training has been difficult to fill.
Very few resources offer training – even online – regarding business management, finances, pricing, contracts, risk management, client psychology and running a profitable business (see www.landscapelibrary.co.uk) or in classrooms (see TASK Academy (www.taskacademy.co.uk) or The Landscape Academy (www.landscapeacademy.co.uk) for more details) leaving a wide desert of necessary business skills.
Labour mobility is another factor to consider. Social media proved to be a magnet for those with sufficient confidence to leave their current employment and become self-employed, hoping to make a better living from selling their skills. This has meant than many newcomers skipped the ‘learning by osmosis’ stage. Online and specialist college training has replaced the experienced mentors of the past.
Increased Financial Risks in Projects Today
As landscape projects have become larger, more technically complex, with high-budget commissions, so have they become more legally sensitive. Professions must take active advice to avoid disputes, manage client expectations when writing contracts, creating technical specification at the same time as protecting margins.
Without experience driven knowledge, this can be dangerous ground for any company. Learning on the job simply will not do in the modern age. In recent years, in my opinion, the landscaping industry has exploded faster than expected, and as labour shortages have been caused by expanding too fast, into new and often unknown technical territory, with even experienced firms taking on projects that were closer to civil engineering than landscaping.
Too many firms concentrated on inspirational company developments such as winning awards at Shows and Industry events, using the kudos to drive idealised projects whilst neglecting the all too real personal aspects of expansion, ignoring important factors such as individual burn-out, failure, cashflow, coping with difficult customers without having formal management compliances in place, thereby affecting business survival.
The landscape industry has moved away from being a craft trade into a professional service, without the benefits of continuing education, reflective practice and shared professional knowledge that previously underpinned it.
As mentorship declined, risks increased, and hybrid careers emerged without any genuine real-world experience to act as a guide. The industry is going through a major cultural change. No single traditional qualification prepares someone fully to cope with competing pressures of running a professional landscaping company.
The Industry has Become Liability Driven
Landscapers have moved from ‘people who build gardens’ to people who are obliged to interpret risk, disputes, compliance as well as manage the essential legal requirements of the modern world. The dominant pressure is legal defensibility and avoiding claims of negligence.
I believe this has happened due to more consumer litigation, higher property and contract values, insurance scrutiny and the rise of determination and adjudication under legal clauses. When disputes occur, the question is not ‘what do contractors usually do?’, to become ‘what would an expert witness say is the best practice?’
This is not to over state the credence of the expert, but merely to reflect the value placed upon their shoulders by the courts system. In these circumstances, expert opinion becomes the defining benchmark.
Interestingly, it appears that technical editors and commentators of forums such as The Paving Site Online (www.paving.site) are seen as independent, thereby occupying a unique position, unlike manufacturers who are product biased.
Courts, surveyors, insurers etc therefore treat technical editors as neutral observers, and once cited in expert reports, CPD material, on training courses (online or classroom) their guidance becomes self-reinforcing.
What of the Future?
The industry already has sufficient legislation – it is difficult to imagine any factor that has not been covered by rules and regulations.
A personal proposal, I suggest that in the future, customers will be protected by a licensing system, similar to those in force in much of Europe, Australia, Canada and the United States, whereby contractors can only purchase industrial quantities of materials if they hold an appropriate insurance backed document. (These licensing systems vary widely internationally). This will protect the customer as well as the contractor.
Policing the system is simple. No accreditation, no licence, no insurance. No insurance – the customer remains liable for any problems or accidents on site.
I would very much like to see the industry coming together to offer more personal management training, including mental health and well-being. There are some excellent trade association groups called Cluster Groups held around the country on a regular basis – often monthly. The Association of Professional Landscapers have been leaders in this field.
Open and frank discussions are the order of the day (evening) where contractors learn they are not alone in their problems, and private sessions are arranged informally to help and support others with personal issues, all done without fanfare.
Summary
I think that recognising the polarisation of the industry is the first step in improving matters. There will always be a highly professional element and a not so professional group in any industry. Because of the wide variety of multi-disciplines within landscaping, it will always lend itself to varying degrees of quality. Currently, anyone can set themselves up as a landscaper with no skills or experience. This will only change if a licensing system is brought in which will increase the numbers of bona fide companies.
As a trade industry, landscaping has transformed into a science without boundaries, and this factor should be recognised and celebrated by finding the means to support its proponents and ensure long-term safety within the industry.
I have no doubt landscaping will continue to evolve, becoming ever more technical and complex, with fewer firms competing for high-calibre projects. Hopefully, in-house training will return and more Government consideration is given to practical apprenticeships and technical colleges to create genuine crafts-orientated skilled artisans with an appreciation of the need for strong management as well as handicrafts.
