General Brickwork and Blockwork

Brickwork that isn't a housing estate

Most of our work is new-build and commercial, but good trowel work isn't limited to big sites. We also take on general brickwork and blockwork for builders, contractors and private clients: extensions, garages, garden and boundary walls, piers and gate posts, and repairs to existing masonry.

Matching existing brickwork

The hardest part of an extension or repair is usually making the new work look as if it was always there. That means matching the brick for colour, texture and size, matching the mortar colour and joint profile, and continuing the existing bond so the new wall ties in without a visible line.

Kris's NOCN Level 3 NVQ Diploma includes a unit on repairing and maintaining masonry structures. That unit covers matching existing materials and continuing existing bonding, in both brick and block. We'll look at the existing wall, help you source bricks that match as closely as possible (reclaimed or new), and set the new work out so the courses and bond run through.

Where an older wall uses a different bond from modern stretcher bond, such as English or Flemish bond on older houses, we carry that bond on in the new work.

Arches, curves and decorative work

The NVQ also includes a unit on architectural and decorative masonry. Its assessed range covers rough-ringed, axed and gauged arches, walls with flush, projecting or decorative features, walls curved on plan, walls curved in elevation, and walls splayed on plan. That's useful on extensions and garden walls where a feature arch, a curved boundary wall or a corbelled detail makes the job.

Typical general jobs

• Single and two-storey extensions: facing brick outer leaf, blockwork inner leaf and tying in to the existing house
• Detached and attached garages
• Garden walls, boundary walls, piers and gate posts
• Rebuilding damaged sections of wall and cutting out and replacing spalled bricks
• Chimney and parapet rebuilds, where access is safe and properly arranged
• Blockwork for outbuildings, stores and internal walls

Regulations and permissions

For extensions and new structures, you or your designer are responsible for planning permission and Building Regulations approval where they're needed. We build to the approved drawings and work with your building control inspector. In Powys that means the Building Regulations for Wales and the Welsh Government's Approved Documents; in Shropshire and the West Midlands, the Approved Documents for England. If you're not sure what applies, ask your local authority's planning and building control teams before work starts.

Getting a price

Send Kris some photos of the existing wall or house, the drawings if you have them, and a note of what you want built. WhatsApp is the easiest way. We'll come back with questions or arrange to see it.

Tidy work around your home

On domestic jobs we're working at someone's house, not on a building site. We agree access and where materials will be stored, protect paths and drives where we can, keep mortar off neighbouring surfaces, and clear up at the end of each day. New brickwork is cleaned down when it's finished, so what you're left with is the wall, not the mess.