A new fence is one of the most common garden projects in the UK, and costs vary more than most people expect, not just between fence types, but depending on ground conditions, access, and whether old fencing needs removing. Here is a straightforward guide to what you will pay, which fence type suits which situation, and what the planning rules say.

What Does Fencing Cost?

A fence price has two parts: the materials, which merchants publish, and the labour, which contractors quote per job. Below are the materials as UK merchants list them in October 2026, including VAT, and then what the Valuation Office Agency allows for a fence erected complete.

Materials

Panels are made to fill a 1.83 m (6 ft) gap between posts. A dip-treated overlap panel 1.83 m wide and 1.8 m high is £34 at Wickes.1

A closeboard panel of the same size is £54.2

To build close-board on site instead, featheredge boards start at £3.50 for a 1.8 m board.3

Arris rails, the horizontal rails the boards are nailed to, start at £9 for a 2.4 m length.4

A slotted concrete post 2.44 m long is £31.5

Treated timber posts cost less: Travis Perkins lists a 2.4 m UC4 post at £17.35 in 100 × 100 mm and £9.17 in 75 × 75 mm.6

A recessed concrete gravel board 1.83 m long is £22.50.7

A treated timber gravel board starts at £8.8

Blue Circle Postcrete, which sets a post without mixing, is £7.50 for a 20 kg bag.9

A square-lattice trellis panel 1.83 m square is £35.10

A 300 mm trellis topper, to fix along the top of an existing fence, is £15.11

Composite fencing is sold as a system of boards, posts and trims rather than as a single panel, so it does not reduce to a simple price per panel. Hardwood fencing in oak or iroko is made to order; we have not found a published rate for it that we would stand behind.

Erected

The Valuation Office Agency’s Rating Cost Guide sets out what it costs to erect each common type of fence, per metre of run, for valuing business premises.

It puts a 1.8 m interwoven panel fence on timber posts at £64 a metre.12

On concrete posts the same fence is £85 a metre.12

A 1.8 m close-boarded fence on concrete posts with three arris rails is £95 a metre.12

A three-rail softwood post-and-rail fence 1.2 m high is £32 a metre.12

Tubular steel railings 1.2 m high are £175 a metre.12

The guide’s notes say its rates leave out VAT and reflect a contract of the order of £4 million, so they describe a contractor working at scale.13 A short garden run uses the same materials but carries more travel, set-up and waste for each metre, so expect a quote for one to come in above them.

Worked Example: 20 m Boundary Fence (Close-Board, 1.8 m)

At the VOA’s rate for a 1.8 m close-boarded fence on concrete posts, £95 a metre, 20 m comes to £1,900 on the same basis.12

That rate covers the posts, rails, boards, digging and concrete. It does not cover taking down and taking away an old fence, which a contractor prices separately.

Fence Types: What to Choose

Close-Board (Featheredge) Fencing

The most popular garden boundary fence in the UK. Individual overlapping boards (featheredge boards) are nailed or clipped to arris rails fixed between posts. Because boards are fitted individually rather than as a factory panel, close-board fence is structurally stronger than lap panels, can be built around slopes and uneven ground, and is easier to repair (replace one board rather than a whole panel).

Close-board is almost always the better long-term investment over lap panels for a permanent boundary.

Lifespan: typically 20–25 years with treated timber; 8–12 years without.

Lap Panel Fencing

Factory-made overlapping-slat panels dropped between timber or concrete posts. Fast to install and cheap, the go-to choice for rental properties and temporary boundaries. The main problem is that panels act as a solid sail in high winds, and if a post rots or a panel is damaged, the whole panel must be replaced rather than individual boards.

In exposed gardens, close-board is a better investment. Panel fencing is best when cost and speed are the priority.

Concrete Posts and Gravel Boards

Timber posts embedded directly in soil are the main point of failure in any fence. Concrete posts eliminate this entirely: they do not rot and can last for decades. They cost more upfront than timber (see the post prices above) but extend the functional life of the whole fence. Gravel boards (concrete or treated hardwood) at the base protect the bottom of timber boards from ground moisture.

If you are paying for a quality fence, specify concrete posts and gravel boards.

Post-and-Rail Fencing

Open fencing with timber rails between posts, rural-looking, good for large gardens, and much cheaper than close-board. Provides no privacy but is effective as a boundary marker and for containing children and pets. Often combined with wire mesh (stock fence or chicken wire) for animal management.

Metal Railings

Galvanised or powder-coated steel or wrought iron railings. More commonly used at front boundaries and driveways than rear gardens. Very durable (20–40 years) but expensive. Require occasional repainting (cast iron) or are maintenance-free (powder-coated steel or aluminium).

Composite Fencing

Composite fencing (wood-fibre and plastic blend, similar to composite decking) is a growing market. Maintenance-free, consistent colour, resistant to rot. Cost is significantly higher than timber but avoids the need for painting or treating. Quality varies widely, check for warranties of 15+ years and ensure boards have a capped surface for moisture resistance.

Posts: The Foundation of a Good Fence

Fence failure most commonly starts with post failure. Key rules:

  • As a rule of thumb, post depth should be approximately one-third of the above-ground height plus 100 mm. A 1.8 m fence needs posts sunk to at least 700 mm, ideally 750–800 mm.
  • Posts are usually set in concrete (postcrete or ready-mix) rather than just rammed into soil, but the Wood Protection Association warns against a concrete ‘boot’ that holds water around the foot of a timber post, so keep the base of the hole free-draining (a layer of gravel under the post helps).14
  • Timber posts should be pressure-treated to UC4 specification (for ground contact), check the post specification, not just “treated.”15 The use classes and the desired service life behind them come from BS 8417, now in its 2024 edition.16
  • Concrete posts eliminate rot risk entirely and are worth the extra cost on permanent boundaries.

Post spacing should not exceed 2.4–2.7 m for full-height close-board fencing; 1.83 m (6 ft) is standard for panel fencing to match panel widths.

Planning Permission Rules

These are national rules set by the General Permitted Development Order, not something an individual council decides. In England (Planning Permission rules differ slightly in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland):

  • Any fence up to 2 m high: no planning permission required (permitted development)17
  • Adjacent to a highway used by vehicular traffic: maximum 1 m. The qualifier matters, a boundary onto a footpath-only highway is not caught by the 1 m limit17
  • Replacing or altering an existing fence: you may keep it at its former height even if that is above the limit, but you cannot go higher17
  • Listed buildings: this permitted development right is simply not available within the curtilage of, or to a boundary of, a listed building, so you need consent17
  • Conservation areas and Article 4 directions: taking a fence, wall or gate down can itself need permission in a conservation area, and the right to erect or alter one can be withdrawn by an article 4 direction or a planning condition18

If your neighbour erects a fence that you believe breaches planning rules, contact your local planning authority. The fence responsibility (whose side it sits on) is a private legal matter, and it is usually less well documented than people expect.

Maintenance

Fence typeMaintenance requirement
Treated softwoodAnnual or biennial fence treatment (oil or stain)
HardwoodOiling every 2–3 years
Concrete postsNone
Metal railingsRepainting every 5–10 years (cast iron); powder-coat is largely maintenance-free
CompositeWash down annually, no staining or painting required

The treatment itself is the cheap part: Cuprinol 5 Year Ducksback shed and fence treatment is £19 for 5 litres at Wickes.19

A good quality timber treatment applied every two years extends fence life dramatically, from 8–12 years to 20+ years for close-board with treated posts.

Who Is Responsible for a Fence?

Less often than people assume. HM Land Registry is explicit that there is usually no record of the exact boundary between two properties, and no record of who owns the hedge, wall, tree or fence between them.20 The title plan will not settle it: a boundary shown on the register is a general boundary and does not determine the exact line unless it has been formally determined.21 Where things are ambiguous:

  • The convention (not a legal rule) is that the post-side faces inward and the good side faces the neighbour, but this varies.22
  • A “T” mark in the deeds, where one exists, is the usual indication of who is responsible for a boundary.22 Plenty of titles carry no T marks at all.
  • There is no general duty to maintain a boundary fence. An obligation to keep one up comes from a covenant in the deeds, not from owning the boundary.22
  • If a fence divides two properties with no clear ownership, HM Land Registry suggests treating it as a party boundary, and both parties can agree to share the cost.22

If it matters enough to settle, the two formal routes are a boundary agreement with your neighbour or an application to HM Land Registry for a determined boundary.20

The rules in this note are those that apply in England. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have their own building standards and permitted development rights.

References (22)

Figures in this note were checked against the sources below on 30 September 2026. Superscript numbers in the text point to them. Every source the site cites, by topic.

  1. 1costsupplier figureWickes.RN-9E5UY7A price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for a Forest Garden dip-treated overlap (lap) fence panel, 1.83 m wide by 1.8 m high, the standard 6 by 6 ft garden panel, with its shelf price including VAT.
  2. 2costsupplier figureWickes.RN-Z8Z8DMA price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for a Forest Garden dip-treated closeboard fence panel, 6 by 6 ft, a factory-made panel of vertical featheredge boards, with its shelf price including VAT.
  3. 3costsupplier figureWickes.RN-QKTDJBA price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for its own featheredge fence board, 1.8 m long, the tapered board nailed overlapping onto arris rails to build a close-board fence, with its shelf price including VAT.
  4. 4costsupplier figureWickes.RN-WSJYU4A price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for its own 2.4 m treated timber arris rail, the triangular rail that spans between fence posts and carries the boards of a close-board fence, with its shelf price including VAT.
  5. 5costsupplier figureWickes.RN-W6M4AMA price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for a 2.44 m slotted intermediate concrete fence post, the post fence panels drop into, with its shelf price including VAT.
  6. 6costsupplier figureTravis Perkins.RN-6O2INDA price, true at 2026-10. A national builders merchant's fence post range, priced by section and length, in UC4 treatment for ground contact. Published list prices for a named landscaping component.
  7. 7costsupplier figureWickes.RN-Y5MUQQA price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for a 1.83 m recessed concrete gravel board, the board that runs along the foot of a fence between posts and keeps timber off the soil, with its shelf price including VAT.
  8. 8costsupplier figureWickes.RN-KTZN9UA price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for its own treated timber gravel board, 150 mm deep and 1.83 m long, fitted along the foot of a fence, with its shelf price including VAT.
  9. 9costsupplier figureWickes, guidance.RN-2XE501A price, true at 2026-10. Retailer product page carrying the maker's product description for Blue Circle Postcrete; it states the setting time of 5 to 10 minutes. No maker page was fetchable.
  10. 10costsupplier figureWickes.RN-FJCPBRA price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for a Forest Garden square-lattice timber trellis panel, 1830 mm square, with its shelf price including VAT.
  11. 11costsupplier figureWickes.RN-FCLUB3A price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for a Forest Garden square-lattice fence-top trellis, 1830 by 300 mm, made to fix along the top of an existing fence panel, with its shelf price including VAT.
  12. 12costvery strongValuation Office Agency, a government page.RN-RSLGJ5A price, true at 2024-04. The Valuation Office Agency's Rating Cost Guide 2026: estimated replacement costs per square metre for building types, used by the VOA for contractor's basis rating valuations. Each code gives a construction description, the unit of measurement and an ERC at a UK mean location factor of 1.00. It is official, free and unusually comprehensive, and it is a replacement cost for rating rather than a market tender price, which is why the guidance notes matter as much as the table.
  13. 13technicalvery strongValuation Office Agency, guidance.RN-L37ZLPGuidance Note edition 9 to the Valuation Office Agency's Rating Cost Guide 2026. Explains the methodology behind the estimated replacement costs in the guide and, critically, the adjustments applied to them: the location factor, the contract size adjustment and how the unit rates are meant to be used. Read this before quoting any figure out of the cost guide itself, because a raw ERC without its adjustments is the wrong number.
  14. 14technicalfairWood Protection Association, guidance.RN-Z11BO8The Wood Protection Association's installation guidance for treated fence posts. It warns against a concrete boot that keeps the foot of the post wet and recommends gravel at the bottom of the hole for drainage.
  15. 15technicalgoodTimber Development UK, guidance.RN-6F3CWZTimber Development UK's guidance on timber fencing. It sets Use Class 4 under BS 8417 as the minimum treatment for fence posts and other timber in ground contact.
  16. 16technicalstrongBSI (British Standards Institution), a standard.RN-1YSDSKSTATUS: CURRENT. BS 8417:2024 published 15 August 2024, superseding BS 8417:2011+A1:2014. Gives recommendations and guidance for the preservative treatment of wood to provide protection against biodeterioration in end-use situations. Covers solid wood and glued laminated wood (Glulam); excludes wood-based panel products, physically or biologically modified wood, and curative treatments. It takes into account the natural durability and treatability of the wood, the use class as defined in BS EN 335, and the desired service life, and recommends penetration and retention levels for different timber components. This is the source of the Use Class 2 / Use Class 4 language on treated batten and fence post labelling, and of the stated desired service lives (30 or 60 years) manufacturers quote. Treatment certificates quoting BS 8417:2011 predate the 2024 rewrite.
  17. 17technicalvery strongThe National Archives, legislation.RN-B3EWHKThe national permitted development right for boundary enclosures, and the answer to the very common error of treating fence height as a council rule. Class A permits the erection, construction, maintenance, improvement or alteration of a gate, fence, wall or other means of enclosure. A.1 exclusions: (a) adjacent to a HIGHWAY USED BY VEHICULAR TRAFFIC the height must not exceed 1 metre above ground level, except at a school where 2 metres is allowed provided any part above 1 metre does not obstruct highway users' sightlines; (b) anywhere else 2 metres above ground level; (c) where an existing enclosure is maintained, improved or altered its height must not exceed its former height or the (a)/(b) limit, whichever is the greater, so an existing over-height fence may be kept at that height but not raised; (d) development is NOT permitted within the curtilage of, or to a boundary of, a listed building. The 'used by vehicular traffic' qualifier is routinely dropped from consumer guidance, which wrongly applies the 1 metre limit to a boundary onto a footpath.
  18. 18technicalvery strongPlanning Portal, guidance.RN-N80QRQThe Planning Portal's homeowner summary of GPDO Schedule 2 Part 2 Class A. No permission needed where the structure does not exceed one metre in height from ground level next to a highway, or two metres in height elsewhere, and where an existing structure's height is not increased beyond those limits. Permission IS needed where the site is a listed building or within its curtilage, or where the boundary involves a neighbouring listed building or its curtilage. Notes that in a conservation area you might need permission to TAKE DOWN a fence, wall or gate, which is the reverse of what most readers expect. Also notes the right can be removed by an article four direction or a planning condition. Ends with the standard caveat that this is introductory guidance and the local planning authority should be checked.
  19. 19costsupplier figureWickes.RN-RC6DIOA price, true at 2026-10. Wickes's product page for Cuprinol 5 Year Ducksback, a water-based colour treatment for sheds and rough-sawn fences, in a 5 litre tin, with its shelf price including VAT.
  20. 20technicalvery strongHM Land Registry, guidance.RN-M7OUL6The government's own correction to the widespread 'check the title plan, the T marks show whose fence it is' advice. States that most title plans do not show exact boundaries and that you usually do not need the exact boundaries recorded anywhere, and that there is usually NO RECORD of either the exact boundary between two properties or who owns the hedge, wall, tree or fence between two properties. The two formal routes to settle it are a boundary agreement with the neighbour or an application for a determined boundary. Pair with Land Registration Act 2002 s.60, which makes a registered boundary a general boundary that does not determine the exact line unless determined.
  21. 21technicalvery strongThe National Archives, legislation.RN-DM9ZVHSection 60(1): the boundary of a registered estate as shown for the purposes of the register is a GENERAL BOUNDARY unless shown as determined under this section. Section 60(2): a general boundary does not determine the exact line of the boundary. Section 60(3) allows rules to set the circumstances, method and application procedure for determining an exact boundary and for registering it; section 60(4) requires those applications to be made to the registrar. This is the statutory basis for saying a Land Registry title plan cannot settle a fence line or fence ownership, which matters in fencing, hedge, extension and boundary dispute notes.
  22. 22technicalvery strongHM Land Registry, guidance.RN-2PRFRZHM Land Registry practice guide on boundaries. It says the belief that a fence's posts and rails show which side owns it has no legal foundation.

  1. Forest Garden Dip Treated Larchlap Heritage Overlap Panel - 1.83 x 1.8m (6 x 6ft approx), Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  2. Forest Garden Dip Treated Closeboard Fence Panel - 6 x 6ft, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  3. Wickes Feather Edge Fence Board - 150 x 11mm x 1.8m, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  4. Wickes Arris Rail - 75 x 75 x 100mm x 2.4m, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  5. Wickes Slotted Intermediary Concrete Fence Post - 104 x 80 x 2440mm, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  6. Fence Posts, Travis Perkins, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. travisperkins.co.uk

  7. Wickes Recessed Concrete Gravel Board - 45 x 150 x 1830mm, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  8. Wickes Treated Timber Gravel Board - 19mm x 150mm x 1.83m, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  9. Blue Circle Ready To Use Postcrete - 20kg, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  10. Forest Garden Square Lattice Trellis - 1830 x 1830mm, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  11. Forest Garden Fence Top Trellis Square Lattice - 1830 x 300mm, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  12. Rating Cost Guide 2026, Valuation Office Agency, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2024-04 and left there. assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

  13. Rating Cost Guide 2026: guidance notes, Valuation Office Agency, accessed 17 October 2026. assets.publishing.service.gov.uk

  14. Installing Preservative Treated Timber Fence Posts: Best Practice Guidance, Wood Protection Association, accessed 30 September 2026. thewpa.org.uk

  15. Fencing, Timber Development UK, accessed 30 September 2026. timberdevelopment.uk

  16. BS 8417:2024 Preservation of wood. Code of practice, BSI (British Standards Institution), accessed 9 September 2026. knowledge.bsigroup.com

  17. The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015, Schedule 2, Part 2, Class A: gates, fences, walls etc, The National Archives, accessed 9 September 2026. legislation.gov.uk

  18. Fences, gates and garden walls: planning permission, Planning Portal, accessed 9 September 2026. planningportal.co.uk

  19. Cuprinol 5 Year Ducksback Matt Shed & Fence Treatment - Black - 5L, Wickes, accessed 17 October 2026. Priced at 2026-10 and left there. wickes.co.uk

  20. Your property boundaries, HM Land Registry, accessed 9 September 2026. gov.uk

  21. Land Registration Act 2002, section 60: boundaries, The National Archives, accessed 9 September 2026. legislation.gov.uk

  22. Land Registry plans: boundaries (practice guide 40, supplement 3), HM Land Registry, accessed 30 September 2026. gov.uk