Garden Landscaping Designer -

The Job description

Landscape designers throughout Suffolk are essentially designers of outdoor spaces, of any land open to the sky, including land lying around and between buildings.

Working throughout Suffolk landscapers ensure that any changes made to the natural environment are appropriate and sensitive, as well as innovative and aesthetically pleasing.

Landscapers’ projects can be both urban and rural and range from designing the layout of parks, gardens and housing estates to improving land affected by mineral extraction or motorway construction.

The work involves collaborating closely with landscape contractors, as well as other professionals, especially architects, and those working in surveying and engineering functions.

Suffolk Landscape Designer

Typical work activities

The typical work activities for a landscape designer are likely to include some or all of the following:

• overseeing the design of a variety of projects, including: urban regeneration schemes (public parks and squares, private gardens, playgrounds); pedestrian schemes; retail schemes (business parks); and roads/transport corridors (and occasionally the structures within/surrounding them);
• establishing general landscape requirements with clients;
• conducting preliminary studies of contours, soil conditions, vegetation, drainage, ecology, buildings, roads and paths;
• assessing a site's potential to meet the specifications of the client;
• seeking and taking into account the views of local residents and other potential users;
• preparing and accurately setting out detailed plans and working drawings, including applications, construction details and specifications for the project;
• dealing with enquiries from clients;
• presenting proposals to clients;
• negotiating any amendments to proposals, in order to proceed to the final design;
• satisfying both the client's wishes and your knowledge of what will work best;
• contacting and co-ordinating manufacturers and suppliers;
• putting work out to tender and selecting a contractor and manager (mainly for larger projects);
• making site visits;
• monitoring and checking work on-site (on large projects, landscape managers are brought in to do this supervisory work);
• liaising with other experts in the field, engineers, surveyors and town planners;
• ensuring deadlines are met;
• authorising payment once work has been satisfactorily completed.

Suffolk Landscape Designer