Tar and chip driveways in Christchurch

What does a tar and chip driveway cost in Christchurch?

For Christchurch, we apply the South West rate, about 3% above our UK midpoint. Your survey turns these ranges into a fixed price.

Item	Guide price (inc VAT)
Tar and chip drive with a new sub-base	£46–£77 per m²
Example: 50 m² drive	£2,300–£3,850
Example: 100 m² drive	£4,650–£7,700
Example: 200 m² drive	£8,800–£14,700

As a 2026 guide in Christchurch, tar and chip driveway work runs at about £46–£77 per m² including VAT, so a 200 m² drive is roughly £8,800–£14,700. Guide only; the survey confirms a fixed price.

What the price covers

Tar and chip, also called surface dressing, is a layer of bitumen sprayed onto a prepared base and immediately covered with stone chippings, which are rolled in so the surface looks like gravel but behaves like a bound drive.

Base prepared: new MOT Type 1 sub-base, or an existing sound tarmac or stone base
Hot bitumen or emulsion sprayed evenly
Chippings spread straight onto the binder
Rolled to bed the stones in
Second coat where a double dressing is specified

Christchurch: the local details

Survey cover and pricing for Christchurch. We reach Christchurch on our Dorset survey days; Bournemouth is 4 miles away.

Postcodes: BH6, BH23, BH7
Area: Dorset
Nearest towns: Bournemouth (4 miles), New Milton (5 miles), Ferndown (7 miles), Poole (9 miles)
Pricing: South West, about 3% above our UK midpoint
Kerb approvals: The highway authority

Close to Christchurch: Bournemouth, New Milton, Ferndown, Poole, Wimborne Minster.

Layer by layer

Rules that apply in Christchurch

In England, householder permitted development (Class F of the 2015 General Permitted Development Order) lets you lay a hard surface in front of a house without planning permission if it is porous, or if the rainwater is directed to a permeable area within the property. If the area is more than 5 m² and neither applies, you need permission. Standard dense tarmac is not porous, so a dense tarmac drive needs a lawn, border, channel to a soakaway or other permeable route for its water. A vehicle crossing over the footway is a separate approval, from the highway authority (the county or unitary council).

Christchurch: common questions

How much does a tar and chip driveway cost in Christchurch?

As a 2026 guide in Christchurch, tar and chip driveway work runs at about £46–£77 per m² including VAT, so a 200 m² drive is roughly £8,800–£14,700. Edging, drainage and a dropped kerb are priced separately where needed.

What approvals apply in Christchurch?

In England, a new hard surface over 5 m² in front of a house needs planning permission unless it is porous or drains to a lawn, border or soakaway within the property. Dropped kerbs are approved by the highway authority (the county or unitary council).

How quickly can work start in Christchurch?

Often 1–3 days depending on base work. We book Christchurch surveys alongside other jobs in Dorset, and give you dates once the specification is agreed.

Do you cover all of Christchurch?

We cover Christchurch including BH6, BH23, BH7, and nearby Bournemouth, New Milton, Ferndown.

Other work in Christchurch

Send us a postcode, a rough size and a photo or two, and we'll come back with survey dates for Christchurch.