Tar and chip driveways in East Grinstead

Tar and chip driveway prices in East Grinstead

Local guide rates for East Grinstead (the South East, about 10% above our UK midpoint):

Item	Guide price (inc VAT)
Tar and chip drive with a new sub-base	£50–£82 per m²
Example: 50 m² drive	£2,500–£4,100
Example: 100 m² drive	£4,950–£8,250
Example: 200 m² drive	£9,400–£15,700

As a 2026 guide in East Grinstead, tar and chip driveway work runs at about £50–£82 per m² including VAT, so a 200 m² drive is roughly £9,400–£15,700. Guide only; the survey confirms a fixed price.

Layer by layer

What we do on a tar and chip driveway

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
Edges set with kerbs, setts or cobbles
Hot bitumen or emulsion sprayed evenly
Chippings spread straight onto the binder
Second coat where a double dressing is specified

Covering East Grinstead

What applies in East Grinstead. Smaller towns such as East Grinstead are surveyed alongside nearby jobs in West Sussex.

Postcodes: RH19, RH18, RH7
Area: West Sussex
Nearest towns: Horley (7 miles), Crawley (8 miles), Crowborough (9 miles), Haywards Heath (10 miles)
Pricing: South East, about 10% above our UK midpoint
Kerb approvals: The highway authority

Close to East Grinstead: Horley, Crawley, Crowborough, Haywards Heath, Redhill.

Planning and kerb rules for East Grinstead

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. If the job needs a dropped kerb, the highway authority (the county or unitary council) approves it before any work on the footway.

Questions about tar and chip driveways in East Grinstead

Which East Grinstead postcodes do you cover?

We cover East Grinstead including RH19, RH18, RH7, and nearby Horley, Crawley, Crowborough.

How long will the work take at my East Grinstead property?

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

Are there planning or highway rules in East Grinstead?

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).

What is the price of a tar and chip driveway in East Grinstead?

As a 2026 guide in East Grinstead, tar and chip driveway work runs at about £50–£82 per m² including VAT, so a 200 m² drive is roughly £9,400–£15,700. Edging, drainage and a dropped kerb are priced separately where needed.

Other work in East Grinstead

Ready for a price in East Grinstead? Use the guide price tool or send the form, and we'll arrange a visit.