Penny Bennett Landscape Architects

We work with clients from all sectors and walks of life. If you’ve got a project, get in touch and we can have a conversation. This website showcases some of the Practices’ work; please contact us if you would like further information about what we do and how we could help you.

We aim to provide high quality and sustainable landscapes, working from the smallest scale: urban courtyards, domestic gardens and pocket parks, to large scale master planning projects as part of a multidisciplinary team.

Landscape Design Consultancy

Offering full design service from project inception either as part of a larger design team or as a sole practitioner, including concepts and sketch proposals, master planning and detailed design, through to contact administration, inspection and completion of works on site.

The Practice has a wide range of experience in the following areas of landscape and urban design:

• Planting and soft works, including establishment of semi mature trees, ornamental and amenity planting, native planting, particularly habitat creation, land reclamation and ground modelling, e.g. creation of lakes and pools, and works associated with Sustainable Drainage Schemes (SuDS);
• Hard landscaping including design of paving and all forms of enclosure, including bespoke metalwork, placement and design of site furniture, fittings and artworks. Exploration of new ideas and materials for landscape works e.g. use of
• Recycled glass, corten steel;
• Feasibility studies;
• Master planning.

Landscape Assessment

The Practice has both reviewed and prepared a number of Landscape and Visual Impact Assessments (LVIA’s) for both commercial clients and local authorities. These have included single assessments for one off developments, particularly housing and renewable energy, but also borough wide assessments to assist local authorities in determining future
development opportunities.

Community Engagement

Our experience covers:

• Working directly with community groups to enable them to improve their neighbourhood, from concept through to achieving their ideas in reality;
• Working with clients to ensure that local people are appropriately involved in the design process;
• Organising community workshops, action days and exhibitions;
• Collaborating with other specialists in community involvement such as artists and youth workers.

Other Services

• Preparation of cost estimates and bills of quantities;
• Provision of hand drawn sketches to illustrate concepts and more detailed proposals;
• Planning applications and negotiations including expert witness appearance at public inquiries;
• Preparation of management plans and manuals associated with scheme design;
• Contract supervision of designs done by others, for instance when funders require independent practitioners;

Other activities

Penny Bennett has been a Green Flag judge of parks since 2004 and has taught as an occasional tutor at both Manchester University and Manchester Metropolitan University. The Practice regularly participates in ideas competitions, frequently collaborating with other design professionals, and uses this as an opportunity to develop and hone new ideas and
techniques.