- Ely, Cambridgeshire
- championconstruction85@gmail.com
- Mon - Sat : 07.00-18.00
Built to Last on Fenland Ground. Family-run paving and roofing across Ely, Cambridge and Cambridgeshire
Champion Construction installs gravel driveways in Ely and the surrounding Cambridgeshire villages, built properly for Fenland clay, peat, and wet ground conditions. Each driveway is excavated to a stable depth, fitted with a woven geotextile membrane, compacted with a 100–150mm MOT Type 1 sub-base, edged to keep the gravel in place, and laid with drainage falls to reduce sinking, rutting, puddles, and gravel washout. Most residential gravel driveways take 1–3 days to complete and are usually useable within 24 hours. For a free quote from Danny and the family-run team, call Champion Construction on 07443 843 610.
Very few people think about the ground beneath their feet until a problem arises. Slab cracking. Persistent puddles. Flooding against the side of your home after each storm. We see this all too often in Ely, and, unfortunately, ground conditions have had something to do with it.
The soil is heavy clay in many areas. Clay holds water. It expands when wet, and then contracts when it dries out. This creates movement that can cause inflexible surfaces to crack and heave. Driveways in gravel avoid this to a great degree because the surface material isn’t bonded together. It can move in sync with the ground below instead of against it. If a bound surface might suit your home better, resin bound and tarmac driveways are also worth comparing.
There is also the water table issue. The Fens are generally low-lying, and Ely is no different. Drainage is key. Gravel is naturally permeable, which allows surface water to run through into the subbase, where it can soak away. There is no puddle, and, no ice in January. According to the Environment Agency, permeable driveways can reduce surface water runoff by as much as 95 per cent compared with solid surfaces. This can be particularly important for properties in Ely given how flat and wet it is.
The secret isn’t the gravel. The secret is what it sits on. This is the method we use:
When the base has been built to spec, you won’t find the gravel spreading, sinking or turning into a bog. If you don’t have a base, you’ll be topping up the gravel every six months. We have had to re-do so many gravel driveways in Stretham, Haddenham and throughout Ely when people have not installed their base correctly.
When you contact us at Champion Construction you will be dealing with the owners, Danny and his son, who understand the ground conditions in their area first-hand. This part of the country is notoriously wet, heavy clay and flat. This is what they do. When done correctly, gravel driveways are suitable for the soil and drainage requirements in Ely.
If you’d like to compare all our driveway options first, you can view our other driveway services.
We see all the time that not everybody understands how a professional gravel driveway should be installed. We can see the result of people having gravel spread out directly over soft ground all over Ely and the surrounding area. This is where you get ruts in the driveway and gravel washing into the roads during heavy rainfall, as well as puddles that can take a week to disappear from your driveway. However, it shouldn’t be this way. There is a process and the steps in that process should not be skipped.
This is how we build a gravel driveway in Ely:
A typical residential driveway in Ely takes one to three days to complete. Larger driveways or those requiring difficult access can push the timescale back a little further, with an extra day likely to be required.
We get called out to repair previously completed driveways because a step has been overlooked. Either the membrane was missed entirely, or there was merely 50mm of Type 1 sub-base when 150mm was necessary. It is always a matter of time before things go wrong, and in the Fenland region, the wet winters tend to exacerbate the situation as the water table rises and the clay expands.
Champion Construction is a family-run business, operated by father and son team Danny and his son. You will be speaking to the same team from your initial site visit through to the completion of the last rake over of stones. There are no outsourced call centres to contact, and no subcontractors who we have not worked with before will be turning up at your property. Need to know whether your soil conditions will require further ground preparation?
Call Champion Construction today, on 07443 843610, to receive your free quote.
Speak to Champion Construction for a free quote on a properly prepared gravel driveway in Ely, Cambridge or the surrounding villages.
Homeowners in Ely usually choose their gravel based purely on colour. While that certainly is an option, the colour of your driveway isn’t going to stop you from waking up two years later to a lawn covered in mud. The type of gravel you use is more important than you may think; we talk to almost every customer about this.
Here are some important points that you should consider before choosing your material:
This is what we see a lot of around Stretham and in Ely, the surrounding villages: heavy clay sub-soil. The clay holds water. If you use a fine gravel without a good drainage layer you will see puddles on the top of the drive for a week or more. The gravel on our good quality base with the correct angular gravel and drainage will drain right through and will look the same in mid-winter in the wet fen as it does in mid-summer.
Danny and his son work together on every driveway at Champion Construction. If we tell you a certain gravel is not right for your driveway it is because we have seen how it has performed a few months later, not because we are trying to sell you something more expensive.
And don’t worry, I know how it all is. It is part of our job to explain these details to you during a site survey/estimate appointment. Ten minutes of looking at your ground gives us an indication as to which gravel will perform and which will leave you with problems. Make the right choice and you will not need to top up the surface for years to come.
This is the first question we get asked and the answer is simple, NO. Gravel driveways are permeable, which means the water will naturally filter through into the soil underneath. So, as long as the gravel drive meets the requirements for permeable surfaces for domestic driveways, you can build your driveway without a planning application under permitted development.
We often hear homeowners in Ely tell us they are choosing gravel over the alternatives just because of this factor alone.
Of course, there are a few exceptions to this. Listed properties and homes in designated conservation areas are subject to different restrictions. Parts of Ely, such as the properties immediately surrounding the cathedral and the older residential roads closer to the river on Waterside, have conservation area restrictions in place. We recommend that you check with the local authority, East Cambridgeshire District Council, before you start any work, and we are happy to direct you on how to go about that.
More often than not, it’s this list that catches the people unaware:
It’s really straightforward. Generally, a gravel driveway is classed as “permitted development” and will not require planning permission. Should your property fall into a category that requires planning permission we would advise you at the stage of providing a quote. It’s much better to deal with this upfront instead of dealing with it further down the line. It only takes five minutes to sort out at the initial stages of the project. Plus, if you’re replacing an existing driveway surface with gravel (i.e. concrete or tarmac) the council are more likely to give you permission as you’re switching to a more permeable surface.
Most people think gravel is low maintenance. It’s not zero maintenance, but the work involved doesn’t take much time.
Raking is the most obvious, yet the least performed maintenance job when it comes to gravel driveways. A gravel driveway moves every time a car enters and exits from it. This will cause the gravel to thin out near where your car turns around and thicken up along the edges. To keep the surface even, it should be levelled every couple of weeks or so with a landscape rake. We say this to every customer that gets a gravel driveway in Ely; it should only take 10 minutes.
A few signs to look out for that your gravel driveway is in desperate need of upkeep include:
The only thing that people really get caught off guard with, are weeds on top of their driveway. Although the permeable membrane that we put down stops most weeds, the ones that do appear tend to grow from the gravel itself (seeds fall onto the surface from trees and grow). Make sure to treat the weeds as soon as you notice them. Do not allow them to establish themselves, or they’ll continue to grow underneath and will damage the permeable membrane in the long-run.
Every so often (a couple of years), gravel driveways may require a top up. The gravel gets compacted and the gravel is kicked out onto the pavement and into ditches, which makes it necessary to add more gravel to the driveway surface. Adding a fresh top layer of 10mm to 20mm of gravel will rejuvenate the entire driveway. We’re a family-owned construction business and we can always come back to top up the gravel for you, it’s what we’re here for!
Fenland gets a lot of winter rain, especially for driveways in the Stretham, Haddenham and surrounding villages in the Ely. As long as your drainage channels are functioning properly, then the gravel surface will drain quickly. Just remember to clear those channels of any leaves or debris; one thing most people forget!
Finally, always try to get potholes or worn down driveways repaired as quickly as possible. This will save you from a much bigger job down the line. If you’re unsure if your gravel driveway requires any maintenance, please contact Champion Construction on 07443 843610.
A classic, durable finish with a huge range of colours and patterns.
A fast, hard-wearing, budget-friendly surface for everyday use.
A smooth, contemporary surface that's low-maintenance and fully permeable.
Common questions about gravel driveways services in Ely
