How to hire
Work out who owns the fence before you price its replacement. Title deeds or the Land Registry entry usually mark boundary responsibility — look for the T-mark on the title plan — and shared boundaries need a written agreement with the neighbour before posts move. Replacing a fence you have no right to replace is the commonest fencing dispute we hear about, so settle ownership first and bring the agreed line to each quoting visit.
Keep the fence within the height limits. A rear fence up to two metres needs no planning permission, nor does a front fence up to one metre where it stands by a road or footpath used by vehicles; above those heights, or beside a listed building, the council decides through a planning application [8]. Hedges need no permission as such. If your run sits near the pavement or a listed cottage, check with the council before posts go in — moving a finished fence costs more than asking first.
Ask what exactly is quoted: post material and depth, panel type, gravel boards, old-fence removal and disposal, and gate ironmongery where gates are included. Concrete posts and gravel boards cost more upfront and outlast timber in wet ground — ask how deep posts are set and what the concrete footing looks like. Get any rot or workmanship cover written into the terms, with its length and exclusions stated.
Check the contractor the way you would a small builder. Look for Federation of Master Builders membership [2] or TrustMark registration [1] — type the business name into the TrustMark search and check the name that comes back matches the firm hiring you. Ask for public liability insurance with the limit in writing, and confirm the firm on Companies House [4]. Ask for two recent local runs of fencing you can walk past, and speak to the owners about punctuality, tidiness and whether leaning runs were fixed without argument.
Compare at least two itemised written quotes priced per bay or per metre, stating post centres, materials, waste handling, VAT and start dates. Anyone charging to carry old panels and concrete away must hold a licence on the Environment Agency public register — check the number on the register before you agree [3]. A deposit for materials is normal; full payment upfront is not. Keep the written quote with your payment record, so you have everything Citizens Advice asks for if a dispute needs mediation or a claim [5].
At the end, collect the paperwork before you pay the balance: the itemised invoice matching the quote, any written guarantee with its length and exclusions, the waste transfer note where spoil was removed, and photographs of the finished line against the agreed boundary. File them with your title deeds — they settle arguments if a neighbour disputes the line or a buyer asks who built the fence. If a run leans in its first winter, raise it promptly while the guarantee plainly applies.
Telford and Wrekin adds local wrinkles worth checking early. The borough holds eight conservation areas, including Wellington, Newport, the Severn Gorge, Wrockwardine, Horsehay, Edgmond, High Ercall and Kynnersley, where pulling down an older wall, gate or fence above the height limits can need permission in its own right [9]. Inside the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site, an Article 4 direction removes the usual allowances, so putting up, altering or removing a gate, fence or wall that fronts a road, waterway or open space needs a planning application [10]. The council runs a pre-application advice service, and a Lawful Development Certificate settles whether a boundary scheme needs permission at all [11].
Match the specification to the street. Period frontages in the Wellington and Gorge conservation streets show their boundaries to the pavement, so panel choice and height are more visible there and deserve more thought; streets inside the Gorge, including Ironbridge itself, sit under the heritage controls above. On the estates around Dawley and Lawley and in the villages toward Shifnal, the questions are usually practical: side access for posts and concrete, somewhere lawful to stack panels and spoil, and parking for the crew that does not block neighbours.
A typical job runs in a clear order. You agree the boundary line with the neighbour, then invite two firms to walk it, talk through post depths, panel types and who removes the old fence, and leave with itemised written quotes on the same scope. You pick the quote, agree start dates and stage payments, and the crew sets out the line, digs out or breaks up old footings, sets posts in concrete, hangs panels and gates, and clears spoil with its waste paperwork. You walk the finished line together, snag paint splashes and stiff gates, and only then pay the balance against the matching invoice.
Pricing
Rough Telford ranges as of summer 2026: a standard softwood panel fence costs £85 to £180 per metre supplied and fitted, with a typical fifteen-metre run landing around £1,250 to £1,500 and premium composite or hardwood over the same length running £2,500 to £4,000 or more [6]. Panels alone average £45 each, closeboard panels £50 to £70, posts £15 to £36, and labour alone averages £250 to £500 per day [7][6]. Get two itemised written quotes on the same scope before you commit.
Ground, access and extras move the price: slopes and rocky soil add labour, narrow side access slows everything down, and gates, trellis and capping add materials and time [6]. Breaking out old concrete posts and carrying away panels, posts and footings adds to the bill, since anyone taking waste away must hold a licence on the public register [3]. Photograph each boundary before work starts so the finished line can be checked against the agreement.
Ask whether VAT sits inside or on top of the figure: published cost guides state panel and installation averages plus VAT, so a quote that looks dearer may simply include it [7]. Agree post centres, materials, waste handling, the VAT position, guarantee length and start date in writing, with payment in stages — a deposit for materials is normal, full payment upfront is not. Citizens Advice sets out what a sound quote and invoice should contain if a dispute ever needs mediation [5].
Panel swaps and closeboard runs price differently. Replacing like-for-like panels on sound posts is the smallest ticket, since the posts stay in the ground and the crew moves bay by bay; a closeboard run with new posts takes longer per metre but suits exposed plots that catch the wind. Concrete posts and gravel boards add materials cost upfront and labour to set them plumb, yet they keep timber out of wet soil, at the cost of heavier materials to carry in and set [6].
Gates and repairs sit outside per-metre thinking. A side gate hangs off the same posts as the run, while a made-to-measure pair of driveway gates is closer to joinery, with ironmongery, locks and electric openers each adding their own line — price them separately from the fence. Small repairs, a leaning bay or a single rotten post, usually turn on access and minimum charges rather than materials, with a day of labour alone averaging a few hundred pounds in the summer 2026 guides [7][6].
Red flags
Starts digging or pulls the old fence down before the boundary ownership is agreed with the neighbour.
Quotes per bay but will not say what the bay width, post depth or footing includes.
Offers to take old panels, posts and concrete away but has no waste carrier licence number to check [3].
Asks for full payment upfront, in cash, with no written specification of materials.
Cannot show insurance details or a recent local run of fencing you can verify.
Builds above two metres, or above one metre by a road or footpath, without mentioning planning permission [8].
Gives a single fixed price for a long run with no breakdown of labour, materials and VAT.
Prices a made-to-measure gate at the same per-metre rate as plain panels, with no separate line for ironmongery or hanging.
Brushes off permission questions on a Gorge or conservation-area boundary instead of checking the council position [10].