Grounds care for landlords and businesses
Win regular contracts to keep communal gardens, offices and rental portfolios neat with a small team.
- £4k-15k
- Full-time
- Out and about
Estimates for a small start in the UK, not guarantees.
Official data
23,217 UK companies in this field, 29% registered in the last 2 years
SIC 81300 “Landscape service activities”. Source: Companies House, November 2026.
What it is
A step up from domestic gardening: you look after communal gardens, small offices, shops, housing blocks and landlords' portfolios, usually with one or two helpers and a van of equipment.
Your first three steps
- Contact local letting agents and property managers with a short introduction and examples of your work
- Price a few trial jobs on a per-visit basis and work out your costs including a helper's wages
- Arrange employer's liability and public liability insurance and set up simple bookkeeping
Who pays
Property managers, letting agents, landlords with several properties, housing associations and small businesses.
How it makes money
Monthly or per-visit contract prices, plus extra for seasonal work such as hedge cutting, leaf clearing and planting.
Skills that help
- Quoting and invoicing for contracts
- Managing people and schedules
- Good all-round garden skills
- Reliability and communication with property managers
Watch out for
- Employer's liability insurance once you take on staff, and check how to treat helpers (employed or self-employed)
- Larger clients may ask for insurance certificates, risk assessments and method statements
- Late payment from commercial clients, so agree payment terms in writing
- Check what is needed for any pesticide or herbicide use before offering it
- Van, equipment and fuel costs can eat into margins if contracts are priced too low
Deep research report · UK
Everything you need to start: grounds care for landlords and businesses
Researched with live web search for United Kingdom: real startup prices, the licences and rules, what others charge, a break-even example, how to find your first customers and a 30-day launch plan. With sources.
- Startup costs with real prices
- Licences, registration and rules
- Pricing: what others charge
- Break-even example
- Finding your first customers
- 30-day launch plan
- Risks and how to reduce them
Questions people ask
How much does it cost to start a commercial grounds care business?
Startup costs are typically around £4,000 to £15,000, depending on your van, equipment and insurance. These are estimates, so check what you already own and get quotes before buying.
How much can a commercial gardening business earn?
Monthly revenue is typically around £3,000 to £12,000, depending on the number of contracts, the size of your team and how you price. These are estimates, and van, equipment and fuel costs come out of that.
What should I check before taking on commercial grounds contracts?
Check employer's liability insurance once you take on staff, and how to treat helpers (employed or self-employed). Larger clients may ask for insurance certificates, risk assessments and method statements. Check what is needed before offering pesticide or herbicide use.
Other ways to run this business
Regular garden maintenance round
Mow, weed and tidy gardens for local homeowners and landlords on a weekly or fortnightly visit.
- £800-4k
- Side hustle
- Out and about
Weekend garden tidy-ups and clear-outs
Take on one-off jobs like overgrown clear-ups, hedge cutting and borders around your day job.
- £300-1.5k
- Side hustle
- Out and about
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