It usually takes a week to prepare a top-line quote, following a client's enquiry, and a follow-up visit to take measurements and a full brief. Once the quote has been accepted, we allow four to six weeks for timber orders to be delivered to site and accessories to be produced to specification. Should planning consent be required, then we're at the mercy of the local authority!

Depending on what is to be built, our commissions usually take between one and three weeks to create. We will give an estimate at the time of the quote.

We build treehouses, cabins, adventure areas and other structures throughout the UK.

The simple rule of thumb for private use is that if the apex of the roof is over 4 metres high, then technically you need planning consent. However, this is a temporary structure and as such, if it's in your garden, hidden from view and not overlooking neighbours, planning is not usually required. If someone takes exception to the structure for whatever reason, once built, and informs the Council, you will almost certainly have to apply for retrospective planning. If you are enquiring about a structure that will be used by the public, for glamping or for holiday lets, you will definitely need to apply for planning consent. We advise clients to get a local architect to draw up plans and submit an application on your behalf, as they will be most familiar with the local planning officers and liaise with structural engineers to satisfy the building control regulations in your area.

All the timber we use is pressure-treated and will last many years, but like any building, particularly made from wood, the more you look after it the longer it will last. We suggest a thorough clean of the deck every year to remove dead leaves, etc, and then a complete coating with a clear wood preservative over the whole structure, making sure all the nooks and crannies are well and truly soaked. The advantage of using a colourless preservative is that you can be very generous in your application. Wood rot mainly happens in joints where the timber remains wet. If you have gutter on a treehouse, it's important to clear these regularly in the Autumn.

The simple answer is ‘no, it is not essential’. We have built some wonderful free standing structures. We don't recommend building a treehouse with the trunk rising through the middle as it takes up so much space that the dimensions will need to be large enough to allow room for manoeuvre. Trees are usually incorporated into the deck.

Yes, we do attach the deck to the tree/s. We use zinc coated screws, which do not react with the sap and do not harm the tree. We have had many site meetings with Council tree preservation officers and all have been content with our methods. To avoid damage to tree roots, we use ground screws for the supporting legs.

We use Douglas fir for all structural timbers except for legs, where necessary, when we use oak. Pine is suitable for joists, etc, waney edge and feather board is made from larch and cedar shakes to tile the roof.

Many people have already thought about what they want before we make our initial visit. Almost always the end result is a mixture of your ideas and suggestions. If you would like us to design everything and help you from the first step, that would be our pleasure.

We normally build between three and five metres off the ground. This is high enough to make everything fun and challenging, but it depends on the age of the users. We have to think not only about our own children but about friends’ children as well. We build many structures lower than three metres and are happy to build them higher if that is what you wish.

There is no limit to what we can do in your tree house. It depends on your budget!

Any wooden building, from a house to a garden shed, will be damp if it is unused and without heating in the winter.

If building in your garden, the team will require three things: • Electricity • Water • Access to a loo We can also bring our own generator if the site is far from amenities.

We can design a structure for any situation. The biggest constraint in a small garden is access and height as you won't want to invade your neighbour’s privacy.

The most popular accessories are the fireman’s pole and the Burma rope bridge. Swings, monkey bars, zip-wires, ropes, rope ladders and climbing walls and nets are also hugely enjoyed. Treehouses tend to be used more by girls than boys.

We create structures with the ages of your children in mind and will happily advise on the suitability of activities. For example, a rope bridge to be used by under 10s can have safety netting to prevent little feet coming through the sides. The challenge is to create it for older children when they have younger siblings. It is more challenging to completely satisfy all ages at the same time, so bare in mind that young children grow up very quickly and if the structure is too child-orientated, its appeal will be limited. We think it’s better to restrict or supervise the use by younger children and have a ‘set up’ that they will want to use well into their teens. Accessories can always be added at a later date. Some clients prefer to put a safety surface on the ground. Accessories can be where accidents happen. In public situations we add a ‘bark box’ and for a structure 9ft (2.74 meters) off the ground these need to be 8ft 6inches (2.5 meters) away from the base of the activities. This means that in reality you need a generous bark box for even a small adventure area. We would be happy to give you a quote. All our school adventure areas are built in compliance with ROSPA guidelines.