A new garden is one of the bigger sums people spend on a Surrey home, and the first decision is what kind of help you want. Some garden designers produce the design, drawings and planting plan, then help you choose a landscaper to build it. Others are design-and-build firms with their own teams. Both work well; they just divide the responsibility differently.
This guide covers seven Surrey practices. Six are Registered Members or Fellows of the Society of Garden and Landscape Designers. Everything comes from the designers' own websites and the Society's directory, checked in October 2026. None of them publishes its fees, so expect a first conversation before any price. The photo shows the walled garden at Loseley Park, near Guildford, which is in our directory.
What accreditation means
The Society of Garden and Landscape Designers, formerly the Society of Garden Designers, has been running since 1981 and describes itself as the only professional association for garden and landscape designers. Its Registered Members (who use the letters MSGLD, or MSGD on older material) have passed an accreditation in which a panel of three trained Registered Members and Fellows assesses three of the designer's projects from the previous five years. Fellows (FSGLD) are senior members. You can't simply pay to join as a Registered Member, so it is a useful check. The Society's find-a-designer search lists accredited designers by county.
Design only, or design and build?
- Design only
- The designer draws the garden, writes the planting plan and specification, and usually helps you tender to landscapers and checks the work. You contract with the builder directly.
- Design and build
- One firm designs, builds and plants, so there is one contract and one point of contact.
- Both
- Some practices offer either: a full service, or a masterplan for your own contractor.
- Aftercare
- Ask about maintenance: some firms look after gardens themselves, others write a maintenance plan or recommend a gardener.
Seven garden designers in Surrey
01
We Love Plants
Outwood, near Redhill
Founded in 2001 by Nic Howard and based at Outwood, east of Redhill, where the practice's own garden opens for the National Garden Scheme. It works on everything from cottage-style and contemporary gardens to sloping sites and courtyards, for new-build and period homes alike.
- Service
- Full design-and-build from concept to completion, or a masterplan for your own contractors; planting design; in-house aftercare and maintenance
- Accreditation
- Nic Howard, SGLD Registered Member
- Awards
- RHS Hampton Court 2024 Silver-Gilt and Best Construction; RHS Chelsea Best Tradestand 2016 and Director General's Award 2017 (both with David Harber)
- Contact
- 01883 744020
02
Cherry Mills Garden Design
Godalming
A Godalming designer in practice since 1994, who says she has designed more than 250 gardens, from family gardens to country estates, including restored Victorian and Gertrude Jekyll gardens. Her portfolio covers Esher, Guildford, Haslemere, Weybridge, Cranleigh and Tilford.
Landscapers quote and contract with you directly; she gives a written quotation for the design work after a first meeting.
- Service
- Design, construction drawings and specifications, monitoring the build, planting plans, plant sourcing and planting; aftercare advice and seasonal maintenance schedules
- Accreditation
- Cherry Mills, SGLD Registered Member (since 2001, her site says)
- Contact
- 01483 421499
03
Seymours Landscapes
Lyne, near Chertsey
A family landscaping firm that says it has worked in Surrey and parts of south London since the 1920s, now at Lyne after many years at Squire's garden centre in Cobham. James Seymour is a Fellow of the Society, one of its senior members.
- Service
- Design, construction and planting by its own teams; irrigation and rainwater harvesting
- Accreditation
- James Seymour, SGLD Fellow
- Awards
- Says it has won RHS Chelsea and Hampton Court gold medals
- Contact
- 01932 808388
04
GreenArden Design
East Molesey
Christine Wilford trained as an architect before qualifying in garden design in 2007, founded the practice in 2008 and has chaired the Surrey Garden Design Group since 2019. Her portfolio includes gardens in Claygate, East Horsley, Surbiton, Ashtead and Weybridge, with an emphasis on naturalistic, wildlife-friendly planting.
The building is done by separate landscaping contractors.
- Service
- Consultation, concept, planning and tendering, planting design and aftercare; or a shorter consultation plus planting design. The consultation visit is about two to three hours, followed by a written report.
- Accreditation
- Christine Wilford, SGLD Registered Member
- Contact
- 07917 376994
05
Fiona Harrison Garden Design
Virginia Water
Established in 1992 and working across Surrey, Berkshire and the Home Counties from a studio in Virginia Water. Her site doesn't set out whether she builds or only designs, so ask how the build would be handled.
- Projects
- Courtyards, new-build gardens, school gardens and large estates
- Accreditation
- Fiona Harrison, SGLD Registered Member
- Contact
- 07932 739246
06
Garden Design Collective
Cobham
A garden design studio with a shop on Hollyhedge Road in Cobham. Michelle Brandon is also a qualified horticultural therapist and teaches garden design, according to her Society profile. Its site gives few details of the service, so ask what the design includes and who builds.
- Service
- Garden design and community garden projects; consultations and quotes by enquiry
- Accreditation
- Michelle Brandon, SGLD Registered Member
- Contact
- 01932 553280
07
Surrey Hills Garden Design
Surrey Hills
A garden design service working on layouts and planting schemes across the Surrey Hills. It is in our directory.
- Service
- Garden layouts and planting schemes
- Contact
- 07909 390077
Before you commission
Ask to see finished gardens near you, ideally a few years after planting. Agree in writing what the design fee covers: a concept only, or drawings, a planting plan and visits during the build. Ask who builds it, who you will contract with, and who is responsible if something goes wrong. If you are getting quotes from landscapers, make sure they are pricing the same drawings and specification.
For garden buildings, see our guides to oak-framed buildings and to garden rooms and home offices in Surrey.