Guide
How to start a landscaping business in the UK
Updated 2 October 2026 · 5 minute read
Landscaping is one of the easiest trades to start: there's no licence and the kit can be modest. But a few things are legal requirements, and they catch new firms out.
Do you need a licence?
No. But some of the work is regulated, and those rules apply from your first job.
Pesticides: a certificate is the law
Since 26 November 2015, anyone using a professional plant protection product, such as most commercial weedkillers, must hold a recognised certificate. The old “grandfather rights” for experienced users have ended. The usual route is the City & Guilds NPTC PA1 (principles of safe handling) and PA6 (application with hand-held equipment) awards.
Chainsaws
The law says anyone using work equipment must be properly trained. For chainsaws, HSE says anyone working on or in a tree should hold a relevant certificate of competence or national competence award, unless they're training under supervision. LANTRA and NPTC certificates are the usual evidence.
Waste carrier registration
- Lower tier (free, and doesn't need renewing): if you only carry waste your own business produces, such as green waste from your jobs, and it isn't construction or demolition waste.
- Upper tier: if you carry other people's waste, or construction or demolition waste.
Hard landscaping spoil such as rubble and old paving may count as construction waste, so check with the Environment Agency which tier you need before you start taking it away.
Memberships worth working towards
- APL (Association of Professional Landscapers) needs at least two years' trading and an inspection to join, then annual inspections.
- BALI offers membership for landscaping firms, with full registered-contractor status for established businesses.
Insurance
- Public liability insurance isn't a legal requirement, but customers working on their homes and gardens will often ask.
- Employers' liability insurance is a legal requirement once you employ anyone, including seasonal help, with at least £5 million of cover.
The admin every sole trader needs
Registering with HMRC, Self Assessment, VAT and Making Tax Digital are covered in our going self-employed checklist.
Getting your first customers
- Take before-and-after photos of every garden. Landscaping is sold on pictures.
- Offer regular maintenance as well as one-off builds, to smooth out the quiet months. See how to get more work as a landscaper.
- Set up a Google Business Profile, ask for reviews, and give patios, fencing and turfing their own pages on your website.
See what yours would look like
We'll build a website for your business from your Google listing, free. You only pay £199 if you want to keep it.
Sources
- HSE: guidance on the Plant Protection Products (Sustainable Use) Regulations 2012
- NPTC: pesticide qualifications
- HSE: chainsaw operators in tree work
- HSE: PUWER
- Natural Resources Wales: deciding if you're a waste carrier
- GOV.UK: register as a waste carrier, broker or dealer
- APL: become a member
- HSE: employers' liability insurance
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