Family Garden Design in Hampstead, North London

This garden on Aberdare Gardens in Hampstead belongs to a ground-floor flat in a period house and is more square in shape than many London gardens. The existing patio was already in place, with a lawn beyond and three lime trees at the back, so the garden design needed to make room for more uses without losing the large open space the family wanted to keep.

The clients wanted a garden that worked well for everyday family life, with room for the children to use the lawn and enough space for the adults to relax properly. They also wanted a garden studio for work and exercise, while dining would stay close to the house and a more relaxed seating area would sit under a pergola. Because the garden gets a lot of sun, the movement of light through the space became one of the main things to think about when deciding where everything should go.

The Brief for This Hampstead Garden

The clients wanted to keep the garden feeling open, so the lawn needed to remain as large as possible even after adding the studio and the other uses they had in mind. At the same time, they wanted more colour and interest around the edges, so the garden design had to balance a generous central lawn with planting that gave the space more character through the year.

The studio was an important part of the brief because it needed to work for both work and exercise, while the area immediately around it also had to be useful rather than becoming leftover space. That meant thinking about the building and garden together, rather than placing the studio at the back and designing everything else around it afterwards.

Planning the Garden Design Around the Studio and Lawn

The layout developed around keeping the centre of the garden open while using the edges more carefully. The existing patio remained the main dining area close to the house, while the studio was positioned so it sat comfortably within the garden without taking too much away from the lawn.

The platform outside the studio became another useful part of the space and could be used for yoga, with tall grasses and anemones helping it feel more private without closing it in. Exercise bars were placed to one side of the studio, which meant that area could support a different use without eating into the middle of the garden.

By keeping most of the activity around the edges, the main lawn stayed generous enough for the children to use properly, while the garden still had different places to go rather than everything happening close to the house.

Relaxed Planting With Colour Through the Year

The clients wanted plenty of colour, so the planting was kept informal and varied rather than being based around large repeated blocks of the same plants. Small clumps of the same plant were used where they helped hold the beds together, but there was enough variation to stop the planting feeling too controlled.

The aim was to keep interest going through the seasons, so the borders were planned to change through the year rather than peak for a short period and then disappear. Around the studio, taller planting helped soften the building and made the platform feel more settled within the garden, while the more open planting elsewhere kept the lawn feeling bright.

Making Better Use of the Whole Garden

What worked especially well was the way the studio became part of the garden rather than taking space away from it. The platform outside gave the clients somewhere to exercise or do yoga, while the exercise bars to the side made another use of that part of the plot without affecting the lawn.

The planting also made a big difference because it brought much more interest around the edges while leaving the middle open. The children still have the large lawn the family wanted, while the adults now have different places to sit or spend time depending on what they are doing.

A Hampstead Garden Design for Family Life

The finished Hampstead garden design feels much more useful without feeling overfilled. The existing patio still works for dining, the lawn remains open for the children, and the studio gives the clients a separate place to work and exercise.

For me, the planting and the way the space around the studio works are the strongest parts of the project. The garden now has much more going on around its edges, but the centre still feels generous, which was the main balance we were trying to achieve from the beginning.