Most fence jobs in the DY postcodes are replacements: a lap-panel back fence on a Kingswinford or Wordsley semi that has finally blown down, or a featheredge run on a Stourbridge plot that has rotted at ground level. For an ordinary back garden fence under 2 metres, outside a conservation area, Dudley Council usually has no say.
The exceptions are small but strict. A handful of conservation areas here have an Article 4 direction that brings even a like-for-like boundary under planning control, and the borough has firm rules on what can sit on the pavement while the job is done and what the local tip will take.
Ground and Gate doesn't do the work. We pass your enquiry to one local fencing specialist who covers DY1 to DY9, and they confirm a fixed price with you directly.
What a new fence costs in Dudley & Stourbridge
Rates are per metre, supply and fit, waste included, indicative for the West Midlands.
| Style | Under 1m | About 1.2m | About 1.8m |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overlap panels | £36–£54 | £48–£72 | £60–£90 |
| Featheredge / closeboard | £57–£81 | £76–£108 | £95–£135 |
| Slatted / contemporary | £78–£114 | £104–£152 | £130–£190 |
| Post and rail | £24–£39 | £32–£52 | £40–£65 |
| Extra | Per metre |
|---|---|
| Concrete posts instead of timber | about £10 |
| Removing and taking away the old fence | £8–£15 |
The rates are the same across the West Midlands. What changes here is the mix of jobs. A 12 metre overlap panel run on a flat Wall Heath garden sits near the bottom of the table, about £840–£1,200 with concrete posts and before removal. A boundary in Oldswinford or Mushroom Green that needs planning permission first, or a fence that has to meet an old brick wall neatly, takes longer and costs more. The fence cost per metre guide has worked examples.
What pushes the price up here
- Removal and disposal. The council tip is for residents' own household waste, so the specialist takes your old fence away as trade waste. That is what the £8–£15 a metre removal charge pays for.
- Nowhere to put the materials. Dudley does not allow building materials on the highway and does not issue licences for them. On a terrace with no drive, panels and posts have to come straight off the van and through the entry, which adds labour.
- Conservation area detail. Where a fence sits behind or beside an old red brick wall with blue coping, matching heights and finishing the joint well takes time.
- Old footings. Previous concrete post footings, common on 1960s and 1970s estates, are slow to break out.
- Planning first. In the Article 4 areas, the job waits for a decision. Building the fence is no dearer, but the timetable is longer.
Article 4 streets: where a fence needs planning permission
Dudley's conservation areas page says that in any of its 22 conservation areas you need permission to take down a wall, gate or fence. In three of them the rules go further. Mushroom Green, The Leasowes and Love Lane have Article 4 directions, and Dudley's Article 4 page says that in those areas planning permission is needed to build, alter or remove gates, fences, walls or any other boundary feature. The Leasowes is in Halesowen, outside this patch, but the other two are not.
Love Lane, Oldswinford. The council's character study for Love Lane says the area's special character lies largely in its boundary treatments. It picks out red brick front walls with half-round blue brick copings on Corser Street, terracotta-capped walls and pillars, and the holly hedges along Love Lane Drive. It records that some front walls had already been taken down for parking, and says the loss of boundary walls and hedges will be resisted.
Mushroom Green, DY2. This old nailmakers' and chainmakers' hamlet sits in DY2. The council's planning guidance note for it says garden walls should be traditional brick capped with blue coping bricks, and it lists native hedge species that suit the area, including hawthorn, holly, hazel, field maple and blackthorn. It also warns that the Article 4 boundary is not identical to the conservation area boundary, so check the map rather than assume.
Dudley can take enforcement action against unauthorised work in these areas.
Corner plots, hedges and hedgehogs
Dudley's Residential Guide, adopted in 2023, is written for new housing, but it shows what the council likes to see on a boundary. On corner plots and prominent road frontages it prefers brick walls to fencing. Where fencing is moved on a corner plot, it wants the fence set back with a native hedge planted between it and the footpath.
The same guide asks new developments to leave a small 13cm square gap in one fence panel, gravel board or wall on each side of a garden for hedgehogs. Nothing obliges you to do this on a replacement fence, but it costs almost nothing to cut at the time of fitting.
If any part of your fence faces a road, the national limit is 1m without permission. See the 1m rule next to a road.
What the job involves
- Checks. The specialist confirms whether you are in a conservation area or Article 4 area, and who owns the boundary.
- Strip out. The old panels and posts come down, and old concrete footings are broken out where they are in the way.
- Posts and fence. New posts are set in concrete, then gravel boards and panels or featheredge go on, stepped where the ground falls.
- Clear up. All waste leaves on the specialist's van as trade waste, not via the council tip.
Questions about new fences in Dudley & Stourbridge
Is Mushroom Green covered by an Article 4 direction as well as Love Lane?
Yes. Dudley lists three conservation areas with Article 4 directions: Mushroom Green, The Leasowes and Love Lane. In all three, building, altering or removing a fence, gate or wall needs planning permission. The Article 4 boundary at Mushroom Green does not exactly follow the conservation area boundary, so check the council's plan for your address.
Can the fencer leave panels and posts on the pavement outside my Dudley house?
No. Dudley Council does not allow building materials to be left on the highway and does not issue licences for them. A skip needs its own skip licence. Materials go straight from the van into your garden, so mention on the quote form if there is no drive or side access.
Can I take my old fence to the Stourbridge tip myself?
Yes, if it is from your own home. The Household Waste Recycling Centre on Birmingham Street, DY8 1JE, accepts wood and timber by booked appointment. A van or trailer needs a permit, there is a 1.98m height barrier, and old concrete footings count as rubble, which is limited to two sacks a visit.
Do I need permission to replace a fence in the Love Lane area of Oldswinford?
Yes. Love Lane has an Article 4 direction, so even replacing or altering a boundary fence, wall or gate needs planning permission. Speak to Dudley's Historic Environment Team before you book the work, and keep photos of the existing boundary.
Should I leave a hedgehog gap in a new fence in Dudley?
It is optional on a replacement fence. Dudley's Residential Guide asks new housing for a 13cm square gap in a panel, gravel board or wall on each side of the garden. Ask the specialist to cut one as they fit the gravel boards.