Every build stands or falls on what goes in the ground first. Get the foundations right and the rest of the job behaves. Get them wrong and you see it later in cracked plaster, sticking doors and movement that costs far more to put right than it would have cost to dig properly in the first place. We handle foundations and footings across Newmarket, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, dug to depth and poured to the structural spec.
What we do
We cover the full range of domestic and light commercial foundation work:
- Strip foundations - a band of concrete at the base of the trench with blockwork built up off it, suited to firmer, shallower ground.
- Trench fill foundations - the trench dug to depth and filled with concrete close to the top, often the sensible call on deeper digs where there is less bricklaying below ground.
- Pad foundations - isolated bases for posts, columns and steel frames.
- Footings for extensions, garages, outbuildings and new builds - set out accurately, dug clean and ready to pour.
Dug to the right depth, not a guess
Depth is never a round number you can pick in advance. It follows the ground conditions, the structural drawings and what building control expects on site. Clay shrinks and swells with the seasons, so it needs more depth. Nearby trees pull moisture out of the ground and push the required depth deeper again. The minimum under Approved Document A is 450mm, but extensions are almost always taken well beyond that.
If you are weighing up an extension and want to understand what the dig actually involves before you commit, our guide on what foundations a house extension needs walks through it in plain English.
Building control, done properly
Every foundation needs building regulations sign-off, and the trench is inspected before anyone pours. We work to that from the start - set out to the drawings, dig clean to depth, and have the open trench ready for the inspector so the pour goes ahead without hold-ups. That inspection is what keeps your build legal and sellable, so we never cut corners around it.
Honest pricing, no surprises
Foundation cost depends on depth, ground, access and how much muck comes out, so we price each job on what it actually needs rather than a headline figure. For a sense of how groundworks is costed generally, see our groundworks cost guide. When you are ready, we will come out, look at the plot and the drawings, and give you a clear written price.
Planning a build near Newmarket or across Cambridgeshire? Get a free, no-obligation quote or call the number below and we will talk it through.