About us
Established in 2004, Craig McGibbon Limited provides garden design and landscaping to Welwyn Garden City, St Albans, Harpenden, Redbourn, Stevenage, Hertford, Welwyn, Oaklands, Tewin, Knebworth, Ware, Wheathampstead and other surrounding areas in Hertfordshire.
Professional accreditations:
Association of Professional Landscapers (APL)
Approved Member of the Bradstone Assured Installer Scheme
Partner of Garden House Design to design, supply and install Renson® Canopies
Garden design tutor and mentor
The company runs a successful Apprenticeship programme and supports the Princes’ Trust.
Awards & media:
In 2014, we were winners of Bradstone’s Best Patio Transformation Award for a family garden project that the judges described as “patios do not come more transformational than this.”
This garden project later went on to be featured in Sarah Beeny’s Homes & Property magazine.
In 2017, Craig and his crew were proud members of the landscaping team for DIY SOS Big Build: Welwyn Garden City.
More about Craig McGibbon.
Association of Professional Landscapers
The Association of Professional Landscapers (APL) membership is made up of companies that represent a cross section of businesses in the industry and covers many years of experience. It is APL’s aim to ensure members are represented whatever their business and size.
APL Non-Executive Committee Member
The role for a Non-Executive Committee Member is to help steer and contribute to the many initiatives and strategies the APL work on. Each member has been selected to make use of their individual skills and experience. All committee members are there for you and are always willing to assist in any enquiries you may have regarding the APL.
Blackford Centre for Garden Design
In 2018, Craig became a garden design tutor and mentor for The Blackford Centre, visit website here.
Professional Garden Consultants Association
Craig is a specialist consultant in landscape design and construction and offers independent witness statements in disputes over gardens built poorly. Charges start from £750 for a site visit and report. Areas covered include Hertfordshire, Essex, Bedfordshire and Buckinghamshire.
Prince’s Trust
The Prince’s Trust youth charity helps disadvantaged young people turn their lives around. The organisation runs a range of programmes to help unemployed young people gain the skills and confidence they need to find a job or training opportunity, or set up their own business.
Craig McGibbon Limited has offered work experience to several young people.
For more information visit Prince’s Trust
Apprentices
Craig runs a successful Apprenticeship and Continuous Professional Development programme for employees, offering full-time employment throughout the apprenticeship phase and independent employment upon completion.
Continuous professional development of employees is a personal passion of Craig’s. He believes that encouraging employees to love their job and rewarding them for their efforts, creates a strong, successful business.
Are you the team member we are looking for?
If you are committed, positive and have a can-do attitude; if you’ll use these skills to meet deadlines, communicate with team members and customers; if you are open to expanding your experience, learning new skills and training others around you; and if you want to join an industry that is never boring… please email Craig for opportunities.
Craig’s story.
“I think my parents watched too many episodes of the comedy series The Good Life starring Felicity Kendall and Richard Briers! I grew up on small holdings living the ‘good life’, growing our own fruit and vegetables, rearing animals and tending the land.
I have fond memories of Orchid, our matriarch Jersey cow, whose daughters and granddaughters were all named after flowers. The sons ended up in the freezer or bartered to the local homestead community after enjoying a happy few years.
I remember Miss Piggy, a Gloucester Old Spot pig, who as young children my sister and I loved to ride like a pony. We looked forward to the birth of her piglets, with their soft velvet noses and their crazy playtimes.
When I was 11 years old, we moved to a medieval hall with three acres of land, orchards and farm buildings, sold to my parents by an eccentric antiques dealer. The house was liveable but the gardens were derelict.
My parents started to create a vegetable garden, a formal herb garden, rebuild garden walls, install a large patio terrace and other landscaping projects, which I helped with on weekends and holidays.
An old farm hand and jack-of-all-trades, who smoked 100 woodbines a day, would help with projects. He was truly old-school, passing knowledge down in the same way he was taught. It was from him that I learnt how to mix cement, build walls, pillars, edging, layer a hedge and numerous other skills.
At school I took an interest in Craft, Design and Technology and studied to become an Engineer, working for several corporations after university. After ten years I became completely disillusioned by corporate life so took eight months off to go travelling. The best experience I had during this time was spending three months as a Conservation Work Volunteer in Costa Rica. It also reignited my interest in building outdoors…
On return to the UK, a few friends asked me to build their garden whilst I looked for work as I had always dabbled in projects in my spare time. During one landscaping project for a friend I had an interview for an engineering job in my field of expertise. During the interview, I was asked ‘Why do you want to work for us?’ and all I could think was ‘I don’t! I just want to get back to building the deck’. I stumbled through my worse interview ever with this revelation. To my surprise the next day I was offered the job. I turned them down, much to their surprise and went back to building the deck with a huge smile on my face!”