D.C.U Services are builders in Barnsley, with our office in S71 and Liam Dyke, 17 years in the trade, at the head of it. Extensions, kitchens, drives, gardens and dropped kerbs, and we do our own groundwork rather than handing it to a subcontractor. Liam's number is 07709 099108.
Mostly for the jobs where the building and the finishing meet. A kitchen that needs a wall taking out first. A drive that needs the kerb dropping before a car can get onto it. A back garden that needs levelling before anything can be laid on it. Those jobs usually stall in the gap between two trades, and we cover both sides of the gap.
Our Checkatrade reviews come from S70, S71, S73 and S63: a garden, a wall with composite fencing, a fitted bedroom and general building work.
“Jealous neighbours, you can't ask for anything more!!”
Wall and composite fencing, Barnsley S71, on Checkatrade
How does a dropped kerb work with Barnsley Council?
Driving over the pavement to reach your drive needs a licence from Barnsley Council under section 184 of the Highways Act, and doing it without one is an offence. The council will lay the crossing itself if you ask it to, or you can use your own contractor, provided they hold Street Works Qualification Register cards for both the operative and the supervisor on the job. That is the qualification our NRSWA accreditation gives us.
The Barnsley route, using us
01
We look at the frontage
Where the crossing would go, how deep the drive is, and whether a lamp post, tree, drain cover or junction gets in the way.
02
The S184 form goes in
We fill in the council's application with you and send our street works cards with it. The council says it will be in touch within 28 days.
03
The council's fee
With a private contractor, Barnsley charges a standard £285 for the administration, the inspection and taking the finished crossing on as public highway. That is the council's charge, separate from ours.
04
We lay it, the council checks it
Once the licence arrives we dig out, lay the dropped kerbs and resurface the footway, and the council inspects the work before adopting it.
On an A, B or C road? Planning comes first
If your house is on a classified road, Barnsley Council needs planning permission for the crossing before it will even take the S184 form, and the planning reference goes on the application. Many of Barnsley's main routes in and out of town are classified, so check before anything else. The council keeps the list, and its highways number is 01226 773555.
Does building in Barnsley mean dealing with old mine workings?
Sometimes. Barnsley grew on coal, and the Coal Authority's free online map shows which plots sit in a Development High Risk Area, where shallow workings or old mine entries are recorded. Bigger planning applications in those areas need a Coal Mining Risk Assessment. A householder extension is normally exempt from that, but the ground does not know which form you filled in.
What it means in practice is that foundations get dug and looked at, not just poured. If a trench turns up voids, old workings or loose fill, the job stops until it is understood, and any work that disturbs coal seams or a mine entry needs a permit from the Coal Authority. This is one of the reasons we would rather dig our own footings: whoever digs is the first to see what is down there.
Footings and trenches, dug ourselves
Strip footings in
A trench dug square and to depth
Barnsley postcodes we cover
Postcode
Takes in
S70
The town centre, Worsbrough and Kendray
S71
Monk Bretton, Athersley, Lundwood and Royston
S72
Cudworth, Grimethorpe and Shafton
S73
Wombwell and Darfield
S74
Hoyland and Elsecar
S75
Dodworth, Darton, Mapplewell and Staincross
S63
Goldthorpe, Thurnscoe and Bolton upon Dearne
S36
Penistone and the villages round it
Getting a Barnsley builder round to look
Coming to see the job is free and there is no obligation after it, and from our office in S71 it is a short drive. You then get the price in writing. Barnsley is where we started, but it is not where we stop: we take on work all over South and West Yorkshire, and the other towns are on our areas we cover page. To book a visit, phone 07709 099108 and Liam will arrange a time, or use the form at the foot of this page.
Building work in Barnsley: questions
Can Barnsley Council lay my dropped kerb instead?
Yes. Ask the council and it will give you a no-obligation quote for doing the work, and its own fee drops to £95 for the administration alone. The price of the works themselves is on top either way, so it is worth comparing the council's quote with a private contractor's.
What happens if I drive over the kerb without a licence?
Barnsley Council treats it as an offence. It can charge £285 and take legal action, and a footway that was never built for cars tends to crack, which leaves you paying for the repair as well.
Who signs off building work in Barnsley?
Building Regulations work, such as an extension, a knock-through or new drainage, is checked by building control: either Barnsley Council's own building control team or a registered private building control approver. They inspect at set stages and issue a completion certificate at the end. Keep it with the house deeds: it is one of the first things a buyer's conveyancer asks to see.
How do I find out if my house is in a coal mining area?
The Coal Authority's interactive map is free to use and shows recorded mine entries and high risk areas. For a definite answer on one address, you can order a coal mining report from the Coal Authority. If you bought with a solicitor, look through your purchase paperwork first: in coalfield areas a coal mining search is normally part of the conveyancing searches.
Got a job in Barnsley?
It takes about a minute, and you do not need drawings or a budget worked out. We will come and look, and you will get a written price.
