Scarborough driveways built for the North Sea

Scarborough’s weather comes straight off the North Sea. Easterly winds drive rain sideways, sea frets roll in and salt settles on everything near the front. Add steep streets running down to both bays, Victorian terraces and guest houses on the cliffs, and estates of semis and bungalows in Newby, Scalby and Eastfield, and you get a very particular set of driveway problems.

Wind is the first thing to plan for. On exposed sites, kiln-dried sand can be blown or washed out of block paving joints, which lets the blocks shift and weeds take hold. On frontages facing the sea we use a stabilised jointing material and suggest checking the joints after the first winter. Drainage gratings and fixings near the front should be galvanised or stainless steel, or they’ll rust within a few seasons. Frost is usually gentler right on the coast than inland, but wind-driven rain gets into everything, so falls and drainage matter here as much as anywhere.

Steep plots need care too, especially near the cliffs. On clifftop and hillside properties we never put a soakaway where water could weaken a slope, and we design falls so run-off goes somewhere safe. For many coastal homes, block paving in Scarborough gives the right mix of grip and repairability, while a tarmac driveway suits longer drives and guest house forecourts that see a lot of comings and goings.

Since Scarborough Borough Council was replaced in 2023, North Yorkshire Council has dealt with dropped kerbs and planning in Scarborough, Filey and Whitby. Villages such as Robin Hood’s Bay sit inside the North York Moors National Park, where the park authority deals with planning, though dropped kerbs still go to North Yorkshire Council. If you’re still choosing a surface, see block paving, resin and tarmac compared for how each copes with weather and wear. We cover the coast from Filey to Whitby and inland to Pickering as part of our North Yorkshire area.