Beneath the Palms - A Multi-Award-Winning Coastal-Inspired Retreat
Designed For Outdoor Living
| Location | Leigh-on-Sea, Essex |
|---|---|
| Designer | Designscape |
| Landscaper | Landscapes by Design |
A GARDEN WITH COASTAL SPIRIT
Leigh-on-Sea, perched on the Thames Estuary in Essex, has long drawn those who want something close to coastal living without leaving the commuter belt. It was the perfect setting for ‘Beneath the Palms’: a garden conceived with an unmistakable beach house spirit and a commitment to making every square metre work harder.
The project is a collaboration between Paul Newman of Designscape and Stuart Reid and the team at Landscapes by Design. Between them, they transformed an outdoor space into a series of carefully considered zones that flow naturally from one to the next, each with its own character and purpose, unified by soft, relaxed tones and a coherent material palette.
The results speak for themselves. At the APL Awards 2026, the Association of Professional Landscapers’ most attended ceremony to date with nearly 600 industry professionals gathered at The Brewery in London, ‘Beneath the Palms’ was recognised across multiple categories. The judging panel assessed 125 finalists across 22 categories, and to be recognised in this company is a significant achievement.
Awards received on the evening:
- Best in Category: Outdoor Living
- Best in Category: Design Value £100,000 – £175,000
- Gold Award: Collaboration between Designscape and Landscapes by Design
- Silver Merit for hard landscaping
- Gold Award: Project Value £100,000 – £175,000
- Designer of the Year: Paul Newman, Designscape
ZONING A GARDEN FOR THE WAY PEOPLE ACTUALLY LIVE
One of the defining qualities of this garden is how thoughtfully it is divided. Rather than a single open expanse, ‘Beneath the Palms’ is structured around a sequence of dedicated spaces, each designed with a specific activity in mind.
At the heart of the garden’s social life is an outdoor cooking zone, complete with a cantilevered stone bar top: a detail that makes the space as functional as it is striking, providing a natural spot to perch, pour a drink, and chat while food is being prepared. Alongside this, a formal dining area creates a destination for longer meals outdoors, naturally connecting the kitchen zone with the pleasures of eating al fresco.
A bespoke pergola anchors a separate lounge area, offering shelter and shade while maintaining the open, airy character of the design. Elsewhere, a fire bowl zone provides a chill-out spot designed around evening use, complemented by poolside lounging and a cosy day bed: the kind of detail that signals this is a garden built to be lived in throughout the day, not just glanced at from the kitchen window.
LED lighting has been carefully integrated throughout to extend that usability well into the evening, casting a warm glow that brings out the texture and tonal depth of the materials without overwhelming the relaxed atmosphere designer Paul Newman was aiming for.
MILLBOARD ENHANCED GRAIN – THE RIGHT DECKING FOR THE BRIEF
Material selection is rarely incidental in a project like this. When a design is built around texture, tone and a climate sensibility, the decking has to work on several levels simultaneously. It needs to look right, perform reliably, and cope with the demands of a UK garden designed for day to day, genuine use.
Millboard Enhanced Grain decking in Ashwood was chosen for ‘Beneath the Palms’, and it is well suited to everything this garden asks of it.
The boards are moulded directly from selected real oak timbers, capturing the subtle grain variation and organic character of natural timber. Hand-coloured in tonal shades that mirror the nuances of natural wood, the Enhanced Grain decking collection brings an authenticity that some cheaper composite decking alternatives cannot replicate. This is an important consideration in a design where the soft, natural palette is central to the brief. Ashwood’s clean, pale tone echoes the look of freshly sawn oak, bringing a crisp, natural quality to the scheme that sits comfortably alongside the planting and softer stone tones used throughout.
Beyond appearance, performance matters enormously in a garden of this complexity. The decking is used across multiple distinct zones: the outdoor kitchen area, the dining area, planting areas, the poolside lounging space and the day bed surround, each of which places different demands on the material beneath your feet.
One of the more considered details in the outdoor kitchen area is a cantilevered decking overhang above the adjacent planting bed, purposely designed to house integrated LED lighting that casts a soft, ambient glow across the space. This detail demonstrates the versatility of Millboard boards, not just as a surface material underfoot, but as a structural and decorative element within a wider design language.
Unlike timber, the resin mineral composite construction of Millboard decking, which incorporates over one third recycled mineral stone and Millboard’s proprietary Lastane® surface layer, holds its shape and finish regardless of exposure to sun, moisture or the inevitable spills of an outdoor kitchen. Keeping it clean is equally uncomplicated: warm soapy water and a brush for routine upkeep, or a pressure washer when a more thorough clean is needed.
Slip resistance is a particular consideration in a garden centred around a pool. Natural timber can become hazardous when wet, and some wood composite decking materials can fall short too. Millboard Enhanced Grain decking provides exceptional slip resistance, even when wet, thanks to its Lastane® surface, which has the supple, grippy, soft-touch, quality of a shoe sole. Around poolside areas and wet zones, that level of slip resistance is not a marginal benefit: it is fundamental to the usability and peace of mind the space demands.
The boards are also rot-resistant, will not harbour insects, and require none of the sanding, staining or sealing that natural timber can demand year on year. For a garden designed to be enjoyed rather than maintained, that practical reality matters.
THE RESULT
‘Beneath the Palms’ is the kind of project that demonstrates what a well-considered outdoor space can be. It is generous without being excessive, detailed without being fussy, and relaxed without feeling unfinished. The beach house aesthetic is achieved not through superficial decoration but through considered material choices, coherent zoning, and a consistent approach to tone and texture from the planting through to the decking beneath your feet.
Millboard Enhanced Grain decking in Ashwood is a key component of that material story, providing a surface that is beautiful to look at, exceptionally slip resistant even in wet conditions, versatile enough to work across every zone in the garden, and robust enough to hold its character for years without the burden of intensive maintenance.
The six APL Awards 2026 recognitions reflect what Paul Newman, Stuart Reid, and the wider project team achieved here: a garden that performs as well as it looks, and looks exactly as it should.
in summary
Project: Beneath The Palms Garden
Design: Paul Newman, Designscape
Build: Stuart Reid, Landscapes by Design
Millboard Specification: Enhanced Grain Decking, Ashwood
Awards won – APL (Association of Professional Landscapers) Awards 2026:
- Best in category for outdoor living
- Best in category for design value £100,000 – £175,000
- Silver Merit for hard landscaping
- Designer of the year: Paul Newman, Designscape
- Gold for collaboration between Designscape & Landscapes by Design
- Gold for project value £100,000 – £175,000
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