Edgings, kerbs and edge restraints

Edgings and kerbs form the boundary between a paved area and other areas, which could be more paving, a lawn, a garden, a driveway or almost anything else. They can be flat or have upstand in the form of a kerb, but whatever format they take, they are usually critical for the performance and longevity of many different types of paving.

A gallery of the more popular types of edgings, edge tiles, kerbs and other items used as edgings for pavements.

Concrete bedded edgings and kerbs are used wherever a rigid support or restraint is required at the edge or perimeter of a pavement. They are possibly the most useful format of edging, and this page explores their construction and potential uses.

This page looks at the processes used to construct an retaining edge course prior to placing the body blocks which form the bulk of the pavement, and specifically considers the issues raised when laying such an edge course over an in-situ sub-base.

The photos and videos on this page show a concrete bedded edge course being constructed using a single width clay brick pavior.

This page shows how the size of the radius of a kerb, whether it's an individual kerbstone or an extant arc, can be determined using a simple bit of mathematics.

Road kerbs are the 'Big Boys' of the edging world and, as the name suggests, they are primarily used on roads and carriageways. This page looks at the different types of kerbs that are used, and how they are installed.

This page looks at how the use of specialist pre-cast kerbs can improve access to buses for both able-bodied and disabled users, and in particular, uses a single kerb system for consistency throughout the case study.

Steel edgings offer a flexible, reliable and cost-effective solution for projects where all that is required is a basic restraint. Using quality products supplied by Core LP, one of Britain's leading suppliers, this case study follows an installation in rural Shropshire.

This page looks at two procedures employed after a run of kerb or edgings has been laid to create a perfectly straight line or an eye-pleasing sweet curve.

One popular and relatively cheap form of edging is the timber strip, affixed to simple wooden pegs. They aren't suitable for every type of paving but they can be useful on less formal projects.

Here's a simple 'decorative' edging suitable for drives, if laid on and haunched with concrete. This type of edging looks great in cottage gardens or wherever a cheap, but visually attractive edging is required.

Mowing strips are used at the boundary or edges of a lawned area and provide a flat strip that makes it easier to mow against hard edges such as walls, or to retain the grass when it lies against a flower bed or similar. This page looks at how they are constructed.