Matt’s top tip when planning a new pool is to explore the location of the pool fence first and then design the garden and pool around it, so it recedes as much as possible. The new laws mean that your pool fence needs to be well-thought-out, not only from a practical safety point of view but for the aesthetics of your yard.

Matt says, “Pool fences shouldn’t be a division of spaces, but rather it should seem like the pool fence disappears and doesn’t create an obvious barrier between grassed areas, the pool space, and entertaining zones.”

He then adds, “A lot of customers are surprised that we may start with the consideration of the pool fence when designing pool and garden spaces. But to me, there’s nothing worse than a pool fence that creates an obvious barrier. Working around where fences need to go, and figuring out the best way to integrate them into a design, provides the best end result: a space that flows naturally from one area of the yard to the next.”

With a keen eye for form and function, Matt’s design philosophy for gardens and pools is to create spaces that become more and more appealing with maturity.