Block paving or slabs: which suits which job?
Block paving suits anything vehicles cross, because loads spread through many small units and damaged areas can be lifted and relaid. Slabs suit patios and pedestrian areas, where large formats give a calmer surface, fewer joints and less weeding. Both need the same care over the base beneath.
The short version
If a car drives on it, choose blocks. If people walk on it and furniture sits on it, choose slabs. The exceptions are worth knowing, but that rule settles the majority of Teesside jobs before anyone gets a tape out.
| Factor | Block paving | Slabs and flags |
|---|---|---|
| Typical laid cost | £60 to £100 per m² | £50 to £80 per m² |
| Vehicle loading | Excellent, loads spread | Risk of cracking unless heavy duty |
| Bedding | Screeded sand, blocks vibrated in | Full mortar bed |
| Repairs | Lift and relay individual units | Lift and re-bed, colour matching harder |
| Joints to maintain | Many | Few |
| Curves and shapes | Handles them well with cutting | Cuts show more on large formats |
| Permeable option | Straightforward | Rare, usually needs a drainage design |
Where blocks win
Driveways, obviously, but also any surface likely to be dug up again. A block surface is a repairable one: a water company trench, an oil stain, a settled corner or a new gate post means lifting a few square metres and putting the same blocks back. On a shifting clay subgrade, the many-joints structure also copes with small movements that would crack a large rigid unit. Blocks also make permeable construction easy, which matters for front gardens under the drainage rules. See block paving for the build detail.
Where slabs win
Back gardens. A 600 by 900 porcelain or sandstone flag gives a flat, quiet surface with a fraction of the joint length, which means far less weeding and a much better base for a table and chairs. Large formats also make small Teesside gardens read as bigger, and modern porcelain shrugs off the algae that plagues shaded, north-facing yards in the older parts of Middlesbrough and Stockton. The trade-off is repairability and load: a cracked slab is a visible, awkward fix, and colour-matching a discontinued range years later rarely works. Slab and flag paving covers the specification.
The mixed answer
Plenty of the best-looking jobs use both: a block drive with a slab threshold and path, or a slab patio framed with a block or sett border that takes the wheelbarrow traffic and gives the mower a run. Mixing also lets a budget go further, spending on premium material where it is seen and using a workhorse surface where it is not.
What matters more than the choice
The base. A cheap block on a properly built 200mm sub-base with restrained edges will outlast an expensive porcelain flag spot-bedded on 75mm of scalpings, every time. Ask about layers before you argue about colours, and use the cost guide to check the quote reflects the build being described.