Splashbacks and tiling in Sherborne

Is splashbacks and tiling right for your Sherborne kitchen?

Homeowners in Sherborne often add a splashback as the final stage of a new kitchen, once the worktops are in and the bare wall above them needs a washable finish.

Many people in Dorset choose a single panel of toughened glass behind the hob because it wipes clean quickly and has no grout lines to hold grease. Homes right across Sherborne are covered, as are nearby places such as Yeovil, Shaftesbury and the villages in between.

What is in a typical job?

Every kitchen is different, so we confirm the scope in writing. Most jobs of this kind include:

Old tiles removed and walls prepared, patched or boarded where needed
Free survey visit to check the walls, agree the layout and give an itemised quote
Full-height or feature tiling behind the hob, sink or open shelving
Stone upstands and splashbacks templated and fitted alongside a stone worktop
Grout and sealant chosen for easy cleaning, with flexible sealant at the worktop joint
Toughened glass splashback measured after the worktops are fitted, with socket cut-outs

What do splashbacks and tiling cost in Sherborne?

Typical splashbacks and tiling prices for homes in Sherborne, including VAT and adjusted for the South West. Your own figure depends on the size of the kitchen, the layout and what is moving. Costs in the South West sit close to the national guide.

What do splashbacks and tiling cost in Sherborne?
Typical project	Guide price
Tiled splashbackBetween worktop and wall units	£150–£410
Kitchen wall tiling, 4–6 m²Preparation, tiling and grouting	£310–£820
Toughened glass splashback behind the hob, fittedMade to measure after the worktops are in	£260–£620
Stone upstands and splashbacksTemplated with the worktop	Priced with the worktop

Tiling guide ranges cover preparation, adhesive, grout, trims and fixing, with the tiles themselves confirmed once chosen; the glass range includes a made-to-measure panel, and stone upstands are priced with the worktop. Prices include VAT at 20%.

Fitting kitchens in older and newer Sherborne homes

Across Dorset you will often find thatched cottages, Victorian and Edwardian villas, 1930s semis and seaside bungalows, and each shapes the kitchen differently. Edwardian villas in Bournemouth often have a separate kitchen and scullery, while 1930s semis and bungalows tend to have a compact room at the back.

Flats in converted villas may have no lift and shared hallways, and narrow village lanes can make delivering long worktops difficult. Most of Dorset has hard water, so limescale on taps, sinks and boiling water taps is common, and a scale-reducing filter can help.

Do you need approval for splashbacks and tiling in Sherborne?

Tiling or fitting a splashback in England needs no planning permission or building regulations approval. If sockets or switches are moved to suit the new wall finish, that is electrical work to BS 7671; adding to an existing kitchen circuit is not notifiable under Part P, but a new circuit is. Behind a gas hob, follow the hob maker's clearance instructions, and in a listed building, removing historic tiles or panelling may need listed building consent.

Thatched and listed cottages may need listed building consent for internal changes, and owners of flats in converted houses usually need the freeholder's consent before work starts.

Worth knowing before the fit

Give fresh grout and sealant the full curing time shown on the packaging before scrubbing them or letting water sit on the joint at the back of the worktop.
Ask to see where the tiling will start before the first row goes on in your Sherborne kitchen, so narrow cut tiles end up in corners rather than on show.
Keep the tile boxes until the job is finished and note the batch number, so matching replacements can be found if a tile cracks later.
Agree socket, switch and cooker hood positions before tiling starts; moving them afterwards means cutting tiles out and patching in replacements that may not match.

Questions about splashbacks and tiling in Sherborne

How much do splashbacks and tiling cost in Sherborne?

For a tiled splashback, budget around £150 to £410 including VAT in Sherborne. That reflects typical costs in the South West; we confirm the actual figure in writing once we have measured up.

Can you measure up in Sherborne before quoting?

Yes. Every quote starts with a free, no-obligation survey visit to your home in Sherborne. We measure the room, check the walls, floor and service positions, then send an itemised written quote.

Which grout and sealant are easiest to keep clean?

A darker or mid-tone grout in narrow joints is usually the easiest to keep looking clean in a kitchen, and an epoxy or stain-resistant grout helps behind the hob and sink. Where the tiles meet the worktop, a flexible sealant is used rather than grout, because that joint moves slightly. The sealant can be cut out and renewed later without disturbing the tiles.

Can you tile over existing kitchen tiles?

Sometimes, but it is rarely the better choice in a kitchen. Tiling over old tiles adds thickness, so sockets, switches and the edge against the wall units may no longer line up, and the new tiles rely on the old ones staying firmly bonded. If the existing tiles are sound and flat it can work for a small area; otherwise we remove them and prepare the wall.

Can heavy tiles or stone go on any kitchen wall?

Not always. Heavy tiles such as large-format porcelain or natural stone need a backing that can carry their weight and an adhesive suited to both the tile and the wall. Old plaster, painted plaster or plasterboard may need preparing, priming or replacing with a tile backer board first. We check the wall at the survey and follow the tile and adhesive makers' guidance.

Nearby places we cover

Neighbouring towns where we offer splashbacks and tiling: