With so many inner-city courtyards, clients build a deck to extend the rear of the home, but this solution creates what I call ‘deck island’ and in a nutshell the homeowner tends to stay on the deck and never venture into the garden. This is the case in this amazing little terrace, but with a change in access, step direction and subtle levels changes we draw the back garden up to the house, whilst providing interesting vistas and a reason to engage. This change in layout maximises the complete garden, creates depth and the opportunity for a layered planting scheme, just what our green fingered clients wanted more of.