Newcastle and Lake Macquarie, NSW
Concreters in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie
Driveways, shed slabs, paths, patios and exposed aggregate for homes from Merewether to Morisset. Rates are published, the build is specified, and the council crossing is explained before you commit to anything.
Driveways from $95 per m² · Shed slabs from $110 per m² · Full cost guide
Why enquire here
Nothing priced in the dark
Rates in the open
Every service carries a per m² range on the page, before anyone has your phone number.
A written specification
Base, steel, concrete and joints are set out so any quote can be held against them.
Council crossing explained
Section 138 for both councils, step by step, including who lodges what.
Measured before it is priced
The figure that counts is the written quote after a site measure.
Six services
What gets poured
Published rates are a guide for budgeting. The price for your job is the one on the written quote after a site measure.
Below the surface
What a driveway is made of
The finish is the part you see. These are the parts that keep it there.
- 01Cut to firm ground
Topsoil, fill and soft spots come out. On Hunter clay this is the step that decides whether a slab stays flat.
- 02Base where the ground calls for it
Compacted in layers over clay, confined at the edges on coastal sand.
- 03Steel set on chairs
Mesh sits inside the slab, not on the dirt under it, and the crossing is dowelled where council asks.
- 04Placed and screeded
One continuous pour, struck to level with falls running to the street or a drain.
- 05Finished, jointed, cured
Broomed, coloured or washed back to stone, then saw cut so it cracks where it is told to.
Price your job
Concreting cost calculator
Length, width, finish. The range below is built from the same rates as every page on this site.
42 m²
Published rates are a guide for budgeting. The price for your job is the one on the written quote after a site measure.
Turn this into a written quoteThe approval nobody explains
Section 138, in plain English
The strip between your boundary and the kerb belongs to council, and a new, wider or replacement crossing needs approval before it is poured. Newcastle and Lake Macquarie run it differently, and neither uses the state portal most search results point to.
- City of Newcastle
- Section 138 (Type 1) application. 100 mm minimum crossing, 2.5 to 4.5 m wide for a double.
- Lake Macquarie
- Minor Public Works application. 125 mm minimum crossing, 4 m maximum at the kerb.
How it runs
From enquiry to cured concrete
- 1
Enquire
Send the form or ring. Say what you want poured, roughly how big, and where.
- 2
Site measure
A local concreter walks the job, checks levels, access and ground, and talks through finishes.
- 3
Written quote
One figure in writing, stating the finish, the area, what happens at the crossing and who lodges with council.
- 4
Approval, then pour
Where the crossing is involved the council letter comes first. Then set out, pour, finish, joint and cure.
Asked and answered
Before you enquire
How much does concreting cost per m² in Newcastle?
Published guide rates, supplied and laid: paths $90 to $130, plain concrete driveways $95 to $130, coloured $115 to $160, exposed aggregate $130 to $185, patios and alfresco $100 to $180, shed and garage slabs $110 to $150. Removing old concrete first adds about $35 per m². Published rates are a guide for budgeting. The price for your job is the one on the written quote after a site measure.
Who actually does the work?
Newcastle Concreters is a referral service. Enquiries are passed to an independent local concreter, who measures the job, quotes it in writing and carries out the work. The quote, the contract and any warranty on the work are between you and that concreter.
Do I need council approval for a driveway in Newcastle or Lake Macquarie?
For the crossing between your boundary and the kerb, yes, under Section 138 of the Roads Act. City of Newcastle takes it as a Section 138 (Type 1) application and Lake Macquarie City Council as a Minor Public Works application. A DA or CDC does not cover it. Concrete inside your boundary is a separate matter.
Does mine subsidence matter for concreting?
Parts of both council areas sit inside declared mine subsidence districts. That mainly affects how structures such as sheds and garages are approved, not a driveway or path. Check a lot on the NSW Planning Portal Spatial Viewer before ordering a shed.
What jobs are outside your scope?
This site covers residential concreting around the home: driveways, paths, patios, shed and garage slabs, exposed aggregate and replacement work. Slabs for dwellings, pool shells and work for businesses are not referred through it.