If you are weighing up a resin floor or driveway anywhere in Leicester or the wider county, this is the one page to start on. It is a map of the whole subject, written from laying floors across Leicestershire, and it links out to the deeper guides and service pages wherever you want detail. Read it top to bottom and you will know what resin flooring is, which finish suits your space, what your quote is built from, how the job is done, what the local rules are for a driveway, and how long it should last.
Which resin floor suits what (scan this first)
| You want a floor for… | Where it goes | Start here |
|---|---|---|
| A home garage | Indoor | Garage floor resin |
| A workshop or trade unit | Indoor | Workshop flooring |
| A shop, showroom or reception | Indoor | Showroom flooring |
| A commercial or industrial space | Indoor | Commercial / industrial flooring |
| A kitchen or living space | Indoor | Kitchen flooring |
| A driveway | Outdoor | Resin-bound driveways |
| A patio or outdoor surface | Outdoor | Patio & outdoor flooring |
Those are the use-cases; the sections below cover the choices that sit across all of them, starting with the finishes.
The finishes: what your floor can look like
The system underneath is similar; the finish on top is where the look is decided. The main options are:
- Solid colour in gloss or satin, matched to almost any shade: the clean, seamless, all-round choice.
- Flake, a speckled chip finish that grips well and hides marks: the practical garage and workshop favourite.
- Metallic, a marbled, lit-from-within showpiece for showrooms and statement spaces.
- Quartz, a tough, textured, grippy surface for wet and high-traffic areas.
- Anti-slip aggregate broadcast into the topcoat, which can be added to any finish where grip matters.
There is also the resin system itself to consider, mainly standard epoxy versus a fast-cure polyaspartic that is back in use the same day; our epoxy vs polyaspartic guide covers when each is worth it. For help choosing a colour and sheen that still looks right a year in, see our guide to choosing a resin floor colour.
What drives the cost
There is no honest single price per square metre, because the slab underneath decides most of it. The things that move a quote are the size of the floor, the condition of the existing concrete and how much prep it needs, the finish and system you choose, and access to the space. A small, sound, solid-colour garage sits at the affordable end; a large floor that needs grinding, crack repair and a deep metallic finish sits at the other. Rather than a per-metre figure that falls apart on contact with a real slab, we quote one fixed price for the whole job once we have seen it. Our cost guide breaks every driver down in full.
Thinking about a floor in Leicester or the county?
Tell us about the space and the finish you are after, and we will email a fixed-price written quote for the whole job inside two working days, with no obligation.
How a resin floor is laid
Done properly, the order is always the same: grind the existing slab back to honest concrete, repair cracks and contamination, prime, lay the resin build and finish, then seal it. The prep is the part that decides whether a floor lasts twenty years or lifts within one, which is why a cheap quote that skips the grind is no bargain. The full method is in our guide to how a resin floor is installed, and if your concrete is old, cracked or oily, our guide to laying resin over cracked or old concrete covers what each problem takes to put right.
Resin in the Leicester climate
The East Midlands is one of the drier parts of the country, but sharp winter frosts are common, and frost is the factor that matters most for anything outdoors. For a driveway that means drainage is everything: a permeable resin-bound surface lets water through rather than holding it on top to freeze and heave, which is exactly why it copes with British winters when laid on a sound, well-drained base. Indoors, the climate is a non-issue; the only weather-related point is sunlight, where a UV-stable topcoat keeps the colour true on a floor that catches daylight (see our guide to whether epoxy resin yellows).
Driveways and planning in Leicestershire
A resin driveway is the one job with rules attached, and they are simpler than most people fear. The national rule is about drainage: a new impermeable surface in your front garden over five square metres that drains onto the road needs planning permission. A permeable surface that lets water soak away does not, at any size, which is one of the reasons resin-bound is the sensible driveway choice; it is permeable, so it generally sits outside the permission requirement. Resin-bonded, the loose-stone variant, is not permeable and is treated like any other hard surface.
Two local points worth knowing. First, national rules can be overridden by local ones, so if you are in a conservation area or your property has restrictions, check with your council before starting. Second, if the job needs a dropped kerb so you can cross the pavement, that is handled by the highway authority, and which one depends on where you are: inside the city it is Leicester City Council, and across the rest of the county it is Leicestershire County Council. Both require the kerb work to be done by an approved contractor. Our guide to planning permission for a resin driveway goes through the rules in plain English.
The simple version
How long it lasts, and keeping it that way
A well-laid resin floor indoors lasts many years with almost no upkeep, and a quality resin-bound driveway typically lasts 15 to 25 years; our guide to how long a resin driveway lasts explains what sets the number. Maintenance is light either way: sweep, mop indoor floors with a pH-neutral cleaner, wash a drive down now and then, and deal with spills and moss early. The full routine is in our guide to cleaning and maintaining a resin floor.
Comparing resin with the alternatives
If you are still deciding whether resin is the right surface at all, these comparisons lay it out honestly:
- Resin versus garage floor paint: why paint peels and resin bonds.
- Resin versus polished concrete: looks, colour, durability and slab condition.
- Resin-bound versus resin-bonded driveways: which is permeable and which to choose.
- The best resin floor for a garage: how to pick a finish for how you actually use the space.
Where we work
We cover Leicester and the surrounding county as standard, from the city out to Loughborough, Hinckley, Melton Mowbray, Market Harborough and the market and industrial towns in between, and travel further for larger commercial and industrial jobs. See everywhere we cover for the full list.
About this guide
Who wrote this
This guide is written by the Obsidian Resin team. We prep and pour resin floors and lay resin-bound surfaces across Leicester and Leicestershire, so the advice here, from finishes to the local driveway rules, is what we deal with on real jobs, not generic copy.
Why we wrote it
Most of what you find online is either a sales page or a single narrow answer. This is the whole picture in one place, so you can get your bearings before you dig into the detail or ask anyone for a quote.
Our honest position
We lay these floors for a living and would like the work, and we are upfront about that. We have kept prices off this page because an honest one does not exist until we have seen your floor, and we have stuck to rules and methods that hold whoever you use.
Frequently asked questions
- Do I need planning permission for a resin driveway in Leicester?
- Usually not, if it is permeable. A permeable resin-bound surface lets water soak away, so it generally sits outside the front-garden planning rule at any size. An impermeable surface over five square metres that drains to the road does need permission. Local restrictions such as conservation areas can change this, so check with your council.
- Who do I apply to for a dropped kerb?
- The highway authority for your area: Leicester City Council inside the city, and Leicestershire County Council across the rest of the county. The kerb work has to be done by an approved contractor.
- Will a resin floor or driveway cope with Leicester winters?
- Yes. Indoors the weather is irrelevant. Outdoors, a permeable resin-bound drive drains water through rather than holding it to freeze, so it handles frost well when it is laid on a sound, well-drained base.
- What does resin flooring cost?
- It depends on the size of the space, the condition of the slab, and the finish you choose. We quote one fixed price for the whole job after seeing it, rather than a per-metre figure that ignores the prep. Our cost guide explains every driver.
- Which finish should I choose?
- Flake for a hard-working garage or workshop, solid colour for a clean modern look, metallic for a showpiece, quartz or anti-slip where grip matters. Our guides to choosing a colour and the best floor for a garage walk through it.
- What areas do you cover?
- Leicester city plus Loughborough, Hinckley, Melton Mowbray, Market Harborough, Coalville and the surrounding Leicestershire towns as standard, and further afield for larger commercial and industrial jobs.