Old core, new estates: screed choices across Ely
Census 2021 put the Ely built-up area at 19,185 people. The city's building stock is split between very old and very new, and the right screed follows that split.
Growth first. Over a third of Ely's homes, 38%, went up in 2000 or later. Newer estates are designed around open ground floors and often heating, which suits liquid screed pumped into new homes and heated screeds over wet pipes. Should the engineer pick calcium sulphate, our anhydrite flow screed notes for Ely cover what happens after the pour. More is coming: the Orchards Green scheme north of the city, off the A10, is planned for 1,200 homes with a primary school and a care home.
Then the middle years. Detached homes from the 1970s to 1990s are regularly extended, and the new slab and screed have to line up with the existing floor. That is often a job for pumped screed over insulation, finished with a skim of compound at the join.
Finally the historic core. The cathedral, known as the Ship of the Fens, sits among a large group of medieval buildings still in daily use. Around the cathedral and Waterside, older buildings may have solid floors without membranes, and listed status can limit what is changed. There, a hand-laid sand and cement floor or a lighter touch with floor levelling is usually the starting point, once any consent questions are settled.
Homes in Ely at a glance
Of the 8,456 households in Ely, 33% live in detached houses and 26% in semi-detached houses. The largest share of its housing, 28%, was built between 1973 and 1999, and 28% between 2000 and 2014.
| Homes in Ely | Share |
|---|---|
| Detached houses | 33% |
| Semi-detached houses | 26% |
| Terraced houses | 26% |
| Flats | 13% |
| Built before 1919 | 12% |
| Built 1919 to 1944 | 7% |
| Built 1945 to 1972 | 15% |
| Built 1973 to 1999 | 28% |
| Built since 2000 | 38% |
House types from Census 2021 (table TS044); building age from the Valuation Office Agency council tax stock of properties, 31 March 2026 (table CTSOP 4.1). Figures cover the Ely built-up area (E63002991).
Screeding services in Ely
- Liquid ScreedExtending a 1970s to 1990s Ely home or finishing an Orchards Green plot? Pumped liquid screed, walkable in 24 to 48 hours.
- Sand and Cement ScreedSolid floors without membranes near Ely Cathedral and Waterside need careful rebuilding.
- Underfloor Heating ScreedNewer Ely estates and heated extensions need the right pipe cover and a slow heat-up.
- Anhydrite & Flow ScreedOrchards Green plots and Ely apartment floors may specify anhydrite screed. We pour CA grades and handle laitance and moisture testing.
- Floor LevellingLancaster Way offices, Ely Gateway trade units and home extensions: floor levelling to SR1 or SR2 before LVT or tiles.
- Latex ScreedOlder floors by Ely Cathedral and Waterside, or overboarded timber in a refit? Latex screed gives vinyl and LVT a smooth bed.
- Concrete Floor GrindingConcrete floor grinding for Ely extension joins and tired units at Lancaster Way, taking off ridges with dust extraction.
We also offer fibre reinforced screed, quick drying screed, high strength screed, bonded screed, floor preparation, screed repairs, concrete floor repair, screed pumping, insulation & membranes, commercial screeding and residential screeding in Ely.
Planning an Ely pour around parking and programme
Getting a pump to the room is the first practical question in Ely. On a newer estate with driveways, the mixer can usually stand close to the door. Where a house has no off-road parking, or the room is reached through a narrow passage or shared yard, mention it when asking for a price. We plan hose runs to suit, and a longer run is fine if we know about it beforehand.
For flats, upper-floor pours need the hose route agreed with the building manager as well as the owner.
Timing comes next. In Ely the screed date falls once the house is sealed against the weather and the wet plaster is on, ahead of kitchen fitters, tilers and flooring. Any underfloor heating goes down and passes its pressure test ahead of screeding day. Drying time depends on depth and material, so allow for it in the programme instead of squeezing it at the end.
Commercial floors follow a different programme. Lancaster Way Business Park, about a mile and a half from the city centre by the A142, has offices, warehouses, laboratories and manufacturing units across roughly 175 acres, and Ely Gateway on Angel Drove has trade counter and warehouse units. A tenant change or refit there can mean repair, preparation or a new hard wearing screed, priced from a survey of the unit.
Screeding prices for Ely floors
Sand and cement £18 to £25 per m², liquid £24 to £31 per m², supplied and laid (MyJobQuote, August 2026). MyJobQuote does not say whether these figures include VAT. See our floor screeding cost guide.
Who lays your floor screed in Ely
K & B Screeding’s own team, led by director Donatas Bardisevicius. Founded 2019, company 12298780.
See what customers say in our Google reviews and on our testimonials page.
Reaching Ely
As the crow flies, our yard in Slough is about 71.4 miles from Ely, which lies to the north-north-east. Postcodes here include CB7, and Soham (5.7 miles), Chatteris (9.9 miles), Newmarket (12.4 miles) and March (12.6 miles) are close by.
See our screeding services for every screed type we lay.