Winter Grounds Maintenance Checklist for Business Parks

Winter in Yorkshire can be beautiful. Crisp mornings, frosted landscapes, and that unmistakable chill in the air. But for business park managers and commercial property owners, it also brings a set of challenges. Keeping outdoor spaces safe, accessible, and looking their best when the temperature drops requires planning, preparation, and a bit of local know-how.

After years of maintaining commercial sites across Leeds and Yorkshire through some pretty memorable winters, we've learned what works (and what definitely doesn't!). Whether you're managing commercial landscaping for a single business park or multiple sites, this checklist will help you tackle winter with confidence, keeping your site safe and your tenants happy throughout the colder months. 

Your Responsibilities

It’s worth briefly touching on your legal obligations. Under the Occupiers' Liability Act 1957, you must take reasonable steps to keep visitors safe on your premises, including managing winter hazards such as ice, snow and poor visibility.

Preventing slips, falls and access issues isn’t just about avoiding claims; it’s about making sure your site feels safe, well-managed and professional every day. Landscaping commercial spaces requires attention to both aesthetics and safety, and a well-maintained business park supports tenant satisfaction, protects your reputation, and keeps operations running smoothly.

Getting Winter-Ready (Starting Now!)

If you haven't begun your preparations yet, there's still time to put essential winter measures in place before harsher weather arrives.

Identify Priority Areas Walk the site and note high-traffic zones: entrances and exits, car parks and access roads, pathways and steps, loading bays and delivery zones. These areas need immediate attention when frost or snow hits.

Clear and Check Drains Remove built-up leaves and debris from drains and gullies now. This significantly reduces the risk of pooling water turning into sheet ice overnight.

Tree Safety Check Winter storms can be unforgiving. A quick tree inspection, especially for loose limbs or overhanging branches near main routes, can prevent damage and reduce health and safety risks.

Lighting for Dark Afternoons By mid-afternoon, visibility is already poor. Ensure all external lighting works properly so visitors and staff can safely navigate the site in low-light or icy conditions.

Your Winter Maintenance Game Plan

1. Gritting and Snow Clearance

Gritting is probably the first thing everyone thinks about when winter maintenance comes up, and with good reason!

Your gritting strategy needs to be ready to roll at a moment's notice:

Know your routes: Which areas absolutely must be gritted first? Map it out now so there's no confusion at 5am on a frosty morning

Stock up: Salt and grit supplies should be positioned strategically across the site with sufficient quantities for extended cold periods

Watch the weather: Sign up for frost alerts so you're not caught off guard by overnight temperature drops

Set clear timings: Ideally, your site should be gritted before the early birds arrive for work

For larger business parks, bringing in professional gritting services often makes more sense. When it's minus three at midnight and snowing, having a contractor who automatically responds based on weather triggers means you're not scrambling to organise an emergency response and more importantly, your site opens safely every morning.

Snow clearance requires different equipment and strategic planning. Heavy snowfall needs proper equipment and somewhere sensible to put all that cleared snow where it won't refreeze into hazardous ice mounds.

2. Looking After Your Hard Surfaces

Yorkshire's freeze-thaw cycles can be brutal on paved areas. What starts as a tiny crack in autumn can become a major trip hazard by February.

Fix things now: Any dodgy paving, cracks, or potholes should be sorted before winter properly arrives. Once water gets in and freezes, these problems escalate quickly.

Keep an eye on things: A quick walk around once a week during winter helps you spot issues before they become dangerous or costly.

Moss & Algae Treatment: Winter’s damp conditions are the perfect recipe for moss and algae to appear on paths, steps and car parks; and they can get slippery fast! Regular professional treatments (with a few top-ups through the season) help keep surfaces safer and easier to navigate all winter long.

3. Keeping Your Greenery in Check

Winter doesn't mean your grounds maintenance team can hibernate!

The final mow: Your grass needs one last cut in late autumn. Not too short (which leaves it vulnerable to frost) but not too long (which creates a matted mess). Getting this right sets you up for healthy grass come spring.

Hedge and shrub trimming: Winter is actually the perfect time to tackle most hedges while they're dormant. It keeps everything looking tidy and prevents overgrown vegetation from blocking paths or causing damage during storms.

The leaf battle: This is probably the most underestimated winter job. Wet leaves are incredibly slippery, they block drains, they kill the grass underneath, and when frost hits? They become a proper hazard. Regular collection throughout autumn and into winter—especially around entrances, car parks, and pathways—makes a huge difference.

4. Winter-Specific Tasks

A few jobs are unique to the colder months:

Protecting special plants: Most commercial landscapes use hardy plants, but if you've got any special ornamental areas around building entrances, they might appreciate some frost protection.

Water features: Ponds and fountains need winterising to prevent pump damage and manage all that leaf litter that would otherwise create a murky mess by spring.

Protecting your turf: On any formal lawns or sports pitches, try to keep foot traffic off when the ground's waterlogged or frozen. Your spring self will thank you!

Building Your Winter Response Plan

The key to staying in control during winter is having a solid plan in place. Start by keeping a close eye on the weather, as alert services are incredibly useful and conditions can change quickly. Make sure you also have an out-of-hours response plan, because snow and ice rarely arrive at convenient times. Clear call-out procedures will also help you act quickly after overnight weather events. Good communication is important as well, as tenants appreciate being kept informed about gritting schedules and any temporary access changes. And finally, maintain strong supply levels throughout the season. Running out of grit halfway through winter is easily avoided by keeping healthy stockpiles and having reliable supplier arrangements for emergency top-ups.

Why Consider Professional Help?

Many business parks do a great job handling winter maintenance themselves, and for some sites that can be enough. But there are real benefits to bringing in a professional team, especially when the weather becomes unpredictable.

Professional services provide dedicated weather monitoring, pre-dawn response teams, commercial-grade equipment, and reliable coverage when you need it most. They also carry appropriate insurance and health and safety certifications, giving you added confidence that everything is being managed correctly and safely. Sometimes, it's worth having that peace of mind.

Setting Yourself Up for Spring

Your winter efforts aren't just about surviving the cold month, they're about setting your site up for a brilliant spring. Sites that are well-maintained through winter emerge with minimal damage, needing less remedial work when growth resumes.

Make notes of any problem areas such as spots where ice always forms, drainage issues, or plants that struggled. These observations are gold for both immediate spring improvements and long-term landscape planning.

The Bottom Line

Winter grounds maintenance doesn't have to be stressful. With some planning, the right resources, and consistent attention, your business park can remain safe, accessible, and looking professional throughout even the harshest weather. The key is starting your preparations now, before that first frost catches you off guard. Whether you're reviewing your current arrangements or thinking about bringing in professional support, getting ahead makes all the difference.

Ready to take the stress out of winter? Palmer Landscapes provides reliable gritting, snow clearance and year-round commercial grounds maintenance across Leeds and Yorkshire. Our team will create a tailored plan that gives you confidence through every cold snap. Get in touch today to get started.