Deirdre O Meara 
A 23-year-old mum from Durham, Chloe Neil, has taken to TikTok to show off the stunning transformation of her council house garden. The garden was given a complete makeover by her partner, who is a landscaper with his own company. The couple wanted to give their run-down garden some TLC and have since given it an epic transformation. Chloe’s massive garden is now complete with a trampoline and a play area for her children. Posting on TikTok, Chloe shared her clip with the caption ‘Our garden project’ and said: “Following on from the ‘council house’ renovation, here’s the garden!”
In the clip, we first see the couple’s huge garden being dug up by a digger. Once the foundations were put in place, a wall was built, soil was laid, and grass was put down. A pavement was then built, and Chloe also made sure to have a play area for her children. The savvy mum finished her garden with a trampoline and planted some plants to really bring the space to life. Chloe later confirmed: “My partner did all of the work so we only had the cost of materials.”
Chloe’s clip has clearly left many open-mouthed, as it has quickly amassed a whopping 480.8k views. It has 26.7k likes, 553 comments, and 184 shares. But social media users were left divided at Chloe’s transformation – while some were very impressed with the renovation, others thought it looked more like a beer garden. One person said: “Looks fab, well done.” Another added: “Looks lush! I don’t get why people think you shouldn’t have a nice home cos your council! I’m about to put a 4k bathroom in mine.”
However, someone else noted: “So you built a beer garden.” A second chimed in: “Looks more like my local beer garden.” Whilst a third agreed: “Looks a bit like a pub garden.” At the same time, trolls were quick to flood in, and many said that they wouldn’t have spent money and done such a lot of work on a ‘council house.’ One user commented: “Amazing how far universal credits can stretch to these days” to which Chloe confirmed “Hahaha universal credit? No, it’s just called being successful business owners.”
Whilst someone else said: “Nice …. But I’d never spend that on a council garden for someone else to benefit from if I had to move” to which Chloe revealed “We won’t be moving.. we plan to buy it in the future.” One cruel troll claimed: “Preferred it natural” to which Chloe replied “Maybe you would, but it’s our garden, and we have designed it how we wanted it.” Meanwhile, someone else asked: “How big is that garden? Wow, I have a council house, and I can’t even afford to carpet it haha” to which Chloe explained “No offence, but that’s not my problem, if I can afford to do things in life I will. There’s no need to put a downer on my situation.”
In response to the nasty messages from trolls, Chloe later said: “Anyway, thank you to all the haters for bumping up my views. “Some people must seem to think you can’t have a nice council house these days and that you have to claim benefits to be eligible.”
Chloe’s garden transformation has sparked a debate on social media, with some praising her for the impressive makeover, while others criticized her for spending money on a council house garden. However, Chloe and her partner have made it clear that they are successful business owners and can afford to make the changes they want in their home. The couple plans to buy the council house in the future, and they are determined to enjoy their new garden space in the meantime.
