Replacing picket fence with privet hedge?

[ALovelyBunchOfCoconuts]

We currently have two small square-ish lawns with a path running through the middle as our front garden. We are terraced and there is a picket fence which goes in between both neighbours and across the front with a gate in the middle where the path is.

The fence needs replacing and we have had quotes for about £500 which is reasonable considering the dimensions etc.

However, I was thinking, would it be better, and more cost effective in the short and long term, to replace this fence with a privet hedge and keep the gate in the middle? We are restricted to 1m high at the front.

How easy/difficult is it to plant privet? And how easy/difficult is it to get it to establish itself into a thick hedge that reaches all the way down to the ground?

We would have to ask the neighbours if they'd object to a hedge on their respective sides instead of a fence but I can't see why they'd say no.

Or would it be better to just keep the fence?

A hedge vs a fence is really down to personal taste. An established hedge does need to be trimmed to keep it to size/neat and may need other tlc like feeding and especially watering in the early years. You will also need to prepare the soil where it's going in with lots of digging and soil improver and a watering system if you have a tap at the front to make watering easier (eg a dripper or seeper system). You can buy hedges ready grown (look fab instantly but expensive and a pain if a plant doesn't survive) or buy twiglets and let them grow over time (a bit sparse for the first few years, will need to keep an eye on weeds etc).
instant hedge people

Does it have to be privet? Lots of good alternatives - yew is wonderful, I'd love a yew hedge. Or if you want a cottagey look you can get native mix hedges (but less good for a low hedge)

Privet stinks when it's in flower and it gives quite a few people hay fever, so your neighbours might have a good reason to say no.

privets are annoyingly smelly IMO. I keep trying to get rid of them in our garden but a hedge would probably be nicer and is much more hedgehog friendly :o)

it would require more maintenance though but I would definitely look into it further and see what different types of hedging could be good in your local area.