Garden gate chain lock
Updated: October 2026
A garden gate chain lock is worth fitting only after the leaf, the posts and the hinges are already doing their job. A short chain from the [grating security chain comparison](/hub/door-and-window-security/grating-security-chain) does not replace that work. Security advice often talks about a side gate of about 1.8 m. England’s permitted-development rules often stop a gate beside a road at 1 metre. A chain around £7 changes neither number, and it does not stiffen a rotten post. Peter F. checked the four listings against that advice. There was no lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
A garden gate chain lock is worth fitting only after the leaf, the posts and the hinges are already doing their job.
A garden gate chain lock is worth fitting only after the leaf, the posts and the hinges are already doing their job. A short chain from the grating security chain comparison does not replace that work. Security advice often talks about a side gate of about 1.8 m. England’s permitted-development rules often stop a gate beside a road at 1 metre. A chain around £7 changes neither number, and it does not stiffen a rotten post. Peter F. checked the four listings against that advice. There was no lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Length | Lock | Link section | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Yarlung Yarlung 2 ft hardened chain | 61 cm | No lock | 9.5 mm | 9.2 | about £14.99 | View offer |
 Sterling Sterling 60 cm chain and padlock | 60 cm | Aluminium padlock | 4 mm | 8.8 | about £7.03 | View offer | |
 ODDerZZii ODDerZZii 51 cm chain and padlock | 51 cm | Keyed padlock | 3 mm | 7.2 | about £7.99 | View offer |
On this page
The gate has to match the fence
Secured by Design’s Homes Guide 2024 asks for side and rear gates at least 1.8 m high, lockable, and near the front building line. ProtectUK puts a front boundary around 1.0 m, so the house can still be seen, and side and rear boundaries of at least 1.8 m, with hinges that cannot be lifted off. That is advice, not a rule that every side gate is 1.8 m.
A 900 mm picket wrapped with a chain still stops at the waist. Do not mix 1.8 m of gate with 1.8 m of chain. A Screwfix listing for a Yale hardened chain at 1.8 m by 10 mm, about £74.99, is chain length. The sets here are about 50 to 61 cm. A side gate of the kind Cannock Gates lists from about £300, at 1,800 mm, is the leaf itself.
The planning cap is a different number
In England, Class A of the General Permitted Development Order 2015 limits a gate next to a highway used by vehicles to 1 metre if you want to stay within permitted development. Elsewhere the cap is 2 metres. A side gate of 1.8 m beside a road needs an application. A rear boundary away from the road can often reach 2 metres, which leaves room for the 1.8 m security height.
Class A does not cover a listed building. An Article 4 direction can remove these rights on a particular street. The 1 metre and 2 metre figures are England’s. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland write their own rules. A chain on the existing leaf does not raise the height, and it does not meet the 1.8 m advice either.
Hinges and a lock you can use from both sides
If you can lift the leaf off the pins, the chain never gets a vote. ProtectUK asks for anti-lift hinges on a security gate. Ordinary tee hinges in a galvanised side-gate kit, often sold with a Suffolk latch and a padlockable Brenton bolt, are the everyday alternative to a loose chain. Those kits are typically described for gates about 900–1,350 mm wide and up to about 40 kg. A hasp, or that bolt, is screwed to the leaf and the post, so it cannot be lifted off the top the way a draped chain can.
Secured by Design wants the gate lockable with a key from both sides. That is a lock in the leaf. A chain and padlock is a different object. On a see-through gate you may reach the padlock from either side. On a close-boarded gate at 1.8 m, an outside padlock can shut you in or lock you out. A carabiner has no key. Maxmoc is supplied that way. If the post rocks, repair it before you buy hardware. Firms such as KBO Lock & Safe put it plainly: posts and hinges are the work, and the lock is what you add once they hold.
Where a short chain still helps
A short chain still helps when the leaf is already sound, the height is a choice you have made with the planning rules in view, and the hinges will not lift off. Measure with the gate closed. If the loop fits inside 60 cm, Sterling is the top pick: about £7.03, stated 4 mm, an aluminium padlock, 4.4 from 158 reviews, and no grade printed. If about 51 cm is the length that meets, ODDerZZii is the other set with a keyed lock in the box, at about £7.99 and a stated 3 mm, with reviews of a plastic lock body. Yarlung, at about 61 cm and about £14.99, is thicker and includes no padlock.
None of those prices buys Secured by Design approval or a 1.8 m leaf. Fit the loop only after the gate is worth locking, using how to lock a garden gate with a chain. Thickness and whether a lock is in the box are in what security chain for a garden gate. A lightwell grate is a different opening: cellar grate lock chain.
Common questions
Should my side gate be 1.8 m?
Secured by Design and ProtectUK advise about 1.8 m for side and rear gates, with the front boundary lower, around 1.0 m, so the house stays visible. That is security advice, not a requirement that every side gate is 1.8 m. In England a gate beside a road used by vehicles is often limited to 1 metre under permitted development. If you want 1.8 m in that position, expect to apply for planning permission.
Do I need planning permission?
In England, Class A of the GPDO 2015 allows many gates up to 1 metre next to a highway used by vehicular traffic and up to 2 metres elsewhere. Go above those heights and you need an application. Listed buildings are outside that class, and an Article 4 direction can remove it. The fence itself is not building-regulations work on the Planning Portal’s account. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland set their own limits. Check locally.
Is a chain enough on its own?
A chain holds a leaf that is already sound. It does not add height, it does not stop a gate being lifted off its hinges, and the sets around £7 here print no security grade. Use it as an extra loop on a gate that matches the fence and the hinges. If the passage is the route you are trying to protect, look at a proper gate lock or a padlockable bolt as well.
What about hinges?
Fit hinges that cannot be lifted off, because a leaf that lifts off the pins walks away from the chain. ProtectUK names anti-lift hinges for this reason. Ordinary tee hinges in a galvanised kit need a check that the gate cannot be raised clear of them. If the screws turn in rotten timber, replace the post before you add a lock.
Can the gate be locked from both sides with these chains?
A both-sides key is a lock built into the gate, which Secured by Design is describing. These chains do not provide that cylinder. You can reach a padlock from either side only when the gate lets you reach it. On a solid tall leaf, an outside padlock can lock you in or out. A carabiner has no key.
Will a 60 cm chain go round my post?
It will if the shut gate leaves a close loop inside 60 cm. A 100 mm post and a thick stile can use most of that. Sterling is 60 cm and Yarlung about 61 cm. Maxmoc is about 50 cm and ODDerZZii about 51 cm. Measure around the actual timber with the gate closed. If the ends miss, the chain is too short for that post, however strong the links look.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources used for this page in October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures on the four listings. No listing is treated as BS EN 12320, Sold Secure, Secured by Design or LPS 1175. The 10 mm line is ACE Security’s guide, not a test of these chains.
- ProtectUK: fences and gates (retrieved October 2026)
- Secured by Design: secure your home garden (retrieved October 2026)
- BSI: BS EN 12320:2021 padlocks and padlock fittings (retrieved October 2026)
- Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, article 14 (retrieved October 2026)
- Consumer Rights Act 2015 (retrieved October 2026)
- ACE Security: padlocks guide (Collections Trust PDF) (retrieved October 2026)
- Signet Locks: how to lock a double gate (retrieved October 2026)
- Chain Supplies: information about chains (retrieved October 2026)