In reply to Francescaparratt:
A trade that you have a personal recommendation for from an independent party (your neighbour), whom when you talk to gives you confidence is worth the notional extra couple of hundred quid. Especially as you don't know when you might need him again.
I had a colleague who got a decorator in did a rubbish job, she pointed it out to him, and he just downed-tools and walked out, never finished, never even sent the bill. She had to sand the paint work down before getting somebody else to finish the job!
On the other side of the coin, there's a joiner down the road for me who's absolutely brilliant, highly regarded. Did a job for me fitting a new sliding door. I wasn't sure about it he arrange for me to see the exact same door he'd fitted elsewhere. Then because he knew I was going to paint the surround, he put an undercoat on for me before and cleaned-up completely after himself. Minor door hinge adjustment problem later, round first thing in the morning.