post a picture that shows the things you're talking about in an overall scene. Also, say where you are.

Thanks. I'm in England is that ok?

Siobhan, in a very small back garden I would seriously rethink grassing the whole area. In the winter it will be a mud patch. I know you want a soft place for the kids but in our climate it would be unusable for a lot of the year. My kids are grown up but when they were small they had more use of our paved back garden with bikes and wheeled toys than if we had had mucky downtrodden grass. Plus mowing a very small lawn is a pain. I hesitate to contemplate it but have you looked at artificial turf?

A picture would be good.

Thank you got your reply. Here's a couple of photos. We have thought about artificial grass too so that's an option.

I'm a bit in disbelief that you think grass is somehow going to be the solution to your children's back yard dreams. It's not a large enough area to do duty for any sports. It seems much more useful as hard surface for wheeled toys (as previously mentioned), badminton and whatever else a kid can do on a floor. Can't see the bigger picture, but on account of leaves accumulated it suggests there might be a fair amount of shade. If too much, grass won't grow well. And then where is the family going to place outdoor furniture, and the grill? Are those activities to be over with? Lawn strikes me as so not the way to go for this small back yard. One common mistake of newbies is wanting something that is totally impractical for the conditions that exist. They soon learn that it's better to be compatible with the conditions.

I certainly wouldn't remove the deck as that seems to be easiest and most desirable location for any outdoor entertaining. The kids won't be small forever and even they will like a location they can sit outdoors with friends and enjoy the sun and a beverage. Plus, now it makes a good family gathering place as well as providing something of a play space as well.

As to replacing with a lawn, I agree with both floral and Yard that it is an awkward and extremely confined situation for a lawn and given your climate, likely to be unusable for a good portion of the year. With viewing the toys shown, I assume the kids are still pretty young and the surface material already in place seem to be appropriate for little kid activities. And in the second photo there already appears to be a grassy area in front of the fenced off structure (chicken coop?). I would perhaps relocate the bench currently there to maximize the space and let that be your grassy play area for now. When the kids are older, perhaps there is a park or larger open area nearby where they can walk to and play.