.... by which I don't mean the acre of my country estate where the
peasants go to graze their sheep, rather the useless patch of land
that is supposed to be the garden for my flat in Camberwell (dodgy
part of London for those unfamiliar with it) but which looks like a
redundant piece of land on my housing estate.

I thought I'd try to put some low maintenance shrubs in it - the sort
of thing you find planted in supermarket car parks, or other "utility"
areas.

Do you know what I mean? Uninspiring but tough and low maintenance
(I'm not home very often so can't spend much time looking after them)

Can anyone recommend anything - it's part shade, not sure of soil type