An atelier house by cc-studio and studioTX in Almere. The facade is made of cut strips of PTFE (Teflon)-coated fibreglass fabric from rolls left over from the production of conveyor belts for the food industry. (Photos: John Lewis Marshall)

The government has put the solution to the nation’s housing crisis in the hands of self-builders. The coalition are creating a £30 million fund aimed at persuading more of the 53% of people interested in building their own home to go out and get on with it. Eyes in government have for some time now been focused on the self-build projects taking place in the Netherlands in places such as Almere and this government is now planning a way to make this possible in the UK. As a result of a contrast in planning regulation and the price of land, this may take some doing as currently only one in ten new builds are self-built. It hasn’t always been this difficult to build your own home in the UK though, discover Britain’s potted history or plotland builders here.