People interested in building their own home in Chichester District urged to join council register

All local authorities must keep a register of any individual or local community groups who want to obtain land to build their own homes and they must take this demand into account when preparing local plans. Chichester District Council is encouraging those interested to join its register for free.

"As a council, we are very keen to create more opportunities and help local people and communities come up with their own housing solutions, including self-build and custom build for everyone in the Chichester Local Plan area," explains Councillor David Betts, the council's Cabinet Member for Housing. "This is why our register is so important — it enables us to find out where people would like their plot to be and the type of house that they would like to build.

"It's also worth pointing out that if you're interested in building in any of the areas in our district which are based within the South Downs National Park (SDNP), then you'll need to register on their website (opens new window)

In addition, the council is running a survey to gather the views and aspirations of those looking to build their own home in the district.

Councillor Betts says: "The survey takes around five minutes to complete and the feedback we receive will really help us to map out and improve delivery of the right plots in the right locations. It asks the type and size of plot that people are after; the type of house that people are considering building; and the minimum number of bedrooms they would like. We are also asking about people's preferred locations; the sort of custom and self-build project that they are planning; and whether there are any particular barriers preventing people from progressing their projects."

A self-build home is where someone directly organises the design and construction of their own home and can include DIY homes; contractor-built homes; kit houses; and, community projects.

Custom build refers to projects where a specialist developer is employed to build a home, to someone's specifications. They find the site; prepare it; and, help to arrange the finance. The design of the build may be bespoke or chosen from a range of standard options.

Another option that some people opt for is to work with a group of other self-builders on a community project, where the group works on a small number of properties together.

"There are certain areas in the country where self-build properties have really taken off, and we are keen to get the most up-to-date picture we can of what the demand is within Chichester District," adds Cllr Betts. "For some people self-build is a more affordable route to owning their own home which also meets their specific needs. Typically, self-build homes are around 25 per cent cheaper than buying a new home from a developer and currently, 13,000 people a year in the UK manage to build their own homes while self-built homes account for between 7% and 10% of all new homes built in the UK."

People interested in self-build can find out more information on Chichester District Council's custom and self-build pages and can also email selfbuild@chichester.gov.uk if they have any specific questions.

Date of Release: 6 September 2023                                                                

Reference: 4268