FORMER marketing manager James Armstrong wants people to take the DIY approach to beating the housing market – and build homes themselves.

He has appealed for people to get in touch about forming a ‘self build’ group to gain more affordable housing for the Dorchester area.

Retired Mr Armstrong, who lives at Fordington in Dorchester, will be manning a stand and holding workshops at the Tolpuddle Martyrs Festival on July 17 and 18 to gather interest.

“The whole idea is that they will be local homes for local people.

“If we set up a group it will be up them to make the decisions.

“We will see how keen people are to solve their own housing problems.”

He added: “In the end, the houses can be built for less than the market price.

“They can be up to a half or third cheaper.”

Mr Armstrong says that the government has recognised the strength of the self-build sector – including fresh emphasis on self-build in a new government green paper.

Mr Armstrong says he built his own home in Muswell Hill in London but was also recently inspired by hearing House Minister Grant Shapps talk about the Green Paper at a Community Land Trust conference in June.

Mr Armstrong said there are various ways to self-build – from someone with the skills actually doing it themselves or employing and sub-contracting architects and builders.

He said that a promising vehicle for self-build schemes is through a new vehicle called Community Land Trusts.

He has pointed to the example of St Minvers in Cornwall where 12 people grouped together to build homes close to the upper crust playground of Rock.

Villagers pooled their skills and resources to create the homes through the not-for-profit St Minver Community Land Trust.

A two-bedroom house went for around £78,000 and a three-bedroomed house went for £83,000 compared with £280,000 and £350,000 on the open market.

The only proviso for ownership was to have strong connections to the St Minver parish.

When sold on, the homes remain in local ownership and are capped at affordable levels.

Mr Armstrong said: “Self-build doesn’t fluctuate with the market but answers’ people’s needs.

“In times of recession self-builders are not affected like the housebuilders who build the numbers to meet their expectations of future demand and to gather expected higher prices.

“Self-builders build just as quickly as they can with the prospect of moving into their new home in styles that suit them and in locations they choose.”