New Build

Having spent time in Holland I have been greatly influenced and inspired by the way in which the country has used thatch very effectively in many new building projects, creating a thriving thatching industry in the process.

In the UK there is currently a big demand for new and affordable housing. All too often new housing projects are of a low quality and most do not contribute to the local aesthetics and heritage of towns and villages. The majority are also built with little regard as to where the building materials come from and whether the projects benefit the local community. For these reasons I am keen to see thatch, combined with other local sustainable building materials, play an important part in new buildings in appropriate areas of the UK.

I believe that conserving and building on traditional thatching skills, and therefore expanding the thatching industry in the UK, could provide many benefits to the wider community, to this end my ambitious goals are:

• To promote thatching as a viable alternative to other roofing materials



• To conserve the aesthetics and heritage of our towns and villages



• To promote and encourage training in East Anglia's unique and specialised thatching skills



• To promote local employment within our community



• To increase local production of long wheat straw



• To increase local production of water reed




• To increase the local production of hazel through improved woodland management



• To persuade the government and local authorities, through lobbying, of thatch's important conservation and energy efficiency values and the urgent need of grant aid

I welcome any enquiries from individuals building or re-building their own properties and architects or property developers who are interested in using thatch as a roofing material. As roof structures which are designed to be thatched have different specifications than tiled roofs, I am happy to be contacted to discuss or give advice on the development of architectural plans.