Talk about DIY! Inside South London estate where locals BUILD their own homes and save £420k in the process

Surging house prices and an ongoing cost-of-living crisis have resulted in affordable housing being difficult to come by across much of the UK. 

This is even more so the case in the capital, where prices are at a premium and space for development is increasingly scarce. 

To combat the issue of soaring costs, residents of a Lewisham council estate have been given the chance to build their own homes, which has allowed them to make astronomical savings of £420,000 in the process. 

The Church Grove development in the Ladywell area of the south-east London borough is offering 36 price-capped homes to anyone who is willing to put their DIY skills to the test - following an initiative that began in 2016. 

Rory Wakefield, a musician, who was born and raised in the area, has praised the scheme for giving him the chance to live where he was brought up, otherwise he would have been forced to live elsewhere.

Mr Wakefield told the News Shopper: 'I wouldn't have been able to get a house without this scheme. It makes it affordable'.

'I was born and raised in Lewisham, and I would never have been able to stay here without this scheme.

'It is a very positive scheme. They should definitely make more, they need them.

He added that he is still in the process of building his home and is currently working on laying his floors for his abode. 

Meanwhile, ambulance worker Martin Oroyan, 61, moved into his partially-owned property with his partner and three sons last month - and has praised the initiative for bringing the local community closer together. 

Mr Oroyan said: 'We have been involved in this project here in Ladywell since its inception in 2016 and it has been quite an experience.

'My partner and I were first-time buyers and had been trying to get 'on the ladder' for several years.

'Our three boys were born while living in Forest Hill and we hoped to avoid moving, changing schools and the general upheaval that implies.

'Without this project, we wouldn't have been able to afford living within the M25.' 

The new development has used homes which are part of a community land trust, meaning they are owned by a non-profit organisation to keep them affordable for interested buyers.

Units are offered in various sizes and tenures, including options for full ownership, part-rent-part-buy, London Living Rent, and social rent.

Indeed, the scheme has been so successful that there is now a lengthy waiting list for anyone wishing to join the development. 

Couple Pete Bell and Emma Onono - who moved into their property in April with their eight-year-old son - say the welcoming community is a notable difference to how they felt at their old home in Adelaide Avenue, located in nearby Brockley.

Emma, 48, said: 'We applied for the scheme several years ago. Eventually we got an email saying that we made the top of the list and we jumped at it.

'It has a great community feel. You can't walk from one side to the other without saying hi to someone. Where we used to live no one even knew their neighbours.

'We got one with a kitchen in a concrete shell. We built the floors and painted the walls but that was all.

'I love it. Absolutely love it. There is a really nice community.'

Sydney Thornbury, 57, opted for the full-purchase option on her property over three months ago - and was one of the first residents to move in after opting to downsize.

Miss Thornbury says that she built her own floors, painted the property's walls, as well as building her own custom kitchen.

She added: 'We all love it, it has been fantastic. It has been even better than I thought it would be.

'Not only is this building an incredible testament to what people have achieved but also the community that has been created since going through this process.

'One of the really lovely things about it I think is that every flat is really different. They all have a different style or feel to them.'