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House made of mud, straw and hemp on sale for £600k

Edd Smith/BBC The outside of Cob House in FakenhamEdd Smith/BBC
Building work began two years ago and the property is now complete

A house made from straw, water, mud and hemp - said to be the first of its kind in the UK - has gone on sale for £600,000.

Known as the Cob House, construction of the three-bedroom property in Fakenham, Norfolk, started in spring 2022 and finished earlier this year.

It was built as part of the CobBauge project which brought traditional "cob" techniques up to date and in line with UK building regulations.

Harry Thompson, land and new homes manager at Sowerbys estate agents, said it was the UK's first modern home built from the materials, and described the building as a "piece of history".

Edd Smith/BBC Inside of the wall Edd Smith/BBC
A cross section of the walls, show the natural materials and traditional building method which was used for the house

The house, designed by Hudson Architects, was built by built by Grocott and Murfitt, as part of a four-year project aimed at developing more energy-efficient housing.

Differing to typical construction methods, the walls are 600mm (2ft) thick to provide better insulation.

Mr Thompson said: "It's a healthy place, hopefully low cost, it's everything you'd want from a sustainable new build."

He said when you looked up at the ceilings of the single-storey property it was "almost cathedral like".

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