New 'Young Sheddie' category introduced for 2024 Shed of the Year

The 18th iteration of the world's leading shed competition Shed of the Year is now open for entries with a brand new category, Young Sheddie of the Year.

This means that those aged 18 - 25 can share the sheds they have bought to life, whether used for work, play, or a place to chill. Young Sheddie of the Year is also an opportunity to showcase creations brought to life by multiple generations in the family.

The new category is one of seven that entrants can pick to be in with the chance of winning an all-new prize. Alongside £1,000 in cash and £250 worth of Cuprinol products, this year’s winner will also be awarded an exclusive overnight stay in a relaxing nature resort. 

Head judge and founder of the competition Uncle Wilco said: “It will be very fascinating to see how the upcoming summer of sport events might inspire the entries in our pub and entertainment category. We’ve seen a growing number of participants using recycled materials and making more sustainable choices when it comes to creating their sheds – these are factors we’ll consider closely as we select finalists for the Nature’s Haven category this year.
 
“I’m also extremely excited to see the submissions in our new category. Last year, we crowned Archie Proudfoot our winner – he submitted his shed [pictured top] into the then-recently introduced Most Colourful Shed category. His fresh approach and vibrant use of colour made him a worthy winner.”

Cuprinol Creative Director, Marianne Shillingford added: “We’re equally excited to introduce the Cuprinol Young Sheddie of the Year category to the 2024 competition. It’s a fabulous way for the younger generation to express their unique personalities and unleash their creativity on a grand scale; this is our opportunity to meet the artists and architects of tomorrow!”
 
Categories for Cuprinol Shed of the Year 2024 include:
    1.    Young Sheddie of the Year
    2.    Most Colourful Shed
    3.    Simple but Effective
    4.    Budget
    5.    Unexpected/Unique
    6.    Cabin or Summerhouse
    7.    Nature’s Haven
    8.    Pub or Entertainment
    9.    Workshop or Studio

Entries for this year’s competition will close at midnight on May 31, 2024.

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Monday posts are sponsored by Cosy Garden Rooms, the UK's No. 1 bespoke garden room designer and builder.

Woodlands Home & Garden Group open a new distribution hub in Scotland

Specialist garden building manufacturer and retailer Woodlands Home & Garden Group has opened a new warehouse, distribution and sales hub in Scotland. The 40,000 sq.ft site is located in Glenrothes, Fife, and is part of Woodlands' development plans as it looks to expand its operation across the whole of Scotland.

The new hub will be managed by Chris Devanny who has extensive experience within the garden building market. In addition to overseeing the 22,000 sq.ft warehouse and distribution facility, he will also lead the development of sales, service, and installation operations across Scotland.

The Glenrothes site will also house a new Tiger garden building franchise, opening in partnership with Anchor Timber Buildings, which will house over 110 garden buildings in an 18,000 sq.ft indoor display area.  The showsite in Glenrothes has been operated by Anchor for over 40 years, and having established a successful reputation across the region, they took the decision to partner exclusively with Tiger earlier this year to help with their growth.

Ross Moran, Chief Executive at Woodlands Home & Garden Group said: “We are delighted to get this deal over the line and the opening of a new hub in Glenrothes provides us with the opportunity to further develop our sales growth and service across the whole of Scotland which we believe is a really important and exciting region for us. We have worked successfully with Anchor for many years, so the appointment of Chris as our General Manager not only ensures continuity for all our customers, but also provides the business with a highly experienced and ambitious individual.

“The new Tiger franchise is also another significant step forward for Tiger’s offline strategy, which is creating a network of franchise-operated locations across the UK to complement our existing online success and build on our position as the UK’s market leader in garden buildings."

The new showsite is located at Anchor Timber Buildings, Unit 8a Boston Road, Viewfield Industrial Estate, Glenrothes, Fife KY6 2RE and is open from 8am until 4.30pm on Monday to Friday and 9am until 3pm on Saturday. 

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Friday posts are sponsored by Warwick Buildings, manufacturers of outstanding quality timber buildings. Click here for more information.

The average UK worker will spend £1,964 a year by returning to work full-time, says new research

New figures from personal finance comparison site finder.com suggest that the average commuter in the UK could spend £1,964 a year on returning to the office, roughly 7% of the average salary.

Finder calculated the average cost of commuting to and from work and buying lunch, to find out how much a worker could expect to pay if they returned to the office five days a week. They found that the average worker would spend an additional £1,964 per year on commuting and lunch costs on returning to the office full-time.

In London, this figure rises to 9.4% of average take-home pay, with workers in the capital expected to spend £3,076, with £2,206 of this figure attributable to commuting costs.

Employees in Yorkshire and The Humber would lose an average of 6.7% of their annual take-home salary, followed by the West Midlands at 6.6% then the North West and East Midlands (6.5%), and the South West and North East (6.4%).

Those in the South East and Wales would sacrifice an average of 6.3% of their salary by returning to the office full-time. In the East of England workers could expect to lose around 6.2% of their take home salary, and in Scotland, 6%.

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 Thursday posts are sponsored by Cabin Master: garden offices and   

 studios to fit any size garden. Top quality contemporary or traditional

 buildings.

Multi-purpose garden office

 

 

A recent build from Cosy Garden Rooms underlines the flexibility of garden buildings. Pictured above is the 5m × 3.5m design, composite clad in soft green Hardie board with UPVC anthracite doors and windows, a front overhang with remote sensor LED lighting, double sliding doors, and a bathroom partition.

 

Here's what the customer said about it: "We love it. It is used as occasional guest accommodation but the bed is swapped out with a settee, etc, when not being used. Then it becomes an extra living space. And I have also used it as an office so it’s definitely multi purpose."

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Wednesday posts are sponsored by Booths Garden Studios, the UK's No.1 supplier of zero maintenance and portable garden studios

 

13th and final London Cabmen's Shelter awarded Grade II listing

Excellent news this morning that the green cabmen's shelter on Wellington Place in St John’s Wood, London has now been listed at Grade II level by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). Known locally as 'The Chapel' shelter it is the final example in the capital to be protected by listing.
 
As regular readers of Shedworking know, these wooden huts were built by the Cabmen's Shelter Fund as rest stops for licenced cab drivers when cabs were all horse-drawn. The first was built in 1875 and only 13 survive in the city today, continuing to serve modern-day taxi drivers. All 13 shelters were restored in a campaign by Heritage of London Trust during the 1980s and 1990s and they are still overseen by the Cabmen’s Shelter Fund, which celebrates its 150th anniversary in 2025.

Only drivers with 'The Knowledge' can take a seat inside but many huts offer takeaway refreshments to the public too.

"We’re really pleased that the Wellington Place shelter now has protected status, along with all the other remaining shelters," said Colin Evans, Trustee Cabmen's Shelter Fund. "We know how special the shelters are but we need the London taxi trade and public’s support more than ever so that this important part of our heritage and working class history lives on."

Image courtesy Historic England Archive 

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Malvern Garden Buildings offer a premium collection of garden buildings, displayed at 11 UK showsites.

 

Garden studio built with biowaste

An interesting case study in the Guardian featuring plant stylist Emma Sadie Thomson who built her home studio in Melbourne, Australia, out of recycled materials and biowaste. Here's a snippet:

Inside, Thomson’s main concern was how to insulate. From a friend who was working for Joost Bakker’s Future Food System project in Melbourne, Thomson learned about Durra Panel, a wheat straw insulation, originally designed in Sweden and made in Bendigo, and decided to use it for the inside walls and ceiling.

Well worth a read.

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Monday posts are sponsored by Cosy Garden Rooms, the UK's No. 1 bespoke garden room designer and builder.

Can I reclaim the VAT on the cost of my garden office?

No apologies for returning to the perennial question (s) of garden offices and tax, with Saint & Co Chartered Accountants the latest experts to pitch in with their thoughts on VAT, capital gains, capital allowances, and depreciation. Here's a snippet (click the link above to read the whole thing which is short and to the point):

Can I reclaim the VAT on the cost of my garden office?
If you are VAT registered and build it through your business then absolutely YES. Some key pointers below:
*Ensure the business pays for all costs, you cannot claim the vat back if you pay personally
*If you are planning to use the garden office for personal use as well you are only able to claim back a portion of the VAT
*Clients under the flat rate VAT scheme can only reclaim capital purchases no less than £2,000. VAT cannot be reclaimed for services. Ensure materials are bought separately to any installation costs

As always, we recommend you talk to your tax advisor before taking any financial decisions.

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Friday posts are sponsored by Warwick Buildings, manufacturers of outstanding quality timber buildings. Click here for more information.