Do You Need Extra Space? A Garden Office May Be The Answer: The Cheaper, Stress-free Route

Gemma Thompson's 'nightmare' began at first light, one morning in March. As soon as they started unloading their scaffolding poles, she began to have doubts about the wisdom of having their loft converted. By the end of the first week, she was wondering if she would be able to cope and by the end of the first month, she and the children had gone to live with her mother.

The conversion lasted three months and ended up costing almost £30,000. Was she displeased with the work? No, aside from minor problems with the plumbing, the work was satisfactory. It was all the 'chaos and disruption' that 'never seemed to end' that drove her to distraction. 'I have said to my husband: never, ever again.'

By contrast when Gemma's friend, psychotherapist and mother-of-three Liz Malloy needed a therapy room so she could practice from home, the job was completed in less than three weeks at a fraction of the cost. The form this economical alternative took: a garden office.

Thompson admits she felt 'more than a twinge' of envy when she saw Malloy's garden office building, set between fruit frees to the rear of the latter's Victorian terraced house. Fully insulated and double-glazed, with shower-room and all utilities, the room also doubles up as a guest bedroom. It's a home from home,' says Malloy, both for herself, her houseguests and her clients. She goes on to point out the psychological advantages to working away from the day-to-day chaos of the home: the peace and quiet, the natural surroundings.

More and more people looking for that extra bit of space are utilising that unloved corner of the garden, rather than the constricted zone of the loft. The contemporary wooden garden building is light years away of the mouldy old sheds of yesteryear, and estate agents say they can add up to £20,000 the value of your house. Whether used as a conventional office or as playroom, games room, home cinema or gym, a specialist installer will have an 'off-the-peg' design or draw up a bespoke version according to your needs. Prices range from as little as £3,000 up to £60,000 for seriously well-equipped versions.

But the best thing from Gemma Thompson's point of view, is that the mess and dirt is outside.