It’s an established fact that the British public like to splash out on a garden shed. A survey conducted by Cuprinol (who sponsor the Annual Shed of the Year competition) in 2014, gives a useful insight into just how shed crazy the citizens of the United Kingdom are.

• 14 million people in the UK own a garden shed.
• Sheds were worth, as of 2014, £5 billion to the UK economy.
• Overall, the average shed owner spends almost a year of their life in their shed.
• 11% of shed owners surveyed admitted to using their shed to make secret phone calls.
• 9% of respondents keep unhealthy snacks in their shed.

Common Uses

Storage

This is arguably the most common use for a garden shed, since they are often used to accommodate the overflow when our houses and gardens become too cluttered. Garden sheds are the perfect repository for gardening tools and seasonal ornaments, as well as any unused junk we might be hoarding.

Growing plants and shrubs

With the right architecture, a garden shed can easily become a bespoke greenhouse, perfect for growing herbs and plants. Ideally, garden sheds of this kind will need to have wooden foundations, but plenty of large windows, along with a transparent roof, so as to let in the right amount of heat and light.

Children’s Play Area

If you want to avoid the mess and clutter of having your child’s play area in the house, then converting your shed into a child’s play area might be a good investment. Where you may have been reluctant to radically redesign a room in your home, an outdoor shed allows you to be truly creative; for example, painting your shed in bright colour and generally tailoring your child’s play area to their tastes and interests.

Office Space

There are a few notable English authors (Roald Dah, Philip Pullman, to name a few) who are well-known for having written their novels in their sheds, and it’s not hard to see why. Having a shed for an office is a great way to keep your home life and work life separate, giving you both the physical and mental space to work more effectively. Again, the ability to personalise and decorate your shed to your own bespoke needs is one of the key incentives to building your own office space.

Potting Shed

If you want to keep certain plants away from the elements, it may be worth thinking about ways you can convert your shed into a potting shed, ensuring your seasonal plants can be stored away until they are ready to bloom again.

And the less common ones…

A homemade pub

Some people have been known to convert their shed or summerhouse into a home-made bar (or indeed as a space to brew their own alcohol). It’s arguably more of a niche way to spend your money when designing a shed, but it’s a great incentive for you to host more events/dinners with friends with your new shed.

Cinema

Again, this is a niche decision for people thinking about building/designing a shed or summerhouse. However, if you’re a real film fan and want a simple way to create a space for watching your favourite films in peace, then this is a brilliant and innovative way to turn your shed or summerhouse into something really special.