Clayton father says DIY home extension saved him thousands

Scott Baggeley said people wanting to do the same as him needed to be prepared

A father who decided to build his own extension despite not having any previous building experience says he has saved thousands of pounds.

Scott Baggeley said he had watched YouTube tutorials to learn how to extend his new home in Staffordshire.

He said he had saved £25,000 by doing it himself, all while becoming a father for the first time.

He filmed his progress on social media and his videos have attracted hundreds of thousands of hits.

"You're not trying to do everything all at once. It's literally step by step... one little thing at a time," the 30-year-old, who works in marketing, said.

He bought a renovation property in the Clayton area of Newcastle-under-Lyme with his girlfriend, but then found out she was pregnant.

He started work last April by knocking down the original building

He filmed his progress which has attracted thousands of hits

"We were then on a really short timescale and with a lot less money, as you can imagine," he said.

They started making changes to their home but realised the old extension connecting to their kitchen was poorly insulated, and with gas and energy bills rising on top of building work costs, Mr Baggeley "just made a start".

He said he had spent £9,000 on building materials in total.

Scott Baggeley said building materials cost him £9,000 in total

Mr Baggeley began in April by demolishing the extension, but then had to deal with old lead pipes underneath, which meant he had to dig up his driveway.

"You learn how to dig the footings then you learn what goes into the footings. Then you're learning how to put one brick on top of another and what material goes in between the bricks," he said.

"Eventually, it all starts coming together."

He will now carry on working on his house and garden, he said

Although his family helped along the way, he said working on and finishing the roof had been the hardest part, ensuring it was waterproof.

Mr Baggeley said there had been no issues with the extension and he had enjoyed seeing "multiple videos [of his work] go viral now on multiple channels", but warned people tempted to do the same thing that they needed to be prepared and follow regulations.

"I wanted to make sure it was all legit and signed off by building control, so obviously you can pay for that, and he signed it off every step of the way - which is really important for me and the safety of the house.

"It takes a ridiculous amount of time and effort and you need a bit of money in your pocket as well - anyone who's seen the viral video knows that the materials cost just over £9,000, which is a lot less than paying a builder, but you definitely need to be ready for this type of work."

He said he now had to carry on working on the rest of the house and landscaping the garden.