Barratt builds a green house

Building work begins this week on a new generation of zero-carbon homes.

The prototype of the "green house" has been designed to produce the smallest carbon footprint.

Solar panels will heat the water, pumps will extract heat from the air to warm the house and lavatories will use rainwater to flush.

The floors and walls will be insulated with concrete to keep the building's temperature stable.

The family house is being built by Barratt Homes and will be scientifically tested to ensure it meets the strict credentials set out by the Government to make it zero carbon. If it is given the allclear, a range of properties will be introduced on to the mainstream market by 2010.

The house, developed at the BRE Innovation Park in Hertfordshire, comes two weeks after the exemption from stamp duty of zero-carbon homes worth less than £500,000.

The prototype was designed by London architects Gaunt Francis; and the National Centre for Excellence in Housing, based at the BRE complex, is collaborating on the project.

Mark Clare, chief executive of Barratt Developments, said: "The most exciting aspect of the 'green house' is it's not designed as a one-off - we will take what works and apply it to house building across the country."