Ask an architect (for just £20!)

Hiring an architect to give advice on your home improvements may seem like an extravagance. But now you can get advice from one of the country's top experts for just £20. The Architect in the House scheme is offering bargain consultations to make the profession more user-friendly. It will be showcased at this year's Architecture Week event, which covers everything from a cake competition judged by Jane Asher to tours of the capital's beautiful buildings.

Running from Friday to the end of the month, Architecture Week has adopted the theme "the way we live" and its calendar of events promises to put every aspect of life under scrutiny, from how our workplaces are decorated to our musical tastes.

Architect in the House is now in its fifth year. Anyone needing advice on remodelling or extending their homes can use the architect hotline and, for a modest donation of £20, receive an hour-long consultation. (Last year's donations topped £85,000 and went to charity for the homeless Shelter).

Architect Sanya Polescuk will be taking part this year for the third time. "While most people are happy to call a builder to their homes, there continues to be a mystique about contacting an architect," says Polescuk, whose practice is based in Belsize Park. "The architect in the house scheme breaks down the barriers between us and the public.

"After a phone conversation, I go to look at the property and talk through the plans that the owners have. Most want to extend their properties or reshape an interior.

"People want to know what's possible and whether they'll get planning permission for their schemes. Cost is always a hot subject, too. You have to pay to get the best results, but architects have plenty of ways to squeeze the most out of a budget."

Recently Polescuk's practice has completed work on a family house in north London for clients recommended by a friend through the Architect in the House scheme.

The Twenties house has undergone extensive works, including an attic conversion, remodelling of the kitchen and dining area and a rear extension. "We'd never have been able to buy a place that suited us as well as our redesigned home," says the client. "I'm confident that we've added £125,000 to the house's value."

Call the Architect in the House on 0870 050 0701 (lines open from 21 to 30 June, 9am-5pm). Sanya Polescuk Architects can be contacted on 020 7431 8580.

If you think your working environment could be improved, try the sister scheme Architect in the Workplace, where a minimum donation of £50 goes to Shelter in exchange for an hour-long on-site consultation with an architect. To arrange a visit, register online at www.riba.org/workplace.