Families unable to afford their own homes are turning their backs on the housing market and winding the clock back, building their own shelters using traditional methods and materials including mud, straw and wood.

The trend for designing homes using natural local materials is a reaction to spiralling housing costs, according to the people who train "have-a-go" builders in historic construction techniques. The movement is even influencing major developers, who are investigating ways to use natural products to meet modern building standards.

Charlotte Eve, the co-founder of Edwards and Eve Cob Building, says she and her partner have trained thousands of people to build modern, liveable homes using earth dug straight from the ground.