How you use your shed says a lot about where you live, according to new data from Forest Garden, the UK’s leading manufacturer and distributor of wooden garden products.

To celebrate the launch of their brand new Beckwood range of sheds, Forest Garden surveyed 2,000 shed-owners across the UK to find out just exactly what is going on in those special garden buildings.

And it turns out shed-owners in London are most adventurous with what they use their sheds for – closely followed by Northern Ireland, the North West and the West Midlands.

Among those in the capital who admitted to changing their shed’s primary function, 28% turned it into a ‘Chillout Space’, while 18% used theirs to create a ‘Dining Area’. Other uses included ‘Cinema’ (15%) and ‘Art Studio’ (10%).

Meanwhile shed-owners in the east of England are least likely to use their shed for anything other than storing garden tools (81%).

And Northern Ireland not only has more sheds per person than anywhere else – but one of them will probably have a freezer in it.

Jenny Davis, Forest Garden’s Head of Marketing, said: “Sheds are no longer simply a dumping ground for garden furniture and equipment. They are versatile and dependable and ideal for those who want to store more than just a spade.

“Our Beckwood range of sheds have been designed with this in mind.”

Nationally more people would rather turn their shed into a bar (8%) than into a home gym (6%), and while the 25 to 34-year-old age group are the most likely to make these alterations, the 55 to 64-year-olds are close runners-up in converting theirs into a cinema.

Twice as many women than men have converted their garden sheds into a music studio, while 35 to 44-year-olds are most likely to keep bikes and other sporting equipment in their sheds. Similarly, 25 to 34-year-olds keep mountaineering and hiking gear in theirs.

39% of those over 65 questioned said they go into their sheds once or more every single day. And 20% of 55 to 64-year-olds say their shed is mainly full of ‘broken stuff”.

118 people in the survey admitted to having spent the night in their shed.

The results come as Forest Garden, the UK’s leading manufacturer and distributor of wooden garden products, launch their Beckwood range of sheds, designed to accommodate far more than garden equipment.

The NEW range of Beckwood Shiplap Sheds are made with weather beating, interlocking cladding giving a watertight seal that will stand up to everything the great British weather can throw at them.

What’s more, they come with a 25-year anti-rot guarantee the longest guarantee in the market. They are fully modular and are completely maintenance free, annual preservative treatment is NEVER needed. Most other sheds require immediate treatment once built, then yearly treatment thereafter.