AN unmissable event for anyone interested in greener homes and buildings is coming to the Royal Welsh Showground, Builth Wells, on Saturday and Sunday March 8 and 9 and "Smallholder" has 10 family tickets to be won.

Whether you're involved in the renovation of a historic building or looking to see what you could incorporate into your new home, there will be something of interest for everyone at the Greener Homes and Buildings Show.

Television presenter and author Dick Strawbridge will be making a star appearance at the event to promote greener homes and buildings.

Strawbridge, a retired army lieutenant colonel, is no stranger to greener homes, having written a book, "It's Not Easy Being Green", about his family's quest to live a twenty-first century lifestyle without fossil fuels and by producing little or no waste.

The Greener Homes and Buildings Show is the only UK event of its kind for both professionals and members of the public dedicated to greener, sustainable homes and buildings. This stand-alone event is being funded and organised by the Welsh Assembly Government with support from the Welsh Timber Forum.

The exhibition opens with a Trade and Professional Day on Friday, March 7 for those involved in planning, designing and constructing greener homes and buildings. Jane Davidson, Minister for Environment, Sustainability and Housing in Wales, will address delegates and present Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method (BREEAM) Awards.

Strawbridge will then arrive on Saturday as the exhibition opens to the general public for two days. Visitors will be able to meet exhibitors, watch a range of demonstrations, attend seminars and talk to professional advisers.

All the exhibitors specialise in sustainable construction, environmentally friendly building materials, renewable energy systems and other highly efficient products for homes and buildings.

Advice and information will be available on new build projects, renovations, extensions and conversions and saving money on energy costs in homes, offices, industry, agriculture and transport.

For more information or to book tickets for either the professional day on the Friday 7th March or the public days on the Saturday 8 and Sunday 9 March visit www.greenerhomeshow.co.uk. or telephone 0845 602 4087.

Advance tickets for the public days can also be purchased online, with adults charged £6, children under the age of 16 and senior citizens £2 and families - two adults and two children under the age of 16 - £13. Tickets purchased at the gate will cost £8, £3 and £19 respectively.

Please see April's issue of Smallholder for the competition form