'I live rent-free in a shipping container and spend just £260 a month on bills'

A woman is living out her lifelong dream of living off-grid in a shipping container - paying no rent with her outgoings costing her just £260 a month. Robyn Swan, 33, took a huge leap after selling all her possessions and leaving her previous home behind in December 2023.

After buying a seven-acre plot near Stirling, Scotland for £185,000, Robyn then bought a 40 foot by 8 foot shipping container for £4,200 to convert into a home to live in out in the Scottish countryside.

Embracing her dream to live self sufficiently, Robyn spent the first eight months living without any electricity in order to save up £4,500 to install solar panels to generate her own power.

She then began to grow her own food, tending to animals such as chickens, rabbits and pigs, and collecting rainwater to drink.

More than a year into her alternative lifestyle, Robyn says she is living around 40 percent self-sufficiently, with monthly outgoings including council tax and other necessities amounting to just £260.

The full-time dog walker, who shares this unique setup with her partner Luke, a 29 year old electrician, said: "Once I bought the land, we didn't even start in a caravan - we moved straight into the container and built it around us.

"The container is a full house now - I chose what insulation and double glazing I wanted, so it's a lot cosier than a caravan.

"My monthly bills come to £259.43 - I only need to pay council tax minus water, some food, and my phone bill."

Robyn, who was spending more than £1,000 a month on her last house, has managed to shave a whopping £750 off her monthly expenses by embracing a more self-sufficient lifestyle.

In a bold move, Robyn sold her car and furniture and remortgaged her home to let it out to cover the