Mapping out the future in a shed of their dreams

Sir Isaac Newton, who discovered gravity, had a similar flash of inspiration when an apple fell off a tree and landed on his head in an orchard.

Now some of the best ideas that will shape the way we live and travel in the future have emerged from another unlikely spot - a humble garden shed in Southampton!

Leading minds at Ordnance Survey, Britain's national mapping agency, are getting their creative sparks from retiring to the shed, which has been built inside their office, for a few hours or so a day.

Their brain-storming sessions, sometimes involving building bits of Lego to represent landscapes, or jotting down quick-fire thoughts on a white board, are not so far-fetched.

According to new research, eight out of ten people have their best ideas outside the office.

A shed regular is Chris Phillips, a senior research scientist and one of 1,200 staff at the agency's headquarters in Maybush.

In the wooden shack, and using a powerful desktop computer, he and other colleagues conjure up mapping technology that will be in common use in years to come.

At the root of all this wizardry is the agency's OS MasterMap - the definitive digital map of Great Britain that lists half a billion features, including your house and back garden.

This flagship database - updated with 5,000 changes every day - underpins £100 billion worth of economic activity in the UK.

It is a vital tool for, among others, the 999 services, the Land Registry, local authorities and businesses, such as gas and electricity companies.

Chris said: "It's all about innovation, and we come to the shed for two or three hours during the day.

"In the office the e-mails are coming in, and the phone is ringing, and people are walking past. You just close the door to the shed and begin imagining concepts."

Still, the shed isn't all about space-age innovation.

An old-fashioned sign hangs on the front door - and it's one we can readily relate to.

It reads: DO NOT DISTURB.