It is possible, but there are a number of things to consider. What sort of effect do you want to create? What is lacking in the house as it stands? Is it really about the external materials, or is it as much about the proportion and positioning? Do you want to create a more continuous wall surface or is it too bland? All such issues can be addressed with good design and there’s a whole range of techniques available, but the solution will be an individual choice.

Then there is the issue of planning permission. While new permitted development now includes several things to free up homeowners rights, there are some that have the opposite effect – for example a new requirement for alterations to be of ‘matching and similar’ materials to the existing house. This means that to clad your house a full planning application is necessary.

You also need to think about construction. The solution will depend upon your choice of cladding, but two common examples would be timber cladding or acrylic render. Timber cladding, such as weather-boarding is usually horizontal and is nailed to vertical timber battens behind. These are fixed directly to the brickwork, through a layer of building paper such as Tyvek. Acrylic render gives a very strong, solid effect. Usually a specialist contractor applies it in two coats. The first would be applied over a nylon mesh that gives the render good stability and adhesion. The top coat, which is self-coloured, gives the finish.