The Dutch Cottage is an octagonal-shaped cottage located in Rayleigh, Essex. It is both the smallest and the oldest council house in the United Kingdom, and takes its name from the association of this type of house with the seventeenth century Dutch immigrants who constructed many of the sea walls of the south Essex coast. Owners Rochford District Council opened the cottage to residential tenant applicants in 2008 for £75 per week in rent, on condition that they would make the property available for pre-arranged guided tours every Wednesday afternoon.