How do I find a building plot?

[Pitapotamus]

We're looking into building our own home. Does anyone have any advice on how to go about finding a building plot? I've looked on rightmove but they seem few and far between. We're quite restricted by area because we need to stay close to grandparents for school pickups and other childcare!

Thanks in advance for any advice.

You can choose 'land' only when searching on right move. There are only 2 building plots within 40 miles of me.

And call every estate agent to get on their list. There's also plotsearch (but I don't think that's used much)

There are different options.
Are you looking for a site with planning permission? If so have a look at the planning register on your local Council website. You may be able to find a site with planning permission that you may be able to negotiate with the owners to buy.
Have you thought about buying a plot with derelict/run down property which you could apply to demolish and rebuild?
Problem with buying a vacant plot is that you may not get planning permission (although you don't have to own the land to submit an application). Rules are generally more restrictive in countryside and green belt areas.

We've considered either a plot with planning permission already agreed or a plot with an old bungalow / something derelict on it that we could try our luck with. I'm reluctant to buy anything without planning permission because of the risks involved but I'd be open to applying for permission in advance of buying something provided I knew the owner would sell it to us if our application was successful.

Ideally we'd like to build in the countryside but we're realistic about the likelihood of that - I think if a plot in open countryside ever came up it'd be out of our budget anyway!