Direction Operation People Power with Dave Myers

We Brits are brilliant at volunteering.

One in four of us regularly give up our time to help others,

putting something back into the community.

I want to tap into that spirit to make good things happen.

I'm on a mission to discover the positive effects of volunteering,

from the volunteers themselves

to the individuals and the communities that they help.

Every day people donate their time, expertise,

imagination and elbow grease for others.

They are in need of carpenters and volunteers,

so I just grabbed my tools and came down for the afternoon.

I never thought, at the end of my life, I'd be helping others.

I think volunteering is the lifeblood of what it is to be human.

-Yes!

-It's modest, ordinary people who are making such an amazing difference to peoples' lives.

The world to me is a beautiful place now.

It's 360 degrees from where I've come from.

I'm better than what I was. I couldn't do this a year ago.

My team is exploring inspiring schemes throughout the UK...

and tackling projects of our own.

This is about communities at their best.

People giving to help others.

This is about the incredible things we can achieve together.

This is Operation People Power.

I'm in Easton, an area of inner-city Bristol.

Like many places in the UK, it has mixed fortunes.

It also has a loud heartbeat from locals just like you,

with a wealth of skills and generosity of spirit,

willing to go the extra mile to make their community a better place

for all who live there.

no-one exemplifies this more than Bruce,

who runs a community centre called Baggator.

-Hello, there.

-Hello, Dave, nice to meet you.

-Nice to meet you.

This is some place you've got here.

Baggator is a successful youth club and local meeting place for all.

With other community spaces under threat due to the need for offices

and housing, Bruce wants Baggator to grow

and provide vital resources in the neighbourhood.

Basically, anything the community needs, we will get involved.

All communities need a centre and when you are in a poor area,

as we are here, that centre becomes more valuable and more needed.

People rely on this to get outside the house

and create the community and be part of the community they live in.

It's taken the weight of everyday life

and giving them somewhere where they can be friends with each other.

'My mission, to help Bruce achieve his goal, has really inspired me.

'You know, I'm taking away so much from this project.'

It's reinforced my faith in human nature.

The thing is, without volunteers,

so much of our society these days would crumble.

There are so many amazing projects throughout Britain that need help,

they need volunteers.

Gosh, you can make a difference.

The other projects we have completed in Easton proved just that.

All made possible by my brilliant team.

Nicki Chapman, who's been using her motivational skills

and charm to great effect.

Martyn Ashton, seeking inspiration from the brilliant things people

like you do across the country to enhance the lives of others.

Juliet Sargeant not only provides artistic flair

as an award-winning garden designer,

but she's also a psychologist who understands why these

projects are so important.

And Mark Millar, a genius builder who always asks the right questions.

-How long have we got?

-A few days.

-And we've got no money?

No, but that's the purpose. It's community.

It's all for one, one for all.

And an army of locals willing to give for others.

This has all been created through volunteers.

-Yes.

-Through the love of the community.

-Yeah.

-Creating this for the community. I think that's magic.

So far, we have already surprised

Bruce by transforming the garden at Baggator...

-How do you do it so quickly?

-Volunteers, mate!

..but we haven't stopped there.

What Bruce doesn't know is that the local army has kept going.

People will just help. When you need it, they are there.

That's people power.

We're nearing the end of our project here at Baggator in Easton.

It might still look like a building site,

but thanks to the time and effort that our helpful heroes

are putting in, it's well on the way to becoming that inviting community

hub that Bruce has been working towards.

There's still a lot to do.

There's work to start on the inside of Baggator.

We've got to start getting walls put up there, door frames in,

some of the plastering sorted out.

It's about local volunteers, getting in here and sorting these projects out.

Nobody said it was going to be easy...

..did they, Dave?

He's right there. I never said it would be easy.

But it's going to be a lot easier with these cheerful helpers.

-So where are youse lot from?

-ALL: The University of Bristol!

THEY CHEER

I'm going to hand youse all over to Simon in a minute.

-We'll go and find some tools.

-Let me check those hands out.

See how clean they are now? I want to check them all at the end of the day.

Get in there and on with some work. You've got to get this finished by tonight.

-Yeah. Excellent.

-Things look like they're going well at Baggator.

And now Mark has his army of helpers,

he can turn his attention to the inside.

Everyone has given it their all.

And, as ever, Rob, who's been volunteering with us from the start

is playing a key role in the build.

He's given this so much energy and commitment.

It typifies the spirit of volunteering in Britain.

But I've been told he's burning the midnight oil.

So, I left one job last night and I drove past here and I noticed the lights were on.

-Yeah, we got out of here at nine.

-Flipping heck.

-Yeah.

Straight home to bed, straight back in this morning.

-We're definitely mob handed today.

-Yeah. There's about 40 people here.

What I love about it is, everyone's coming from different walks of life

as well, you know? You've got the college guys out there,

we've just got some people down there, a law student that's come in.

We talk about Bruce who is running it and stuff, but really...

..we're giving this back to the community.

Yeah. Absolutely. And I mean, that is Bruce. Bruce is the community.

I mean, he gives it his all.

Rob, like everyone here,

has bought into the vision that Bruce has for the project.

When I first came down and met Bruce,

I was going to be able to give a day or two.

But after meeting the guy and seeing how community spirited he was and

what he does, I thought, "Take the week off work, you know?"

-So, all good.

-AS CILLA:

-Surprise, surprise, Brucey Boy!

Rob has gone above and beyond,

but none of this would have been possible without lots of people

giving a bit of time to achieve things in a few days

that would have taken Bruce years.

Why would you want to give your weekend up to do something like this?

I just think that community projects like this are brilliant

and they're really worthwhile and they benefit a lot of people.

They're fun to be involved in.

And, you know, if people like us don't do it,

then is it going to happen?

-Staying till the finish?

-Yeah, definitely.

-Yeah?

-Yeah, of course.

Decorators, architects, students, postmen and plumbers.

They're all here, doing their bit.

-You're a local man, aren't you?

-I am, yeah.

-So you wanted to put something back into your community?

-Yeah, yeah, definitely.

-Important to have places like this for local people to come and enjoy themselves, so...

-Yeah.

It feels good to be helping improve it.

We've not long until we need to hand this place back to Bruce and the community.

And there's still loads to do.

What we need, at this stage of the job,

is a bit of a Superman on board.

-Wey!

-Hey! Hey!

Our volunteers are from completely different backgrounds,

but they all share one thing - generosity.

What I'm realising is it's just the tip of the iceberg.

All across the UK, people do incredible and inspirational things

to enhance our communities and the lives of others.

Martyn Ashton has been visiting some of them to bring that inspiration back here to Bristol.

He's seen the pleasure that animals can bring

to both the older and younger generations...

It seems to me that if you can encourage or invite

and allow people to connect with nature, you know,

it can open doors and it can be very therapeutic, really.

Yeah, absolutely.

..experienced the life enhancing joy

that a feeling of freedom can give you.

Bryn, walk on.

So you've got a bit of personal freedom?

Yeah, it does make you think, doesn't it?

You know, I just did something I've never done in my life before,

because someone volunteered to help.

I'd found out about the great work being done by volunteers

who are giving their time to help ex-offenders back into employment.

-Do they have a lot of faith in people?

-Definitely, definitely.

And I think they've really found something that they had to do,

and they devote all this time to making it happen.

Now, Martyn's heading to Cornwall,

visiting a music-based youth project called Livewire.

It's a place where kids and teenagers can learn an instrument

and practice or play live to an audience.

But the volunteers here provide so much more.

Livewire is run by Andy.

The simple truth is, without the volunteers,

this place wouldn't be open.

Andy coordinates a team of volunteer youth workers who help the dozens

of young people coming through the door every night.

There's more and more young people who are vulnerable,

that have got mental health issues, who self harm,

who have eating disorders,

but there's less people or organisations

offering support to them.

Over to the left, yeah?

So, the youth work team here work with, you know,

what comes through the door.

This is Nicole.

She was introduced to Livewire when she was 16.

She was suffering from severe depression and anxiety,

affecting every aspect of her life.

So, when did you start coming here?

I started coming here just under three years ago.

My youth worker who I had at the time just kind of brought me down

and she wanted me to try and get some social interaction with people my own age,

because that was something I really struggled with.

And so I came down for about half an hour on the first night

and was like,

"Oh, I've had enough now, this is scary, I want to go."

But, no, I actually...

Although I was terrified of the fact I was surrounded by people...

I actually did enjoy the little guitar lesson that I had,

that they put me in, so I ended up coming down the next week with her

and so the youth workers here basically helped me.

So instead of going, "Oh, you've got this wrong with you

"and you need to deal with it in this way

"and you have to have this many therapy sessions," and stuff which,

obviously, you hate when you're in that position,

they go, "Oh, so, OK, what's wrong? It's fine, you can cry,

"it doesn't matter, we're not going to judge you.

"And here, you can play a guitar and cheer yourself up afterwards and you

"can have fun with your friends and not have to worry about stuff whilst you're here."

For Nicole, Livewire gave her a new sense of direction in her life

and the confidence and skills to back it up.

I started playing regularly,

getting involved with the general activities that went on,

I started making new friends,

which was a really big thing for me at the time.

My mental health improved, like, dramatically, quite quickly.

Sounds like quite a transformation.

I was taken... Well, gradually,

I was taken off medication and therapy and things like that,

and I really started to see an improvement just in my general life

and was just happier and really enjoying things

like a normal teenager, which was just amazing.

So, I know you're actually performing tonight.

-Yes.

-So we'd better get in there.

-Yes, we'd better head in and set the guitar up.

-Yeah, let's go.

APPLAUSE

# You kept all the things I threw away

# A leaf I picked... #

This place really goes to show that organisations like this that rely on

volunteers really do make a huge difference to people's lives.

For me, it's life-changing,

to see a young person on the stage for the first time,

performing in front of an audience, you know,

that blows me away every time.

But it's those things that make you passionate about what you do.

# Maybe I wanted you to change

# Maybe I'm the one to blame... #

If I think that Nicole two and a half years ago

and I think of her now, they are a million miles apart.

They are not the same person.

# I was full of doubt and you believed... #

I know for myself, obviously, with problems,

and with a lot of the friends I have and people that I know

that come here, Livewire really does genuinely save lives.

We are not just a general youth project.

We are using music as a really good healing tool and a way to make friends.

I don't know what I would have done without this place, to be honest.

# Maybe I'm the one to blame. #

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

This place is amazing.

On the surface, it's all about music, listening, playing, enjoying.

But underneath, it's about creating a safe,

interesting and an exciting space to engage with young people.

And that is making a big difference to these guys' lives.

'Giving direction and hope to our young people is vital to all our futures.

'Projects like Livewire and Baggator show just how crucial that work is.'

Juliet has been helping me to get an insight into why.

It's such a pivotal time.

But what is it that helps a young person gain direction?

Well, none of us likes to be told what to do with a wagging finger

and I think young people, just like any of us, really,

are best guided within a positive relationship,

so to be able to come alongside young people and develop positive

relationships and just gently guide them...

..is a great thing to be able to do.

And then of course, role models.

The thing about role models is,

it could be somebody that you know personally,

but also could be somebody that you see on the television or in the newspaper.

And what a role model does is gives you a vision of the person you might want to be.

-So you're able to imagine the person that you want to become and step towards that future.

-Yes, yeah.

Role models don't set out to be mentors for others,

they earn that right.

Less than a mile and-a-half across town from Baggator is Saint Pauls,

an area with its fair share of inner-city problems.

Thankfully, there's another great project there, providing a safe,

supportive, fun place for young people,

with inspiring volunteers at its core.

Welcome to the most notorious area in Bristol,

supposedly, Saint Pauls.

This is where I grew up. This is where I called home.

And I still call it home.

Bulldog!

Chris is a volunteer youth worker at Full Circle,

a community centre that sees hundreds of local kids

and their families come through their doors every week.

OK, you lot are too fast for me. You lot are too fast for me.

Afternoon, evening and holiday clubs here are run by specialist

play workers, all giving their time for free.

Draw a picture of something that reminds you of Full Circle

or Saint Pauls.

For Chris, as with many of those who get involved and help here,

Full Circle has been part of their lives for many years.

I think, as a child growing up,

-it was a place of safety for many of us.

-Yes.

We had a chance to socialise in a safe environment

and also learn and thrive in that environment as well.

-Full Circle became an alternative, family of many of us.

-Yeah.

You know, where we had issues at home, or maybe in school,

or even in the wider community, as children,

we knew that when we were in Full Circle, we were safe.

-Yes.

-And we knew that everyone there was there to help us, as children.

Yeah.

These days, the level of support Chris and his fellow volunteers

can give to the kids of Saint Pauls makes a real difference

at a critical time of their lives.

What sort of risks are there for the kids on the street,

if you miss out on something like Full Circle?

The risk's so high. There's a lot of gang activity.

There is a lot of violent crime within these areas.

Without having Full Circle there to kind of...as a safety net, they'd be lost.

There's nothing else.

It's part of their everyday life, it's a part of their weekly routine.

-Yeah.

-They see us on the street, they see us as workers on the street

and they know they can approach us if they've got a problem or an issue.

Teenage years can be very stressful and what we're trying to do

at Full Circle right now is help young men,

help young women keep on the straight and narrow,

understand clearly what their options and choices are

-and then make the right ones.

-You know, Chris,

you must be a role model now to some of these youngsters.

How does that make you feel?

It gives me a sense of pride, definitely.

It gives me a sense of pride.

For example, I had a 17-year-old come up to me the other day

and thanked me because he said without me he wouldn't have decided to go into college after school.

Now, that sort of thing, when you hear that, that really warms the heart.

It makes you want to, you know...

It makes me want to do what I do some more, you know.

It's priceless. There's nothing... You can't put a price on that.

You can come and do whatever you like.

-A lot of people come here.

-It's fun.

It's a nice, fun, safe place.

There are many, many places in Britain, not just St Pauls,

where there are problems, you know, either with violence or poverty.

And it's hard for youngsters to get direction.

And the great thing about Chris is because he's grown up in this area,

he's grown up working through the project,

he's the most perfect role model for some of these youngsters round here.

He's been there, he's seen it, he's done it, he's got the T-shirt.

His core values were set here within Full Circle.

The guys at Full Circle are doing an incredible job.

They've created a beacon for the local kids and they do wonders with very little funding.

And it's popular, they are running at full capacity...

..but as Chris tells me, there's always room for improvement.

It's a cracking building.

In a practical way, what do you think we could do?

I think that the kids could benefit from a room

where they could chill out and watch movies or do something

along those lines because we don't have that

-and that's something that we did have back in the day.

-Right.

Back in the '80s we would have a movie night where all the kids

would come together and we'd watch movies together and that.

That essence of the club has actually gone,

so I would like to see that be returned, definitely.

I've spotted one dark and dingy room that isn't being used at all

and could be just perfect as a chill out space for the youngsters.

I know we're really busy at Baggator,

but small changes can make a big difference.

Thankfully, I have a secret weapon.

Nicki has worked tirelessly recruiting volunteers

for all our projects.

-Have you ever volunteered for anything?

-She's taken to the airwaves...

We're looking for volunteers over the next few days,

the next few weeks and hopefully we're going to make a huge,

huge difference.

..talked to companies who encouraged

staff to give back to the community...

-We are desperate for volunteers.

-I'll get on the phone now.

That would be amazing.

Doesn't matter what they do, where they come from,

all skills are accepted.

..met people who already volunteer...

You sound like the perfect team to recruit, if I can, on a volunteer basis.

..and frankly stopped everyone she's met to see if they can spare a few hours to help.

Hello, can I stop you for a couple of minutes?

-Yeah, no worries.

-She's not failed us yet...

Here we go, where it's all going to happen.

..and like the Pied Piper of St Pauls, here she comes!

In a small room like this a handful

of willing painters can work wonders in no time.

I can't believe how quickly this room is being transformed.

It's amazing. The amount of work that's happened

and the amount that's, you know, been done in the past hour,

just itself has been amazing.

What do you think of the colours?

I like it. I'm a big fan of grey, and the yellow, a big fan of yellow.

So I think it'll look really, really good when it's all done.

It's already getting there, isn't it? This is just the first stage.

Giving this room a simple makeover might be a small job in the grand scheme of things...

..but for Judith, who is a director at the project,

any improvements help to create a legacy for the people of St Pauls,

providing the support a healthy community needs.

So, Judith, how long have you been involved in the project?

I've been involved with Full Circle for on and off 20 years.

I've stopped counting because I just know I'm going to be here forever.

-It's that sort of place?

-For me it is.

It's helped nourish me and grow me as a person

as well as what I've been able to give back to the community

-and especially to the young people.

-Yeah.

-I'm very lucky.

So how important, within the community, is the project?

I think we're the lifeblood and in some ways that's really nice,

but in some ways that's kind of unacceptable

in the world we're living in at the moment.

To think...

..what would happen without us a little bit, it's not bearable.

So how big a part in this do volunteers play?

At one time Full Circle was a charity that had, well,

one member of staff, then it went to 17, then it went back to one.

Without the volunteers we wouldn't even be here.

Judith knows that volunteers like

Chris are vital to the project's future.

It's because of Chris's first-hand experience of growing up around here

that makes him the perfect person to go out there and convince young,

vulnerable people to abandon the streets and come to the project.

We go out there and we try to find children that look like

they're a bit displaced or maybe even entering gang life.

We try to steer them into coming into the club,

so we tell them about the all the activities.

We come alongside them, introduce ourselves to their family...

..to try our best at giving them a better opportunity

of becoming a part of our Full Circle family.

We've given them that structure of where they can have fun.

We found out that they were less interested in being on the streets

and less interested in getting themselves in trouble.

And by being part of the family,

they get an opportunity to learn new skills,

make friends and interact with role models like Chris,

who show how they can be a positive member of the community.

And without these facilities,

some of the young people could end up hanging around the streets.

It's simply not having anywhere to go and that can lead

to all type of dangers and risks to young people.

Today, Full Circle works with young people from the age of five to 25

and it's because of the generosity of volunteers like Chris

that so many vulnerable young people have turned their lives around.

We like to usher them in out of the cold into the warmth of Full Circle.

We've got two projects on the go in two separate parts of the city.

One big, one small,

but both harnessing that amazing resource that is people power.

At Baggator Community Centre our volunteering heroes and heroines

are working all hours to get this place ready to hand back

to Bruce and the people of Easton,

and this is our very last day to get it done.

Mark has been a powerhouse on this mission.

No job has been too big or too small for him to rise to the challenge.

He has put his heart and soul and muscle power

into every task and led by example from the front...

Thank you very much. Youse look amazing.

..making sure every volunteer had an impact.

We need to get loads of coverage.

But now with the hours counting down,

it seems the pressure of the two remaining tasks

have given way to some retail therapy.

Oh, I just hope he gets a move on!

We need to get quite a lot of paint on board.

The ones that we suggested were these ones up here.

-Right, OK.

-The latest LED.

-OK.

Mark, don't forget we're up against it!

Something like that would be perfect.

Is it comfortable?

Mark, you got the memo, right? What did it say?

Stop messing around, we've got to paint Baggator.

I tell you what, Mark, we need the paint,

but we'll leave the painting to the experts.

Our incredible local artists don't need any help

with their creation on the outside of Baggator.

But they could do with a brew.

Ollie and Andy, you are two thirds of this magnificent trio.

Why did the three of you decide to get involved with this project?

Because you're giving up your time, you know. This is your art.

I think it's great to be part of a positive thing.

Everyone's working hard in there.

To transform this building into a big difference, that's what I enjoy.

Yeah, lovely. Guys, thank you. I'll leave you to it.

-Thanks very much.

-Shout if you want more tea.

-OK.

It's not just the outside that's getting an artistic makeover.

Inside local artist DK is also creating a brilliant new mural and,

like everybody else, giving his time for free.

It's been incredible. Inside Baggator we've decorated the whole place out...

..put a bit of life back into the stage area,

we've got a storage unit here.

It's all been done with blackboard paint so they can put notes up there,

messages to people, tell people what's in the different cupboards.

We've redone all the toilets.

We've put in disability access into the toilets over here,

where Rob is now, made all the doors wider so we can get anybody with

wheelchairs or pushchairs, even, can go through that way,

and we still leave access to the fire escape out there.

In the kitchen area, we've put new ceilings in there.

We've put a new ceiling all the way through.

And all the furniture's going to be set in properly

and fixed to the walls so everything's working properly.

And we're doing a massive clean-up,

handing this back so that the kitchen and the whole area is working...

..for ballroom dancing and bingo.

The inside space really is taking shape,

and I'm loving the bespoke artwork on the walls.

It's very fitting for the public art-loving city of Bristol.

Nicki has been in contact with another local artist, Ollie,

who uses calligraphy as a form of expression to put across simple messages.

He has offered to paint some words on the wall of Full Circle in nearby St Pauls.

But we're running late and, before he can start,

we have some heavy-duty rewiring to do.

Thankfully, Paul has volunteered

with his expertise to fit the new lights.

So, we've got a little bit of a challenge on our hands here

cos we've only got eight hours to turn this room round.

-OK.

-The first problem is that light is terrible, OK?

Because what we want to do with this

room is we want to try and make it a much softer, gentler space.

So could you possibly get this lighting changed in here?

Yeah, no problem.

The good news is that Paul's wasting no time in getting new lights in.

But there's a problem.

Our graffiti artist is nowhere to be found.

I tell you what, Dave, if he doesn't turn up,

you'd better get your crayons out.

No-one wants that, Mark.

It's time to think on our feet.

Right, I'm going to have to speak to Nicki.

Hopefully she's on the phone.

-MOBILE PHONE

-Hello?

-Hi, Nicki, it's Mark.

-Hey. Hi, Mark. How are you?

-I was very well, to tell you the truth, Nicki. Things were going well.

-Go on.

-The graffiti artist isn't here.

-Oh, no!

-No, he's not!

Hold on! He's just walked down the road!

-Has he literally just turned up?

-Oh, my God! Out of nowhere.

-Look, look! He's here!

-How are you doing?

-Top man, top man.

-Right, Nicki, I've got to go, got to go.

-Brilliant.

-Bye.

-OK.

-I'll see you later. Bye.

-Man, I'm so glad to see you.

Oh, my God. It's brilliant. I was in total meltdown there.

Now, that is a result.

A collective sigh of relief all round.

Ollie, talk me through what you've got here because, in my head,

graffitiing on a wall is coming in with like cans and brushes

and just firing the whole thing over there and standing back

and having loads of fun, but it's obviously a bit more methodical than that, isn't it?

Yeah, because this is based on calligraphy,

it's sort of scaling up what I've drawn

-and then just using a brush instead of a pen.

-Right.

So it's not just chuck it on then.

No, no, because then it ends up like not in the centre or something.

(It's great.)

I think this room is really starting to come together.

Go on, Charmaine. You break.

'So, while the experts do what they do best...

'..volunteer youth worker Charmaine and I have a natter.'

So, Charmaine, what does Full Circle mean to you?

To me, it means community, it means family.

-It's like an extended family.

-Yeah.

-You know what I mean?

I've been coming here for as long as I can remember and now I have a child who comes here,

so it feels very generational. All the families know each other.

-So what sort of things did you do?

-We used to have girls club.

We had trips to the cinemas. We used to do crafts.

Anything you could think of that a child likes doing,

we used to do it with Full Circle, especially the camps.

I think they were most famous for their camps back in the day,

when every summer we used to go on two or three trips.

It allowed me to do things like fundraising - so,

when we wanted to go on a trip to Alton Towers or something like that,

they would say, "All right, you lot want to go on a trip,

"how are you going to raise the money?"

So we used to have to use our minds and think of ways to raise some funds and, a lot of the times,

we used to raise enough money to get a coach to take us on a day trip

somewhere, and that gave me confidence to know that,

"All right, Char..."

Like, I was, what? 12, 13 when I was doing stuff like that?

So today I'm very entrepreneurial, so it's definitely encouraged me.

Yes.

If Full Circle wasn't here...

..what would the teenagers do?

I can't even imagine the area without Full Circle, to be honest.

There's not many services for the young people in this area.

To be honest, Full Circle provides the only service for teenagers in St Pauls.

If they ain't got productive activities to do,

there's only one other path that they often take,

so in order to try and keep our young people

on the straight and narrow, we need to have places like this

that provide positive activities for them to take part in.

And, as Ollie paints his words of wisdom on the wall,

Mark and John add the finishing touches to the room.

The young 'uns are keen on seeing the new space.

I'm guessing that's like... Is that like an Olympic torch almost, do you reckon?

Well, you see, that's the thing about art. Art's subjective, you know? You can sort of...

What is it for you?

I don't know what it is, but it looks like it goes that way.

Right, what else have we got? We'll put some games out, and beanbags.

Let's get it hoovered up.

And it's done.

From a dark and dingy abandoned space to this -

a room that will really add something to the Full Circle project,

somewhere for the youngsters to just chill out.

Not that I think there will be too much relaxing in there today.

-Hey, can we go in now?

-KIDS: Yeah!

Right, I'm going in. Hold on.

THEY SCREAM

This is what it's about.

So we get the kids in here, so they can have fun.

There you go!

It was all the volunteers as well.

Hey, that is amazing.

Hey, I did not expect a reaction like that.

No. They were really happy for the room.

It's nice for them to have a little bit of a quiet space where they can just come out.

They can just, you know, come and chill. That's nice. Thank you.

You're welcome. I tell you what, it's not me that you should thank. It's all these guys here.

Yeah, well done to all the volunteers who decorated this

wonderful room for the young people. It's really appreciated.

I hope you have lots of fun in here, because it's for you, all right?

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

So we want to say a huge thank you for...

MANY: People power!

THEY CHEER

Back over in Easton,

the folk at Baggator have finally finished their painting, too.

There's less than an hour to go

before Bruce comes to see the result of everyone's hard work.

We've also invited back Grenville and some of his singing group,

including the ladies from the Malcolm X elders group,

to provide the entertainment.

I can't wait.

The whole point of my mission was to show just what you,

the British public, are capable of,

and to encourage more people to lend a hand and make a difference

where you live.

Nowhere has this been shown more than at Baggator.

Now it's time to show our work to Bruce and the

original founder, Pete.

I think it's about time we had a look at the outside, do you?

That would be great.

Oh!

Wow!

I would say that's brightened things up a bit.

You're not going to miss it now.

Gosh! That's wonderful.

I believe it gives the place such a great identity now.

-No more the hidden secret.

-No, no.

-I love it.

-Well, that's just the outside.

-Shall we have a look at the inside?

-Yes, please.

-Come on.

I love the cockatoos.

Local legend Bruce has given years to helping the community,

but now it's his turn to see what the locals have given back to him.

The inside was tired, with a nagging list of jobs

that prevented further work from being carried out.

Now it has a new lease of life and a bright future.

The hall has been revamped and provides a bright and creative space for groups to enjoy.

The once impractical and rundown disabled toilets have been completely refurbished.

The cafe has had a face-lift and is now modern and fresh.

We've given you a new ceiling up here, cos the old ceiling was completely gone.

-Brilliant.

-Fantastic.

-The computers are all nicely fitted in there for just like an internet cafe.

It's such a functional, great space.

-And now we can do some of the adult training courses on the computers as well, that we wanted to do.

-Yeah.

The volunteers have put their heart and soul into this place,

and obviously the clue is in the name. It's a community space.

-I think it's definitely got a great future with you behind it.

-Yeah, absolutely.

Outside, we have removed derelict buildings.

We've not only completely transformed the garden,

but we've also extended it with a new pergola and a fire pit.

-Da-dah!

-Here you go, guys.

-You coming out?

-Wow.

-Wow.

-This is...

-Keep coming round.

-Keep coming round this way.

Martyn and Nicki have had such a big hand in this.

Come and have a look at this.

The garden, for me, is stunning.

It's somewhere for adults to sit,

somewhere for children to play and it's clean and safe.

-It's one space now rather than blocks of areas.

-Yeah.

It's almost like you've added a bit on.

It's so much bigger. It's not only the extra space,

it's the quality of the space.

Everything now is so much more usable.

-Yes.

-And it's not a feeling of making do any more.

It's friendlier now, isn't it? Before, it was oppressive.

But, do you know, when I moved, first moved into this building,

I didn't even know that arch was there. It was so overgrown.

-Yeah.

-I'm looking forward to coming to work tomorrow.

It's going to be nice showing people round,

-showing them what they can do here.

-Yeah.

Helping the local community have their events, their celebrations,

running the programmes we love to run,

that Pete spent so much time starting off.

-Yes.

-It's just going to be so much easier. It's going to be a pleasure.

Altogether, more than 200 people have chipped in

to help all the projects we have tackled in Bristol.

Some gave a few hours. Others, days.

But the legacy of that work will live on for many,

many more years to come.

Not bad, is it?

You all know what it was like before.

To see it like this now is amazing. You are great people.

You feel like family. I just...

I don't know how to thank you all for doing everything you've done.

All I can say now is, when's the next party?

Sooner than you think, Bruce!

Buildings are just bricks and mortar,

but fill them up with people and you have a community.

A group of people who benefit from meeting each other,

stronger together than alone.

THEY SING "SCOTLAND THE BRAVE"

# Oompa, oompa, oompa-pa

# Oompa-pa, oompa-pa

# Oompa, oompa, oompa-pa

# Oompa, oom-pa-pa. #

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

It's absolute mayhem in there. It's pure joy.

It's good fun. And that is what this building was made for.

That's what you can do with volunteers - and that is people power.