Luke Richardson and Sophie Swale Britain's Empty Homes

Across the country, empty properties that could be homes are just waiting to be brought back into use.

I'll be finding out why, and what you need to do to rescue a house for yourself.

And I'll be doing some digging of my own to find out more about our housing stock,

our heritage, and why we should be both reinventing and preserving Britain's empty homes.

There are thousands of empty properties in the UK waiting to be brought back into use.

When you see a house that's clearly neglected and boarded up,

it's easy to forget that someone used to live there.

But don't be put off by overgrowing, shabby exteriors,

because with a clear plan and simple vision,

you can have the pleasure of bringing a house back into use.

But, also, creating your dream home.

Today, I'll meet a couple of first-time buyers

who are looking for an unusual property to renovate.

What do you think?

-Wow.

-Impressive.

It's a big space, isn't it?

'We'll find out about the remarkable regeneration of an iconic empty building in Sheffield.'

This is a grade 2-star listed building. It can't remain unoccupied.

And we'll join one of the UK's empty-property officers

on her crusade to rescue unloved and abandoned homes.

It's just a mess. It could be a really nice property. You can see the potential.

Offshore mechanical technician Luke and his girlfriend Sophie think buying an empty building to do up

could be the best way to achieve their ideal first home together.

They're living with Luke's parents in Hull

while they hunt for a property they can make their own.

We're looking for something with character.

We don't want your standard two-up, two-down terrace,

we want something detached,

something that we can put a stamp on and make unique.

As first-time buyers, Sophie and Luke are on a tight budget.

The budget for the house itself,

I'd go up to 140,000 for just the right place, for everything we want.

For the cost of renovation, I'll be pumping my wages into that.

They plan to do the majority of the work themselves and whilst they've bags of enthusiasm,

they've little knowledge of DIY.

-My experience on renovating property is none.

-Little to none!

-Nothing.

We've never had to do it.

I'm fairly handy at fixing things and building things,

so I'm just going to wing it.

-Enlist the help of friends and family and anyone we can drag in.

-We're definitely up for a challenge.

'I'm meeting up with Luke and Sophie to show them a Victorian chapel

'in North Frodingham in East Yorkshire.'

'The building has been empty for eight years,

'but has the potential to be a truly unique home.'

Right, this is the property I want you to see.

We are in a really nice part of the country.

It's a village surrounded by open countryside, which is something you're looking for.

And this is a Victorian chapel dating back to 1891.

-First impressions?

-Fantastic.

-Yes. It's great.

It's a unique-looking property. Just what we're looking for.

I suggest we go inside and have a look.

-Yes.

-Great. Come on, then.

'This former Methodist chapel is on the market for £135,000

'and comes with planning permission to create a four-bedroom house.'

'It's within Luke and Sophie's budget,

'but is currently uninhabitable and in need of total renovation.'

Right, here we are.

-What do you think?

-Wow.

-Impressive.

-It's a big space, isn't it?

-It is a very big space.

One of the key problems,

but also an amazing opportunity, is the space of a chapel.

How do you divide it up? Have you any thoughts on that?

Put a split level in. A second floor.

All kinds of things. The options are endless at the moment.

Pretty keen on doing an open-plan, kind of living area -

-kitchen-diner and things - with the space. Keep it light.

-Yeah.

Does it excite you, or do you find it daunting, the idea of this open, big hall?

It definitely excites us.

-Definitely.

-We wanted a big space like this to work with.

Yeah. There's nothing daunting about it, I don't think.

You like it? I thought it might scare you off.

-You seem to have a lot of enthusiasm.

-We genuinely do love it.

So even though it doesn't have any floors,

-it's definitely seen better days, that doesn't put you off?

-No.

Not at all. BOTH: We can see the potential.

What gives you confidence you'd be able to take this on?

We've got the support of friends who are in the trade, builders,

electricians, plumbers, a lot of them are friends.

So, do things like that.

Both of our parents have taken on certain degrees of renovation

and they're more than willing to help us.

'Luke and Sophie seem to have the confidence

'and drive for a project like this, but it's vital they're realistic

'when it comes to budgeting for a renovation on this scale.'

It is within the budget you told me about, 140.

This is 135 and has been on the market for some time,

so there might be a possibility of a lower offer, I don't know.

It still needs a lot of money being spent on it.

Have you got a budget for renovation?

No. Not as such.

Just every bit of spare cash I've got will be getting pumped into it.

We've got family who are willing to help with whatever is needed.

Even financially, they're willing to help, so...

We don't have a timeline we have to stick to, or anything.

We're not in a rush to renovate. We want a nice place for us to live in.

You still need to know what the big jobs will cost you...

-Yeah.

-..and how you'd afford that.

I will be bringing in my builder friends to take a look

and see what they estimate and what they think we would need

to get it habitable, and then take it from there.

That's gone very well.

I love the enthusiasm, the energy and the fact they can visualise how to use this space.

Of course, the big worry is they don't have experience.

This is a heck of a project to take on for your first renovation.

I think they need a reality check

and that's what I'll try to give them later.

I'll take them to see someone who has taken on a building just like this,

renovated it, and, hopefully, he'll have really good hints, tips and advice

as to how they should proceed.

Just like the chapel, there are many vacant buildings across Britain

waiting to be discovered and brought back to life.

I'm going out on site. See you a bit later.

Zainul Pirmohamed is the empty property officer for Stoke,

where she works around the clock to get the city's derelict houses back into use.

We make a difference. Because we're passionate and we want to change the look of the city,

we can make a difference to people's lives day in day out.

Today, Zainul is on her way to a semi-detached house which has been empty

for around six months and was brought to her attention

when neighbours complained about the state of the property.

She's spoken to the owner and managing agents, who are keen to work with her,

but needs to find out more about the condition of the house.

Being a new case, I don't know what I'm going to find when I get here, so it's interesting.

Sometimes, a story can unfold which is different to what your initial expectations will be.

So we'll go and see.

It's clear there has been vandalism. There's glass all over the place.

There's fly tipping, bricks have been kicked off,

so it could be a really nice property. You can see the potential.

Obviously, something has gone on in the very recent past.

And it doesn't get much better at the side of the house, either.

There's broken glass everywhere.

There's pointed glass in the window and the boarding looks like it was ripped off.

So we need to make sure that gets organised and get that boarded up.

I've gathered a picture by looking at the front and the side.

I now need to speak to neighbours and get a lot more information.

So I'll go and knock on a few doors.

-Hi, there I'm Zainul from Stoke City Council.

-Hello.

I've come to talk about that property across the road.

If you can tell me a little about the background and what happened there.

Originally, it was a doctor's surgery,

then it started been let out as bedsits, or apartments.

How come it's been boarded?

There was a bit of a riot. There were two rival gangs and it was smashed up.

The police arrived and it was sorted out.

But they smashed all the windows.

It's a shame, because it is blighted and it needs to be sorted.

I've had a chat with the owner. She's asking me to deal with the managing agent,

who rang me yesterday and seemed very on board, wanting to get it sorted.

So I'm going to sit with the two of them

and really look at the future of the property.

So we're on board. Don't worry. I will give you an update.

That's very reassuring. Thank you very much.

Having looked at that property, it's clear that some things

we need to get sorted straight away so I need to ring the managing agent. I want it tidied up,

but also, more importantly, I want the glass removed and that fly tipping removed.

The good news is we have a responsive owner so we'll work with the owner

and help them give advice they need.

Hopefully, at the end of that, the property will make a home for a family.

The glorious thing about renovating an empty property

is not just that you're rescuing a forgotten house,

but also starting from scratch

and creating a home with your own stamp on it.

Chris Jones had spent years searching for a holiday home

for his family in the village of Woolacombe in Devon.

When this 1920s build came on the market, he snapped it up,

despite its tired appearance.

Hadn't really been changed much since the '20s.

It wasn't really much to look at. Really small windows everywhere.

So we walked up the drive and looked back along the beach

and were absolutely knocked out by the view.

We thought, "This was got great potential."

It had a really nice feel and we wanted to work with that and bring it up to date.

Novice Chris project-managed every step of the six-month build.

It was actually on budget and on schedule, despite my project management!

Starting from scratch meant he was able to remodel the house into the perfect seaside retreat.

Buying it and doing it up gave us the opportunity to think what we wanted

and to personalise it for us, rather than take on somebody else's ideas.

We wanted a section where you have a drying room,

so you have an area to stick all the clutter and the wet stuff and the dog!

But it wasn't all plain sailing.

It was the middle of August and one of the wettest Augusts on record.

The roofers hasn't turned up that day. They had another appointment.

There was water pouring in. I was stood here on my own.

I thought, "What have we done?" But that was Black Tuesday.

And, yeah, it got better after that.

We had a wobble for about a week, I reckon.

The spacious family home has five luxurious bedrooms and breathtaking sea views throughout.

It's a really sociable house, a really sociable family home.

The views from the bedrooms are pretty good. We love the living room.

One big, open space and sitting on the settee looking out over the sea is just amazing.

This stunning home is now the perfect base for the family to enjoy all that seaside living offers.

You can go out walking, surfing and swimming.

It's brilliant. It just really ticks all the boxes for us.

There are an estimated 6,500 empty homes in Sheffield

and one of the city's most iconic landmarks,

the Park Hill estate, makes up over 900 of them.

Designed in the late 1950s,

this estate married social housing with cutting-edge design.

The deck access scheme was seen as revolutionary.

Described famously as resembling streets in the sky.

But the love affair with the modernist vision was short-lived

and, by the 1980s, Park Hill had earned a reputation as a no-go area.

Falling into decline, it was on the brink of demolition

until English Heritage stepped in to save it. It was granted a grade 2-star listing,

making it one of the largest listed buildings in Europe.

Now, it's undergoing an impressive £100 million renovation.

The first 20 apartments went on sale last month

and I'm on the estate to see the transformation for myself.

I'm meeting Mark Latham from developers Urban Splash,

who are working with Sheffield City Council on the regeneration.

Mark, Park Hill fell into decline, why wasn't it just knocked down?

That happened in so many other modernist housing developments?

I think, principally, it was recognised as being a special example of this kind of building.

It's a landmark. It's something that's unique in the world to Sheffield

and people travel from all over the world to come here and see it.

Everybody can see they might not like it in its current state,

but, if you talk to people who lived here, there are key things they talk about.

One being fantastic views, another being great space standards, so they're generous inside.

The other key thing is this place creates a sense of community.

And that this place is too important to let fall away somehow.

Tell me about the renovation.

I know it's in phases, but how long is it going for and how far have you got?

Well, the block that you see behind us, which is all the coloured panels,

that's more or less a third of the physical space of the entire estate

and we've completed the full envelope of that.

So, the walls are all on and it's all watertight

and we're beginning, then, to fill up the inside

with fitting out the flats themselves

and we'll just move on phase by phase, block by block.

And they're on sale? I mean that's the point...

They are, yes, absolutely, the first flats now on sale

and, indeed, they are selling, which is, you know, fabulous.

I mean, this is a grade 2-star listed building,

it can't remain unoccupied.

The total redevelopment will bring over 900 flats back into use,

two thirds of which will be for sale and one third for social housing.

One of the major changes has been to make the walkways,

or, "streets in the sky," residents only.

Previously, with no security or surveillance,

they were used as rat runs by criminal gangs,

just one cause of the estate's decline.

So, yes, so, these are the famous streets in the sky,

one of the defining features of Park Hill.

It will actually be closed to the general public

but there'll still will be, you know, plenty of people coming and going, other residents,

so that you get a sense of public and then private, sort of, space.

And in this tall block you have three of those streets, each have different names

and they've remained, really, a centrepiece of the vision here, haven't they?

Absolutely, yes, and it's actually essential anyway

because it's how the building is, sort of, put together.

It's part of the pleasure of it and what makes it unique,

so, we were very keen to keep it.

Well, it really is wonderful to see the progress being made here

and it's incredibly exciting because if this works,

and I mean, really works and it once again has a full, functioning, happy community based here,

then it really does show the rest of the UK and the world

that regeneration of these empty properties,

even on a huge scale like this, is viable alternative to demolition.

First-time buyers Luke and Sophie

are searching for an unusual building with lots of character

to turn into their ideal home.

Earlier, I showed them a dilapidated former Methodist chapel

that is in need of total renovation.

'Did you genuinely like this, I thought this might scare you off.'

You seemed to have a lot of enthusiasm.

Yeah, we genuinely, do love it.

Now, I'm taking them to meet an architect

whose own home has been impressively restored

from empty shell to stunning residence.

Right, guys, here we are, this is the place I want you to see.

-Can you see the similarities with earlier?

-I certainly can.

-Yeah.

-It's nice.

-It's lovely.

It is Victorian and it was also empty for quite a while

before John, who you will meet, took it on.

-So be going say hello?

-BOTH: Yes.

-Come on then.

In 2004, John Foreman bought this dilapidated chapel in North Yorkshire for £87,000.

Despite its neglected state,

he knew immediately that it could make a fantastic home.

Opening the door for the very first time and seeing inside,

I knew straight away it had a massive amount of potential,

despite it appearing like a very tiny space.

To me, it just felt like going into the TARDIS.

Empty for eight years and open to the elements

it had been plagued by damp

and needed considerable work to make it habitable.

It was just riddled with penetrating damp,

rising damp, rotten floors, the roof was very poor.

So, we had to rip out the floor, rip out all the timber work

and replace it with more modern materials.

The build cost £90,000

and involved installing a new roof, walls and floor.

It took a year to convert into the cosy and contemporary three-bedroom residence it is today.

It's immensely satisfying being able

to breathe new life into a structure that some people can't see,

and feel as if it's completely decayed

and beyond any possible restoration.

And it's a lovely, warm, friendly environment

and a lovely home and a lovely family home as well, really.

I hope Luke and Sophie will be inspired by the transformation that John has brought about

but I also want to give them a bit of a reality check

about what a restoration like this can involve.

Right, well, John, this is absolutely lovely.

Very cosy, very snug.

I'm guessing it wasn't always this way,

what state was it when you took it on?

Well, it was pretty dilapidated, to say the least.

It had to be taken back to the bare bones of the structure.

So, where do you start then?

When you start on something like this,

you've got to really have a great vision

of how you want to space to be initially.

So, your starting point is getting a good design

and resolving that absolutely down to the minutest detail.

So, what you make of it all? What are your first impressions when you come in here?

This seems to match a lot of what you've talked about so far.

-Fantastic, absolutely fantastic.

-Yeah, it's lovely.

I think, erm, yeah, we'll take this one! THEY LAUGH

Luke, here, really wants to get involved

and do as much work as possible without any particular experience.

Is that naive or is that a possible way forward?

In terms of providing some of the labouring work that's fine

but you need to employ people who are skilled at the various jobs

of putting in floors, and brick work, and putting in steel work,

and if you don't do that you could run into all sorts of problems.

-Do you find it daunting? Is that putting you off?

-Not for me, no.

We know there's a lot of planning involved in it

and a lot more research we need to do beforehand.

Yeah, we wouldn't just jump in,

we wouldn't just go to the estate agents and say, "We'll buy it,"

and then go in with some hammers, and chisels, and some plaster

and give it a shot ourselves.

We'll be seeking advice before we go for anything.

I suppose there are budget implications though

cos you don't want to do something and not quite finish or have to redo it.

Yes, and that's why if you get your good advice to start off with

and manage that budget very tightly and carefully,

there are ways of handling it into small packages of work.

That's what we need, really,

being the first project we will have ever have taken on.

Erm, a step-by-step guide, as it were, to what we can do

-and what we'll need help with.

-Hmm.

Although it's a smaller building, the design is strikingly similar

to the chapel Luke and Sophie viewed earlier

but I want them to look upstairs

to see how John has achieved the layout of the first floor.

-Lovely, so this, I guess, John, is the master bedroom, is it?

-Yes.

My eyes are immediately drawn to the window because, of course, this is a great problem, isn't it?

Putting first floors in chapels, you have to cut windows and half

but, actually, up here it feels very natural.

Yeah, it works really well and what we've done is,

we've taken the floor into the windows

and we've narrowed and sculpted the floor round

so that the sliding sash window floats past the first floor.

What do you make of that, guys?

Cos that seems like a pretty good solution.

That's a very, yeah, very smart solution

to what might otherwise be a bit of a problem.

Yeah, it looks really good, I think it's a really good height.

-See out the window from lying in bed.

-Yeah.

-It's lovely.

What are the most important things for these guys to bear in mind?

They're at the start of a journey,

you know, it's going to be extremely exciting, quite challenging, what do they need to stay true to?

Well, without doubt, the planning of the building

and the way you orientate your rooms.

-I mean, this is a dream home, you've got to get it right, haven't you?

-You do, it's absolutely crucial

but design it well initially

-and THEN the rest of it will take care of itself.

-Yeah, good advice.

So, there's a sense then that, yes, maybe you can save money by a doing certain amount of work yourself

but you've just got to get that initial design right.

You've got to really carefully plan and be very clear about what you want.

We've got a blank canvas to work with and make the most of it.

We want it to be OUR home, not just somebody else's idea of a home.

It is going to be our home.

Well, thank you, John.

Look, it's been a pleasure to look around your house,

it's absolutely beautiful, I think it's great what you've done here.

It's a lovely match with what we saw earlier,

-so very grateful to you for opening it up for us, thank you very much.

-Yeah, thank you.

Back in Stoke, empty property officer Zainul Pirmohamed

is on her way to a property in Fenton

that's been standing empty for nine years.

It belongs to a chappie whose father passed away several years ago.

He didn't know what to do with the property,

when we got complaints we intervened.

So, we worked with him on this one, we've managed to get it in to auction.

It's due on auction tonight.

The house is in a poor state of repair inside and out,

and as a condition of the sale

-Zainul's insisting it has to be renovated by the purchaser.

-Today I'm going to take some photographs,

really, just to get a base for what the property looks like on the day of sale.

I can then measure the progress with the new owner.

This property is a mess.

Totally open. Obviously, the gate's been taken off.

Somebody's been and tried to strip the back addition roof, taken the tiles off.

It needs a whole, whole refurbishment.

Satisfied she has the photographic evidence,

Zainul wants to update a neighbour on the state of play.

Hello, there, I'm Zainul from Stoke City Council.

-I work for the Empty Homes team and I've come about the property next door.

-Right.

-I've been round the back and seen what a mess that is.

-It is, isn't it?

Well, I'm glad that somebody's taken an interest in the property.

It's turned into such an eyesore, it needs something done about it.

So, I've been working with the owner,

I've been helping him, assisting him to get it into auction.

I don't know if you've noticed but it's on auction tonight, so I'm hoping that it's going to sell

and hopefully will get rid of this eyesore from the community here.

-Thank you very much for your time.

-Thank you.

'This property's being marketed at a reasonable price, £25,000.

'It's had a lot of viewers, a lot of interest in it,'

so, hopefully, as it's a good deal, it's going to go at auction tonight.

So, fingers crossed, really.

The house eventually sold for £36,000, well over the guide price.

It was bought by a developer with local connections.

Me grandad had the fruit and veg shop at the bottom of Bell Street,

which is only 100 yards away from this property.

I own the large property next door, and a couple of shops there,

and it's a shame to see them properties run down, left empty in Fenton.

Once we've renovated it I'll look for a new tenant,

perhaps a small family from the area.

It's a good investment, I think it's a good investment all-round.

That's all good news for us

because when you know you've got somebody who lives in the area,

somebody who's got an investment in the area,

so, somebody who's actually got a REASON to renovate the property.

For us, that's really good news.

So, yeah, a good result.

Back in Yorkshire, Luke and Sophie have been visiting a chapel

that's been converted from a derelict shell into a stunning home.

So, how do they now feel about buying and renovating an empty property

in light of what I've shown them today?

So, you've seen the disused chapel earlier,

You've now seen one that has been converted,

how are yare you feeling about everything you've experienced and witnessed today?

-I'm really up for it!

-Even more excited than before.

It's given us a much clearer vision of what can be achieved.

Well, I suppose you had a bit of the vision,

you CERTAINLY had the energy and enthusiasm, and still do,

and it was just that reality check, maybe,

-that you needed to see what's involved in taking a project like this forward.

-Yeah.

Really helpful to hear from John

about just how, how important it is to just plan everything.

-Even when you think you've planned enough, to plan some more!

-Yeah.

Brilliant, so you are determined, this is what you want to do,

-you definitely want to take on an empty property?

-Oh, for sure.

Yeah, there's no doubt about that.

And the chapel you saw earlier is now in the running?

-It's definitely on the radar?

-Yeah, I like it a lot.

It's definitely something we're going to look into a bit more, I think.

Good. Well, guys, I wish you the very best of luck with it,

whether it is that property you take on or another,

I'm sure, especially with everything you've heard and learned here today,

-you'll make a fantastic job of it. So, all the best.

-BOTH: Thank you.

I'm delighted that Luke and Sophie could see this converted chapel today.

I think it's come at just the right time

to give them the reality check and a sense, really, of how complicated

and tricky converting old empty properties can be.

Particularly when they've sat disused for many years

but it certainly hasn't put them off,

they are not daunted in the slightest.

If anything, they're very excited, they're inspired

and I've got no doubts now, they're going to go ahead,

take an empty property and turn it into their dream home.

Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd

E-mail [email protected]