The Big Build - Basildon DIY SOS

It breaks your heart that he's fighting this illness

that he had no control over,

but yet, in himself, he's still a lovely, bubbly little boy.

But it only takes one really strong seizure,

which could kill him.

We're here to help a boy battling with a cruel condition.

He doesn't have a day where he could just be like any other child.

This family are struggling to give him as normal a life as possible

in a house that doesn't serve their needs.

The ground floor is no good for Brandon, there's all, like,

sharp edges, he can bang his head and hurt himself quite dangerously.

We're going to pull out all the stops to give them

what they need, but will it be enough?

Do you know what? I think this is the biggest mistake we've ever made,

to find that the bed doesn't fit the room.

We've got just nine days, but all the usual suspects are here

including Naomi, our new designer, it's her first time.

Of course, we need a small army to help out.

Anybody who's prepared to help us out take one step forward!

Anybody who is prepared to work with Billy, take two steps forward!

Yeah, I'm afraid you've had it, Bill.

This is DIY SOS - The Big Build!

CHEERING

Basildon, Essex, is home to Jenny and Steve

and their three kids, five-month-old Rosie, Katie, who's five years old,

and Brandon, who's nine.

Steve and Jenny met seven years ago, when Brandon was just a toddler.

Brandon's condition started, really,

when he was about two-and-a-half months old.

The pregnancy was normal, the birth was normal,

and then, just one day, he was just holding his breath

and rolling his eyes, and obviously that's not normal for a baby to do.

This was a worrying time for Jenny,

but a course of medication helped stabilise Brandon,

and for a while they seemed to have his condition under control.

About 19 months old he started dropping to the floor...

..and, erm...

he started dropping to the floor, and then they diagnosed him

with epilepsy, and then he, like, he's got worse.

Brandon has a very rare and severe form of epilepsy.

It has no specific triggers

and crippling seizures can come at any time, without warning.

Sometimes with epilepsy, it can be sort of localised on the brain,

but with Brandon's it is literally on spots all over the brain.

So Brandon's having a seizure

and his body can, like, jump, and with every seizure that Brandon has

we don't know what it's going to lead into, so

him being sick, his whole body shaking violently, but at any point

it could end up with him needing his emergency medication.

Brandon can have between 20 and 30 seizures a day,

and despite trying various medication

and even brain surgery, nothing has helped.

We feel like the epilepsy has stolen him,

just cos, there's not even, like, a let-up,

he doesn't have a day where he could just be like any other child.

With Steve at work all day, Jenny is under enormous pressure,

dealing with Brandon and her other children.

Juggling Rosie and Katie and Brandon together,

when I'm on my own, it's really hard,

because Brandon could stand on her or fall on her,

I'm constantly having to watch to see if he's going to have a seizure.

ROSIE GRIZZLES

Not now he's started his seizure, I can't leave him completely,

so I can't get Rosie's dummy.

ROSIE CRIES

Katie, she's a big help as well, and she has done from a young age.

When Katie was three and even at two years old she knew how to deal with

Brandon, and so she's just like another little mum.

Brandon's mental age is like a six-month-old to one-year-old,

but, like, obviously he's in a nine-year-old's body.

He's got no spatial awareness, no sense of danger.

The unpredictability of his seizures, coupled with

his total lack of awareness, means that Brandon is a constant danger

to himself and his sisters.

The house is not safe for him, or practical for Jenny.

Consequently, he spends most of his time on the sofa,

or in a wheelchair.

His condition's deteriorated a lot quicker than we were thinking

it was going to, so it's now being a case that we have to adapt

the property to try and meet his needs.

He can bang his head and hurt himself quite dangerously.

The ground floor is just sort of like no good for Brandon,

there's all like sharp edges, just tripping over the slightest thing.

Obviously, I can't let him out in the kitchen

because it's just too dangerous for him.

Brandon's seizures continue through the night,

so Jenny or Steve take turns to sleep with him downstairs

as he's too heavy to carry upstairs.

Brandon used to be able to go to bed,

and we could, like, leave him, but his seizures have got worse, so he

now has to sleep downstairs on the sofa, and we have to sleep with him.

Brandon's always with me or Steve, he's never without one of us.

He can't be left.

Jenny and Steve are utterly devoted parents,

but they're struggling to cope in a house

which is not suitable for dealing with Brandon's condition.

They need a place where he can be safe,

a place where this young family can grow

and fight this terrible condition together.

And that's why we're here.

How do you keep going?

-Time, just running.

-Just have to, you know?

We're his parents, there's no-one else.

If we don't function, he don't function.

Yeah, but like, 24 hours a day!

It is really tiring but at the end of the day, Brandon,

he can't help this, it's not his fault so that's what we just,

you know, we have in our minds all the time it's not his fault

and we're not going to leave him, we're his mum and dad

and that's what we've got, so we carry on.

It's just how best we can manage that

and, you know, having you guys come in and actually do make a space

will take so much pressure off us.

You had enough already, Rosie?

Time to go and do something else.

Your contribution.

Yeah?

THEY LAUGH

Everyone's a critic, aren't they?

Once again, we have only nine days to complete this build,

so let's get on with it.

The Essex trades are out in force.

Before we got here, a team of guys knocked down the old shed,

put in the foundations and put up a scaffold, with a roof.

Inside, it's a hive of activity with the boys in the middle of it all.

Morning, gentlemen!

Brains. We're the brains of the operation.

Are you?

You're the brains? YOU'RE the brains?

-We're in deep trouble!

-LAUGHTER

Yes, we certainly are in deep trouble

if they're the brains of the outfit!

Now the real brains behind this build is our new designer,

the award-winning Naomi Cleaver.

Want to meet her?

So come and see the joy that is a DIY SOS Big Build. A lot of people.

It's quite intense, isn't it?

Yes, it is, come and have a look!

She has no idea.

Over the last 20 years, she's been building and designing

houses and holiday villas all over the world,

but is she ready for a DIY SOS Big Build site?

So the plan is presumably to open all this out, is it?

Cos this was the kitchen and that was the dining room.

One of the very interesting things about this project

is we've got to open it all out, but then we also have to

kind of close it up a bit as well,

so it's getting a balance between letting Jenny keep an eye on Brandon

but also protecting Brandon and enclosing him at the same time,

so that is the theme of this whole project.

She looks and sounds like a designer, doesn't she?

Right, to achieve this balance,

we're putting in a single-storey extension

which will give this family more space,

which they desperately need.

This will become the new kitchen

and a playroom.

Half-height doors will enable

Jenny to keep a close eye on Brandon

at the same time as giving him a safe space to play.

Leading from the kitchen will be

the re-designed living room,

again with half-height doors,

separating the two rooms.

We're also putting in a downstairs wet room

and a bedroom for Brandon, so he can stop sleeping on the sofa

and where Jenny and Steve can keep

a constant watch over him.

Upstairs, we're not touching

the bathroom or the baby's room,

and only decorating Katie's room

and Jenny and Steve's bedroom.

Other than that all we have to do is to change a few light fittings

up here, but Billy assures me that shouldn't be too much work.

-Today it's all about the extension and creating more space downstairs.

We need to gut the inside, then take the back off the house

and get the extension and roof up.

It all needs to be done by tonight, the steels come tomorrow,

and we've got a tight schedule to keep to.

So this is a fairly tight squeeze, as you can see,

getting these panels in, just enough room.

I think one or two of the larger panels will be a bit more difficult.

Fortunately, Jenny's neighbour has let us come through

her back garden, and our access problem is solved.

Give us a wave!

Now that's really, really helpful, so thank you very much.

She's a bit shy.

Yeah, quick, to get inside away from you, I think!

I love it when a plan comes together.

Well, the local trades work so fast,

I feel like I'm standing still.

Well, I am, to be honest.

Hoo-hoo! Nice trick, eh?

All the trades are committed to helping this family,

and Steve's best friend Stuart knows

just how much of a difference it will make.

-How long have you known Steve, then?

I've known Steve for 21-22 years now.

-Really?

-So a long old time.

He's some lad, ain't he?

He would do anything for anyone and everyone.

Most guys run a mile when they meet up with a woman

and then find out she's got a kid.

And to find out that she's got a kid and then he's got disabilities,

nine out of ten of them would definitely run.

He didn't, he stayed there through thick, thin,

sleepless nights, hospitals, you name it.

And he's fantastic with Brandon, isn't he?

He is, he is.

He absolutely besots over him,

he would do anything for that boy, absolutely anything.

So what do you make of this then now, 85 builders turned up,

descended on their house with cameras and things?

Yeah, Steve and Jen are really excited about it

and obviously it will change their lives massively.

Same with the kids, so Brandon, it will give him a new lease of life,

it will give him a much bigger area to play in,

a bedroom he can use properly.

And then Katie, obviously, opens up space for her to play as well,

so it will be really good for all of them.

He explains the conundrum very well.

Brandon's condition is so extreme and his needs so contradictory

that making the house work for all of them is a huge design challenge.

Brandon has no special awareness.

You know, if the little girls were playing with Brandon,

he would probably tread on them,

so we have to create a space where he can play and be safe, and equally,

where they can play and be safe, but we don't have that much space.

So we are making it open-plan but then enclosing it again

but enclosing it using chiefly half-height doors.

Presumably because of his illness

-and being sick quite a lot...

-Yes.

..presumably everything has to be cleanable,

so you can't put soft furnishings in there.

No soft furnishings.

Well, soft furnishings that can be wiped clean,

so we've found a couple of those, but mostly

we've got to use vinyl, and ordinarily

you'd think, "Vinyl, yuck!" But we've managed to find

some really nice ones, so it's going to look gorgeous

but it's got to be wipe-clean, which is quite a challenge.

It's also got to be robust, so Brandon's not actually going to

damage the space, but equally, he's not going to be damaged himself,

so it's got to be strong but soft, hard but soft.

Exciting or terrifying?

Bit of both!

As it always is.

Naomi's got a lot to juggle with this design,

and there's a lot of work to do downstairs.

Thankfully we aren't doing any major work upstairs,

only a little bit of decorating, I was told.

What's going on? We're supposed to be

not doing anything up here at all!

Look at the state of the place! There's no floor left.

Millar? Millar!

Ah, the very man I was looking for.

Ah, Mr Knowles.

You said, "It's going to be an easy one, cos we're not

-"touching upstairs at all."

-No, we're not.

It looks like a small nuclear weapon has gone off up there.

Yeah, Billy went up to change a bulb.

He's destroyed it up there!

He's absolutely wrecked it.

But the best bit was, right, I said to Billy,

"Billy, is it OK If I put all those floorboards down up the stairs now?"

He said "No! No! We've got to put all the lights in downstairs!"

I said, "We've taken all the ceilings down for you to do that."

-"Have you?"

-He hadn't noticed?

No, he hasn't noticed we took the ceilings down.

So, I blame Billy completely.

Right, let's go and have a word with Bill, then.

I'm glad you joined me here for a minute.

We weren't supposed to be touching the upstairs.

It's, it's a mess.

I know. It happens, when you start undoing, untangling the can of worms,

the worms get larger,

so, what we found, it's easier to take everything out, but you have

to be very good up there, cos there's all lots of floorboards up.

I know, that's what I've come to tell you about!

There's lots of floorboards up, there's holes in the walls.

Now we've got an extra two days of patching up to do.

That's not my fault, is it, that?

You'd have to talk to the "designers".

They're the ones that decide what goes in and what comes out.

Why is "that" a sign for designers?

Well, it's like the "special trades" we get as well.

What's that?

-They're brackets, aren't they? Inverted brackets?

-No, that's that.

No, it's not.

See? Two, two on each end, quotation marks.

That, I don't know what that is.

Oh, no wonder people don't understand the way I talk!

I thought it was that in brackets, open and shut brackets.

-No, it's quotation marks!

-Oh!

So I should, I can't do that, if I do that, then.

I can't do it.

I'm still worried about the can of worms

and giant worms getting bigger when they get untangled.

Inside, the new extension is up and the roof trusses are going in.

Unbelievably, we're on schedule, with no major problems

apart from the destruction upstairs.

-That's fantastic.

-It's the full package really, isn't it?

Timber frame up, get it in, in a day,

-roof on the next day, bricklayers in.

-Yes.

When you've got nine days to build a house, that's what you need, isn't it?

Thank you very much. You're a top man. Thank you.

That was meant to be an interview.

It was mainly Mark talking, to be honest.

Sky's gone a bit pink, which means it's the end of the day

and a very productive day it's been. Have you enjoyed your first day?

Brilliant. Really, really good fun. Everyone's having a laugh, but working really hard as well.

There's something about it, it really gets your juices flowing

every time I come on one of these, because it's pizzazz, it's oomph...

-What is it they're showing?

-It's grit.

-Grit.

-It's grit, Nick.

That's what it is. There'll be more grit tomorrow in the tea, the lunch

and shown on site.

-Fancy a bit of dinner?

-Yes.

-Right.

Yesterday, we smashed the house up and talked a load of rimmidge.

Today we're putting it back together and making sense, I hope.

Starting with the steel.

Yeah, we're getting on all right.

Going to, um, cut the steels to length,

get them in, we've got all these pins holding the wall up,

that they're going to be in the way a little bit.

But we've got plenty of men,

plenty of pairs of hands and loads of enthusiasm.

He's very butch, isn't he? I love it when Julian takes control.

He's a real leader of men when he wants to be,

leading form the front, one of the boys, he knows everyone's name.

-What do you call the fella with the orange vest behind you?

-Bob.

-What about the fella to the right of him doing the steels?

-Ricky.

-Ricky. What about Ricky's mate behind him, what's he called?

-Fred.

-Fred.

-What do you call that fella over there, the electrician on the left?

-Sidney.

-What is your name, mate?

-Andy.

-And what's your name?

-Martin.

-What's your name, mate?

-Bob.

I knew there was a Bob somewhere! LAUGHTER

I knew there was a Bob. HE LAUGHS

Two B's, one hole, can't get it wrong.

HE LAUGHS

I know how to spell that as well.

LAUGHTER

All right, maybe names aren't his strong point.

Names aren't important, it's the muscle that counts.

-Just got to blow the holes up with the bolts.

-All right.

Now that the house is less likely to fall down,

we can turn our attention to the garden.

Like the house, we need to make it into a safe place for Brandon.

And thankfully, Adam the garden designer has a plan.

What are we going to do in here? I noticed there's an awful lot of hard landscaping going on.

We've got a large circle of artificial lawn for the middle,

and then across the back is going to be a large,

timber-raised flower bed,

two-tiered so that Brandon can't get to them

and there's going to be a timber area for Brandon as well,

which is going to be covered in an outdoor carpet.

An outdoor carpet and we're using that same carpet inside the playroom,

which is adjacent to that area, so when the French doors are open,

you'll get that lovely inside-outside.

-And how are you finding it to work on? Nerve-racking. Is it really?

-Yeah.

-Why's that?

Because I normally get six weeks to do this.

NICK LAUGHS

Not six days.

'He may be nervous, but I have faith in him.

'As long as it doesn't rain, he'll be fine.'

You know what's going to happen next, don't you?

The roof trusses went up yesterday and now we have to fit the skylights

to get daylight into Jenny's new kitchen.

Yeah, is there a narrower one than the 600?

Right, we've got a problem here.

The roof windows that we've got are too wide for these trusses.

The only thing I can say is that we take the whole thing out

-and move them all out as we go along, yeah?

-Yeah.

-Cos I can't get smaller windows.

-No.

Time is tight on these builds, as you know,

and the last thing we need is to move these trusses

that we put in yesterday.

I blame whoever measured the skylights.

I bet it was Mark.

We call him 100 miller, you know. Because he's always 100 mill out.

Got a new tape measure as well.

-Give me the tape measure.

-No!

-Give me the tape measure.

-No!

Someone else, someone else measure. You are not... Argh!

He's biting!

He's biting!

Argh! Argh!

'He's a fierce little fella.

'Maybe he's just hungry.'

As well as making this house work for Brandon

and his complex needs, we also need to make it into a home,

so Naomi has gone to spend time with Jenny and the kids

to get a feel for them as a family,

and maybe do a hand painting for the playroom.

That's like an Eskimo kiss, isn't it? Do you rub noses?

BRANDON MAKES GRUNTING NOISES

Eskimo kiss.

That's an Eskimo kiss.

-Do it again.

-Yeah...

-BRANDON LAUGHS

-I know! Go on, then.

Shall we do some painting now?

What we do is take some paint

and then put it on this hand,

and then put it on that hand

and then when your hands are covered in paint,

you can play with my hair again.

-That will be fun, won't it?

-That will be interesting.

THEY LAUGH

OK, I think yellow would be really cool, don't you?

We'll do it all on yellow.

Good boy, well done.

Press, press, press. And up.

Oh brilliant, brilliant, brilliant. OK.

Fantastic. So, you know the score, Katie.

Put your left hand in. OK, good.

-And press, press, press. Ta-da!

-All done.

-Fantastic.

So, you've got your house being re-done at the moment, haven't you?

-Are you excited?

-I think it's cool.

And what's your favourite part of the house at the moment?

My bedroom.

Your bedroom.

So is it a good thing that we're going to be redecorating it,

or not such a good thing?

-Good thing.

-A good thing.

As long as we do princesses and we do pink.

THEY LAUGH

What if we don't do princesses and pink?

Would that be a problem?

NAOMI LAUGHS

You've got a brother, Brandon. Do you help your mummy?

Do you? What do you do to help your mummy?

I help Brandon get, I help mummy get the bowl for Brandon,

cos she can't get the bowl for Brandon

in case he be sick.

BRANDON RETCHES It's all right, Brandon.

I hold his head.

-Do you?

-Like, when he looks, like that way and that way.

Does he like that?

Does it calm him down a little bit?

Brandon likes playing with my hair, he does.

So he likes playing with your hair?

And what about your baby sister?

She tries to scratch me.

NAOMI LAUGHS

So, one's pulling your hair and the other's scratching you?!

It's difficult being the middle one, isn't it, sometimes?

It is difficult.

Right, and now, Rosie, oh, look at these gorgeous hands you've got.

-Just put your little hand out.

-I'll let you do it.

There we are. And we press, press, press.

Ooh! So good. Up, up, up.

-There we go.

-Ah.

Clever you.

You know, at just five years old,

Katie has had so much to deal with,

but she is a real help to Jennie.

I think at the very least

she deserves that pink princess bedroom

and everyone on-site is working hard

to ensure this house works for her and the whole family.

INDISTINCT VOICES

Morning! I intimated it would rain and true enough, it has.

Shame the roof doesn't cover the entire garden.

The good news is that Billy has finished destroying

everything upstairs, which means we can get in and make good,

which also means it's Chris' time to shine with his team.

We've got three spreads upstairs patching,

so it will release the rooms upstairs for the decorators.

Floor's going to go down in here, then we can start insulating the ceiling and start tacking.

There's 21 plasterers coming tomorrow. I'm in a good place.

Happy bunny, thank you.

'To help Jenny and Steve

'keep an eye on Brandon, Naomi wants to install CCTV,

'but to do that she needs sockets and cables,

'and that's a job for Billy.

'Now, bear in mind we've been metric since the '60s.'

-OK, so...

-17...

-1750.

-What's that, in English?

-NAOMI LAUGHS

-It's 1750 mill.

-Yes, what's it in English?

-175 centimetres. Oh, in inches? You're not doing inches.

-I'm imperial, sausage.

-Imperial sausage?

Naomi, are you getting on all right with that Billy?

If you'd rather change Billys, we can sort that out for you as well.

I can, I can change Billys?

We have a selection of them over here,

a taller one, a thinner one,

-a much better-looking one.

-That's really scary.

Go and stand over there, Bill. Go on, have a look.

You look more like me than I do.

-LAUGHTER

-We've got the smile.

The masks are actually, really quite scary, aren't they?

-No, that one's the real one. The third one's the real one.

-NAOMI LAUGHS

That's not a mask, that's the real one over there.

The thing is, I think with an electrician

a bit of height is quite useful, so I'd go for the taller one.

-You'd go for the taller Billy?

-Yeah.

-That would make sense.

And slightly younger, better figure.

What about the smaller version? Oh, I am the small version!

LAUGHTER

Tell you what, we could make some money at Halloween with that, couldn't we?

LAUGHTER

Fear not, under those masks are real electricians.

I don't think the world is ready for another three Billys.

Horrible...

That..gorgeous.

Where do you want these sockets?

Not where you're thinking of putting 'em!

Outside the rain has stopped which is handy as we've

tonnes of soil to barrow in, not that it would have stopped this lot.

The gaps for the skylight have been sorted

and now the roof tiles are going on.

Moving quick, isn't it?

The challenge with this build is to give Jenny more space

at the same time as creating safe areas where

she can leave Brandon but still keep an eye on him.

So throughout the downstairs we're making half height sliding doors.

-Nick, you're the man who solves all problems.

-Yeah.

Right we've got a sliding door, how long is a sliding door?

Well it's going to be as wide as that, plus about this much, I guess.

So how do we get it in once this is all built?

-How do we get it in once it's built?

-That's a good, good question, Bill.

We do actually have to get a door into that.

Those blocks are removable from the top,

so we drop the door in, the blocks go back on

and then the tracks get fitted above, so the door will need

to be a bit smaller in order to get in and fit the track system.

Ah, simple really, or is it?

What's the height of the door, Mark?

The height of the door is 1,200, I believe.

So we've got a metre here.

Can we do an origami door?

So, essentially, it's too big

and it won't go through the top either.

Fortunately there are enough skilled trades on site to solve that little

problem and I'm going to leave them to it and go and meet Steve.

While we're doing the build, he's been staying with the rest

of the family at Little Haven's Children's Hospice.

They come here several times a year to get a break

from Brandon's 24-hour care routine.

This place that you come must be a massive relief to you

because, given the conditions in the house,

it's a nice house but not set up for your needs.

No, that's right.

The house has a little bit of space

but it doesn't work in terms of, because Brandon's

condition has deteriorated even for the short time

that we've been at the house.

You know, it would just cost too much and money that we don't have

to be able to change it to how would be best suited for him.

-But also you chose to take this on.

-Yeah.

Because you came into Brandon's life when he was two.

-It's never crossed my mind in that sort of respect.

-Because?

Because the love that he gives you, you know,

and the way that he is, you know, when he's not having his seizures

when he's not really bad, you know, it's just unconditional.

Anyone that meets him, you know, it just...it breaks your heart

when you see what he has to go through on a daily basis

and you think, "Well, actually, all our problems

"in context are nothing compared with what he's doing on a daily basis."

You know, he's fighting this illness that he had no control over,

but, yet, in himself he's still a lovely little bubbly little boy.

What do you think has been the toughest time?

I'd probably have to say when he had his brain surgery

because, you know, you're making life or death decisions

because you know the risks that are involved with the operation.

There was a glimmer of hope in the very start

but it just all fell back into place

and the epilepsy continued.

-That must have been heart-breaking?

-Mmm.

To know that you've put him through that operation

and potentially have made that decision...

..which could have gone either way, but then

these are the decisions we have to make, you have to live with it.

How much do you worry about Katie and Rosie missing out on things

because so much of your attention is bound up with looking after Brandon?

A lot, you know, we always try to do what we can.

You know, we do see that we have to give them time as well,

erm, but it's horrible, it's a horrible feeling because you do

feel in some respects sort of guilty because she's like every

five-year-old, you know, she wants attention from both of us

and, as much as we try to give it to her,

then it's not always possible. Brandon comes first and

it only take one very strong seizure, which could kill him.

There's no disillusion about that,

that is the reality of it

and you don't dwell on that too much

because otherwise you wouldn't keep that strength up for him

and that's what he needs and what the family needs.

Man, that's hard.

Having a child with a life-limiting condition affects the whole family

and I want to make sure we make their house a home for all of them,

somewhere safe and fun for Katie and Rosie to play and grow up.

Back on-site, plasterboard is being put up ready for the morning

when 21 plasterers will descend on the house.

What do you think, boys, are we going to have this room done tonight?

-Yeah, easily.

-Easy, yeah.

My hair used to be just like that.

Hey, if I actually did do my hair like that,

I'd end up looking much taller, wouldn't I?

I'd be that much taller.

He's not right, is he, to be fair?

Morning, sun is shining,

I've got a cup of coffee in my hand, ready for anything today.

As long as it includes coffee.

This weather is perfect for plastering an entire house

and just look at them all, we've got 21 here today.

Chris is in his element.

It's not so good if you're stuck under the stairs, of course, like this poor bloke.

The biggest guy on the site and they put him in a tiny, little cupboard.

-Are you all right, buddy?

-Not too bad.

How are you getting on? It looks a bit hot in there.

A bit cramped, I just need an owl and I'd feel like Harry Potter.

The sunny weather has brought a bit of magic to the outside, as well.

Oh!

Really getting there, aren't we?

-You superstars, you're going to be done tonight.

-Yep.

Yes!

That means we can get the roof finished tomorrow,

we get the scaffolding down and we can start

the outside of the building, which is going to be very exciting cos

we can get all the stuff in that we need to do and stuff.

All you need is a wee bit of sunshine.

And, of course, the great British builder.

He's right, the good weather has meant the garden designers

have stepped up the pace and are busy laying artificial grass

to turn the garden into a space the kids can use all the year round,

whatever the British weather throws at them.

Because of Brandon's condition, Katie rarely gets to have friends

round to her house, so her weekly ballet class is one of the few

opportunities to see friends outside of school.

It's the perfect place for her to make two new friends.

-Hello.

-Hiya.

Girls, we've got some new boys joining our class today.

-You don't mind, do you?

-No.

OK, shall we start our class?

We're going to do some knee bends, so our plies.

We're going to go bend and stretch.

Now do beautiful fairy arms,

beautiful, where's our big smiles?

-Stretch and bend and stretch.

-Cor, pain!

Bend and stretch. One and two and three...

I'm finding this slightly disturbing.

They are surprisingly light on their feet, though.

Up on your tippy toes, run, run, run. Stop there...

..and balance.

He's surprisingly graceful.

Oh, that was excellent balancing.

Ready and run, run, run

and balance.

Yeah, I don't know if the boys will ever make it

as ballet dancers, but Katie's having a great time.

We're going to step to the side, girls, and curtsy

and step, feet together and bow.

And can you give everybody a big clap.

Thank you for letting us enjoy your ballet lesson.

Thank you.

There are no words to describe what I've just seen.

Despite having to look after Brandon 24 hours a day,

Jenny still finds time to take Katie to ballet,

that's the kind of mum she is,

and that's why former social worker, Abi,

and Brandon's former carer, Amy, contacted us.

Who was it applied, one of you did, didn't you?

I applied because when I worked with the family,

I saw the struggle that they had and being in the position I was in,

I also saw the fight that they had to have to get Brandon

just the smallest of changes that would make a massive difference

to their quality of life.

And recently they set up a fundraiser and Jenny was

all about getting some money together so that they could take on this

by themselves and it fell through and it didn't happen,

and I just... I felt kind of crushed for them

that they keep trying to fund raise,

keep trying to do events, keep trying to get money together,

keep trying to raise their profile so they can increase Brandon's quality of life

and it never happens and they...

..they so deserve, it they really do.

Having worked in the same area and you know about children

with the difficulties that Brandon has,

how much strain is Jenny under just dealing with Brandon,

let alone the other children?

She's under an immense strain, because...

I mean, for us, we dip in and we dip out, don't we?

We have the children for a certain amount of hours each day.

For a parent it's 24/7.

You cannot leave him on his own for a minute,

you have to have a pair of eyes on him at all times

because he doesn't always give a sign that he's going

to have a fit, so he can drop and have one with no warning.

And through the night, although he's asleep,

they have to be next to him because he will just start having fits

in his sleep and he can vomit with them, which is an obvious danger

when he's laying down asleep, so it's 24/7.

It must wear them out, though, mustn't it?

Won't they just burn out?

Her way of coping with things is just that she keeps

going and keeps going and keeps going.

-Cos if she stops she'd never get started again.

-Yeah.

Thankfully the build is going remarkably well,

just two days left before we give the house back.

Oh, look at this how this has changed, look at this!

It's come to life, hasn't it?

That's completely changed. It looked like we weren't getting anywhere

with it and, suddenly, it's come to life.

We got on, got loads done.

Today we'll get loads done, as well.

-Tomorrow, we should be good to go.

-Lovely planting tomorrow?

Yep.

-All the pretty stuff, yeah?

-Yeah.

-Lovely thank you.

He was nervous, now he's calm,

unlike the kitchen.

Now look at this, look at this, look at this. Isn't it ridiculous?

All the ugly ones leave.

Actually, to be honest, we still need one or two in the room,

-so, no, stay, but...

-NICK CHUCKLES

They aren't ugly at all, they're beautiful, talented, hardworking...

Have I said enough yet?

They've even solved the problem of the sliding pocket door.

In the end, we were forced to take the whole wall apart

because of the radiator, because there wasn't enough space to get

-a wheelchair actually through the door.

-Oh, what, between this end here...?

Between this end here and the radiator here?

-So that's why you've cut the end off of this.

-Yeah.

Then that in turn made it easier to actually get this door in.

-By ripping the wall off?

-Yeah.

-We've still got the electrics all attached as well.

-Oh, yeah,

we're going to put it back in, look.

-That is genius, isn't it?

-Look at that.

Well that's good. Well done, lads, that'll work nicely for them.

Every single one of them a genius in their own right.

Giving Brandon a safe space to sleep at night was

one of the family's priorities,

so we've had a bed specially made with cushion walls,

which means it's very big and someone has put the bedroom door

in the wrong place.

Right, we've got a little bit of a problem.

We've got the bed, which is very beautiful, which comes out to here,

but we need that full width to get a wheelchair through here.

Can we really quickly redesign this room?

Do you think?

Anything for you, Mark.

I understand there's an issue about the bed.

-It's only a tiny little issue.

-No, it's fine.

Is this the bed we measured cos we needed to set the walls exactly,

-and you measured it three times?

-No, I didn't measure this bit.

-Yes, you did.

-No, no, I didn't design...

I held the other end whilst you measured it.

That way, yes, we've got the width, the width is fine.

-It's always the length with you, ain't it?

-It's the length.

-It's always with the length.

-So we've got our length wrong.

-So can the bed...

-Yeah.

-..turn this way?

-Yes, let's see, let's see.

Yes but have you got enough between the end corner here and here?

That wall, that box when you get to it, where's that?

The corner's there.

That's still tight, isn't it?

If we lose that wall completely, you can come straight through...

-And round.

-But we can't do that cos we've got the radiator

-and we've got all the...

-Let's look at that.

All the central heating running through it.

If you took the wall out, take that back to the wall and just...

-We could do.

-..have a tap off and put one radiator in there,

you don't need the radiator that side...

-What, remove the wall completely?

-Yeah, take it out.

-That means you've got no changing area then.

-Don't forgot, there's steels in here.

-Which cuts across that wall there.

-Yeah.

D'you know what? I actually think... I think I can honestly say

this is the biggest mistake we've ever made...

on a DIY SOS Big Build.

To get to this stage where we're actually...

When we've only got - what, a day, two days to work it out?

To find that the bed - that is specifically built

for the young lad we've come here to help - doesn't fit the room,

is actually something of a disaster.

It's an old-fashioned thought, but in future,

why don't we measure things

and work them out on a plan beforehand

and maybe put doorways in the right place, what about that as an idea?

We actually do try and do that, you know?

While you're down the nail bar, we are trying very hard

in the backroom to do that, you know?

How many times did I come in here and measure this and say,

"Are the walls in the right place? Is it in the right place...?"

-Oh, so you admit you measured it, YOU measured it!

-You measured it!

-Yeah.

-Oh!

-Did you measure this, did you? So it's...YOUR fault!

How is it... How is it my fault

when I haven't designed it or built the bed,

or in fact done any work at all?

How could it be my fault?

That's the one absolute surety is

cos I do so little, it can't be my fault.

But it all starts with the measuring, doesn't it, Mark?

-Doesn't it, Mark?

-It's his fault, really, isn't it? It does, yeah.

I'm gobsmacked that you could actually even begin

to pass the blame.

THEY LAUGH

'They are literally shifting the blame from themselves when it's their fault!'

'You know, it's very late in the day to start knocking down walls

'and rearranging the plumbing and electrics,

'but once we've said the word and that's what needs to be done,

'it's like a well-oiled machine kicks in...

'When I say well-oiled, not "down the pub" well-oiled,

'I mean like a proper machine.

'And the boys start kicking into it to make it happen - why?

'Because they know they're going to make a brighter future

'for a little boy who needs it.

'And it's that commitment which has really touched the family.'

Is that a bit weird, all this?

Yeah, it's really surreal. We just feel really lucky.

Like why... You know, something that we've wished for for ages

or like just for Brandon to have a bedroom and wet room,

and the fact that... everyone is there doing it

and it's more than we ever could do ourselves or imagine.

But you must have, at times, felt desperately unlucky?

Oh, yeah. You know, Brandon was born fine,

there was nothing wrong with him...

And then for him to be as ill as he is

and deteriorate as quick as he has, like, I do feel unlucky for that.

It's now like the quality of life...

You know, he is nine years old and I want him to see the days,

I don't want him to be asleep.

You know, he still needs to see that daylight.

I don't want him on a drug

that not necessarily is helping his seizures,

but he'll just be asleep

so that we're not having to deal with it physically,

that's not a life...

You know, he needs to see the world, like, every day...

and the changes, and us grow.

You've had enough putting him through procedures and...

Yeah, and the side effects of medicines, you know,

they can make him angry and not the boy that he is,

and that's not fair to him.

It's not fair, and they don't have any help with his seizures.

My way of getting him through life now is I'll be there,

you know, I'm his mum.

And it's just that little boy, it's just...

He's in there, but the epilepsy has got him...

..but we'll keep hold of him.

It is tough for us to see the little boy inside.

-(But he's inside.)

-He's there.

(He's there.) And that's the hardest thing.

-(Sorry!)

-It's all right. C'mon, c'mon.

We can't change that,

but you can maybe make tomorrow a slightly better day.

'I've nothing but admiration for Jenny.'

'She won't give up on Brandon, no matter what the future holds.

'Her resilience is inspirational,

'and that's why every one of these trades

'is determined to do their best to help Jenny and her family.'

'After our earlier measuring issues, Brandon's bed is up

'and is going to make the world of difference.'

That's... Well, it's five hours since we made the decision

to take that wall out and correct it all - amazing!

'It is so incredible that I've been buoyed with confidence

'and I'm ready to ask a designer the question I should never ask.'

-Can I ask you a question?

-Yes.

-It's a design-based question.

-No, no, definitely not. No, go on.

Come over here. Come here.

That design feature wall was probably the most difficult thing

-that our plasterers have ever attempted, and...

-Surely not.

..one or two of them had to go outside and breathe heavily during the creation of that.

I mean, what are you displaying in shelves that thin?

The best we can come up with is that one of 'em likes raisins

and it's for displaying raisins.

-And nuts.

-And nuts.

-Nuts and raisins.

-Oh, well, it's not completely, fair enough.

-No.

Ain't going to get a vase on there, are we?

No, see, all the builders are asking the same question -

what are you going to put on there?

Well, good... Ask...

That's good, you want a sense of mystery, a bit of jeopardy.

What is going in those recesses? Who knows?! We'll find out.

All right then.

'In other words, they're making it up as they go along.

'What I always suspected with designers.

'We've suffered numerous problems and setbacks on this build,

'but we've solved them all, and now we can begin

'the finishing touches

'before handing the house back in the morning.'

'And, yes, it is going to be a beautiful day.'

'Nine days ago, we found Jenny and Steve exhausted

'and on the edge, struggling to cope with Brandon's seizures

'whilst juggling the needs of a young family.'

Not now he's started his seizure, I can't leave him completely...

-to run and get Rosie's dummy.

-ROSIE WAILS

'Their house was a dangerous obstacle course

'and Brandon spent most of his time in the living room,

'even sleeping there at night.'

Brandon's always with me or Steve,

he's never without one of us, but he can't be left.

'We sent out a real DIY SOS to the people of Essex,

'and this is what they achieved.'

'We've done away with the old cramped playroom

'and kitchen with its sharp corners

'and created a big open-plan kitchen/diner.'

'The whole design has been geared towards Brandon's safety...'

'..with the rounded corners and soft edges on all the work surfaces.'

'Half-height walls and sliding doors mean Jenny can see Brandon

'while keeping him safe in another room.'

'We've put in a playroom with a ball pit,

'and padded storage space to keep all the toys off the floor.'

'The living room has been transformed

'into a practical and stylish space

'with washable flooring and padded cupboards in case Brandon falls.'

'Of prime importance in this build was a separate space

'for Brandon to wash and sleep.

'Somewhere he could recover from his seizures

'where he wouldn't be disturbed by the rest of the family.

'And so we've turned the old living room into a wet room and a bedroom.'

'Upstairs, Katie's room doubled up

'as a storage space for Brandon's bed.

'We've decluttered it and created a tasteful pink bedroom

'fit for a princess.'

'Across the hall, we've turned Jenny and Steve's bedroom

'into a peaceful oasis of calm,

'where they can get some well-deserved rest.'

'At the front of the house, we've made access easier

'with a permanent ramp and a new wider front door.'

'And in the back, the garden team has worked a minor miracle,

'turning the waterlogged back garden

'into a beautiful, easily accessible space,

'complete with water feature and safe play area for Brandon,

'which leads into the playroom.'

It's been a tough time trying to get the things you need.

We hope that what your community has come and done for you...

..will do the job for you.

If you're ready, open your eyes.

Oh, my God. Wow!

-I was not expecting that.

-Oh, wow!

This ain't our house, this is not our house!

(Oh, my God.)

-Your house used to stop by that wall.

-Amazing.

Not beyond our wildest dreams, would I have imagined this!

-Even...

-It's lovely.

Yeah, this is...stunning. It is absolutely fantastic!

Oh, we've got a table.

-And we can actually sit and have...

-Yeah!

-..dinner together as a family, that's...

-Family time!

(Oh, wow.)

One of the weirder things about the design

is the half-height walls all the way around,

but there's a good reason for that.

Have a look through here, because you've got a play area here.

Oh, he's got a ball pool! He'll love that.

-Oh, yeah, we won't get him out of there.

-I love it, I love it.

So, it's a safe, soft area,

but the point being that in order that you know that he's safe

and that he won't go off and fall anywhere else.

-Oh, wow.

-You've got half-height doors...

-so that you know that he's going to be staying in one area.

-Oh, wow.

Oh, wow.

The other thing is, come over,

just come over here come through, open your doors and...

Oh, wow, you've given us a living room.

The fact that you've managed to, obviously, give us

somewhere that's homely but safe, you know...

-For Brandon.

-..for Brandon, that's beyond our dreams.

You can't keep an eye on Brandon when he's in the bedroom and sit in the living room, can you?

-No.

-But you can now because what you've

got there is a camera that's looking into Brandon's bed.

Good.

So you can sit in here and keep an eye on him

if you want to, you can read a book, you can play with the kids,

but you can still keep an eye on him.

That is also... relays via an app onto your phones or onto a tablet...

-Does it really?

-Oh, wow.

..you can carry that around wherever you want to be.

-Wow.

-That's so much better, yeah.

That is going to change our life that and make it

so much easier.

So, what is it that you've been fighting for, most, all this time?

-His bedroom and wet room.

-The bedroom and wet room.

OK, for that we need to go through there.

Oh, wow.

-That is fantastic.

-He's got a wet room as well.

Well, yeah the wet room, obviously, you know what

you needed there, and the toilet and the shower.

-This is, obviously, a changing table.

-He's got a bed.

-Oh, look at that.

Well, obviously, it's a medical bed

so it goes up, down and all the various other things.

The idea of building the framework around with all the soft furnishings

-around the outside means that he can't hurt himself.

-No.

And it's wide enough, obviously, cos

I know that one of you guys stays here with him, so...

It will fit us in as well.

He won't want to get out.

STEVE LAUGHS

It's really lovely.

Yeah, but it means also that when he's sleeping

in there, if you get him to sleep, then you can close up the doors

and then go and take a rest and sit down or play with Katie or Rosie

in the other room with the monitor which will keep an eye on him.

-We've never had that.

-No,

and it's just them little things that make such a big difference to us.

It's going to make it so much easier, so much easier.

Yeah, we can actually start to live!

And enjoy coming home and not being isolated in different places, it's...

We can just

be like the family that we are and that we, that we always want to be.

Brilliant, it's just everything that we could have

dreamed of for a wet room and a bedroom for him, it's...

That is...

And we haven't finished yet, there's more.

-More?

-There's more, yeah.

-Shall we go and have a look around the rest of the house?

-Yeah, love to!

-C'mon.

Oh, my God, she'll love it.

Yeah, Katie's room.

Oh, wow... oh, she'll love this.

She is going to, ain't she?

Such a little princess room. She's going to love it.

-The butterflies on the wall.

-Yeah.

And it's still pink.

It's still pink, you kept the pink.

Something you said when we were talking the other day

that she's had to grow up almost too fast, so we wanted to make sure that

the room, for her, was as spectacular as the room for Brandon, you know.

It's beautiful.

I think it's just knowing, like, all what Katie puts up with

and she's such a good girl and we depend on her, and it's beautiful.

There are three things that we've left the same.

We've left the stairs where they were in the house.

Pretty much everything else has changed.

Your bathroom is as it was, because you had a lovely bathroom up here,

that you've worked very hard to make...

COUPLE LAUGH

..and baby's room and we're not going to go messing around with people's baby rooms,

and you decided how you want Rosie's room, so that's how it is.

We're still missing one thing, really, aren't we? Come and have a look at this.

Oh...

SHE CHUCKLES

-Oh.

-Wow, we've actually got a finished bedroom.

I know, it's finished.

That's amazing.

What do you think, is this the space you needed?

Yeah, we can come up here and just...

I'm just speechless still.

..just relax and...

We're in awe of how much work has actually gone in to do this.

Everyone that's come in and changed our life,

all for the good, we've got a home to live in.

-Yeah.

-You look slightly in shock.

Yeah, shocked cos we've got a home, we've got a home.

We've waited so long to have, well...

nothing as close as this, just to have a home,

to have this done it's...

And he's not a separate, Brandon is not a separate and,

we can all live, like, in here and, we've got a home,

finally it feels like home.

Beautiful.

That's a surprise, isn't it? What do you think?

Do you like it?

JENNY LAUGHS

This is your new room!

Do you want to sit on your bed? Look... and butterflies,

your favourite, aren't they?

What do you think?

I love it.

I think all your friends are going to be really, really envious of you.

Do you think they'll be jealous, do you?

-Can they come over?

-I think they can.

ALL LAUGH

Because you help Mummy and Daddy

so much with Brandon that we thought that you deserved something back.

Can I have a cuddle?

Look, Brandon.

Brandon, you've got a bedroom. Good boy.

Shall we show you your bed?

It's your bed, look, your own bed now,

and your own bathroom, a big boy.

Is it a weight off your shoulders?

Yeah, it's over now, like, he's got a bed,

he's got the wet room, we can see him and we've still got a home

and that's what we wanted as well, a home.

I'm so overwhelmed that you've...you've managed to get it

all in and you've got... and it's, like you say, it still feels like a home.

Got one more thing to show you.

-Oh!

-Oh, wow!

Oh, my God, wow.

Look, look, somewhere he can actually stay and play in.

Because he loves so much to be outside.

What do you think, Brandon? Do you like it?

-We can come out here, yeah.

-Yeah!

We can come out here.

We'll have to be out here all the time.

-So, will it change things for you now?

-Massively.

Beyond belief.

It's not sunk in that it's actually ours,

and, it's like I said before, like it's done, we haven't...

we're not going to walk back in and need to do anything, it's done, it's done!

This is your community that's done this.

I don't know how we're going to, like, be able to say thank you enough.

Do you think you might be able to find a few words

and tell them, cos they're all starting to gather out

-the front of the house, and they're really nice people.

-Yeah.

Thank you so much.

You've made a difference to our life, like, loads.

I don't think we're going to be able to say

the words or, you know, thank you enough for what you've done,

you know, the time and effort that you guys have put in to

make our life just that bit easier, it's...

just fantastic, you know.

The things that we've always, like, just dreamed for him,

isn't it? That we've always wanted but we just,

it was always going to be a long goal to try and achieve,

but you've done that in just days, it's beyond belief.

It's overwhelming and we're in shock!

But we haven't got a battle any more.

It's done, it's over, it's finished!

-Thank you.

-It's over.

-Thank you so much.

APPLAUSE

BRANDON SHRIEKS

That's how excited Brandon is.

LAUGHTER

Thank you.

I know, I know, it's like it's not our house.

-Thank you.

-A pleasure.

We've talked about this a lot,

the difference between a house and a home.

A home is somewhere where you can get a proper night's rest,

it's a place that you look forward to going to,

you don't feel trapped in,

and it's somewhere where a family can be together

but when they need space apart... they can find it.

And this family now have that and they desperately needed it,

and they've got it because of this lot. Isn't that amazing?

Maybe you know somebody who needs your help...

That's amazing. Are you flirting again?

Nice to meet you.

Are you all right?

Pleased to be involved.