The Big Build - Derby DIY SOS

Cos Isaac's got special needs,

Daddy's always sleeping downstairs.

We're here to create a brighter future...

My mum's always stuck in the house, making my mum more tired.

It feels like the walls are closing in on me.

..to build a better home

for a little boy who desperately needs our help.

All the hopes and dreams that you have for your children,

all those things have been taken away from him.

To help this family, everyone is taking it to the limit.

At some stage we've to go, "That's enough."

I'm here for a reason,

to make it all look wonderful and for it to work, surely.

Do it for a reason, then!

And this one might just get the better of us.

This is the most difficult job I've done yet.

It's a lot bigger than what I was hoping.

Can't wait to see it all presented back to the family.

-Wow.

-I like it.

You've made this our home again.

We have nine days to complete the build.

All the usual suspects are here, Julia Kendall is our designer.

But where are we going to find an army up a cul-de-sac

in a village in Derbyshire?

HE WHISTLES LOUDLY

This is DIY SOS: The Big Build!

CHEERING

Loscoe in Derbyshire is home to the Smith family

and their official spokesperson, Connie, aged 7½.

In my family, I have my dad, who's a bit grumpy.

Mum, she's very silly.

My little sister, Violet, is very noisy.

And my little brother, Isaac,

he's very giggly.

Mum, Rachael, and Dad, Andy,

met in 2004, when Rachael got a job where Andy works

as a civil engineer.

It wasn't long before romance blossomed.

I ended up having to ask you out cos I'd still be waiting now.

I thought you'd say no.

Despite the stand-off, they married in 2006 and, in the following year,

Rachael gave birth to Connie.

We were so excited to be having our first child and we just

absolutely loved it, we were in our little bubble, really, I suppose.

Yes, life was good,

the family moved to a bigger house

and were overjoyed when they discovered they were expecting

their second baby. This time, a little boy.

For me, I wasn't bothered either way and again, cliche, I know,

I thought as long as the baby's healthy, I'm not bothered.

Rachael had no reason to believe otherwise,

but 48 hours before the due date, she woke in agonising pain

and was rushed into hospital.

The room went from there being one midwife in the room

to ten people, and we realised something's drastically wrong.

The pain was Rachael's placenta detaching from her uterus.

She had haemorrhaged seven pints of blood, leaving both her

and Baby's life in danger.

I asked if it was life-threatening and they said...

She nodded, and I said...

She then said,

"You was within five minutes of walking out of here on your own."

Thankfully, Rachael pulled through,

but Isaac had been without oxygen for around 20 minutes,

causing extensive brain damage.

I remember coming round and thinking,

"Where's my baby?"

Isaac was taken into neo-natal care, where he stayed for four weeks.

My son, my little boy that I wanted to protect,

I was fast-forwarding, thinking about...

..what I used to do with my dad when I was growing up.

Having a little lad you can play about with and...

..and doing everything I did as a boy.

You just feel that someone's ripped your heart out of your chest

and just stamped on it, closely followed by, just...

..a sadness that just engulfs you.

And then you're feeling guilty for feeling sad because

you should be feeling grateful that you've got him.

Stretch, mate.

Good boy.

Isaac has the most severe form of cerebral palsy,

with little to no movement.

He can't feed or communicate in any way.

He has a life-limiting condition and has been left almost totally blind.

I just want him to be my little boy, I want to be able to be...

..son and Dad.

Good boy. Good boy.

ISAAC COOS

Andy and Rachael are fighting to give Isaac the best possible life.

Yay! Well done, mate.

ISAAC LAUGHS

He can show pleasure, which is lovely because at one point

we were told we may not even see a smile.

The family are doing their best to manage,

but every aspect of life at home is becoming tougher

to accommodate Isaac's needs.

It is physically getting harder day-to-day,

he's going to get bigger and bigger, and I'll be scared,

trying to get him up and down the stairs.

Bathing's become an issue for the same reasons.

Trying to get outside in the garden's a task in itself.

We've got a big step at the back door, none of it's level.

The front room has become not just Isaac's bedroom

but his playroom, where he has his physio.

And because of Isaac's need for round-the-clock care,

it's also dad Andy's bedroom.

Mummy and Daddy sleep apart, because one of them has to sleep with Isaac,

because sometimes he cries in the night.

Rachael has become Isaac's carer in the daytime, juggling physio,

hospital visits, and his everyday care whilst looking after

the rest of the family in a really cramped house.

My mum and dad help Isaac a lot, he has to have loads of equipment.

Everything's on top of us.

It creates a lot of pressure after school cos Isaac needs

to go to bed, so the kitchen's essentially just become the one...

-We tend to live...do everything, really, in the kitchen.

-Yeah, we do.

It does just feel like all the walls are closing in.

My mum's always stuck in the house,

I think the house is making my mum more tired because it's so small.

Not surprisingly, the whole family are at breaking point.

And that's why we are here.

So, what do you need us to do to the house?

It is about giving Isaac his own space and dignity,

and for the house to function for a family of five.

Just to do something normal, watch a bit of telly at weekends,

and a place to go to to relax.

Obviously, Isaac's bedroom is our living room.

-The house is fighting against you, basically.

-Yes.

If we can get this turned around to...

the house that you actually need for the family, big change in lifestyle?

It would take massive pressure off, especially me, day-to-day.

There's a lot to do, so we are going to have to destroy

your family home in order to give you the home that you want.

-Ready?

-Yes.

-Yep.

-Thank you.

Plus she looks like she wants tell a story.

You chatted all the way through that, didn't you?

You are possibly the chattiest...

BABY GURGLES

I can't get a word in edgeways, and that doesn't happen very often.

NICK CHUCKLES

Despite the brave faces, things need to change.

Luckily, this lot think so, too.

-Morning, everybody. ALL:

-Morning.

They're all very friendly. We need to get you going cos we need

to let these guys at the house and...

..don't come back over the next three days

cos it'll be really, really upsetting.

LAUGHTER

-He's giggling.

-Thank you, guys.

So, it is ta-ra to the Smiths

and hello to this lot of Prince Charmings.

Yeah.

-OK, let's go, lads.

-Get in there.

Go and get yourself a look, we'll join you in a minute.

They're straight in there.

And that's no bad thing because completing the job in nine days

is never easy. In fact, it's ludicrous.

Busy. Look.

NICK CHUCKLES

This is the only way we stand a chance of getting it done -

hit it hard and tear it out, rip it up and start again.

No, we won't play that song, it's too old.

But as well as destroying, these guys have to build quickly

a whole timber-frame extension by the end of the day.

What sayeth you, Mr Perryman?

Oh, yeah, easy. Maybe even by lunchtime.

-Them pills are working!

-He's great.

He's Mr Enthusiasm.

There are another 80 enthusiastic people here today,

following the meticulous plan laid out by our designer du jour.

Meet Big Dave.

Just fooling with you, it's of course the lovely Julia Kendall!

Although, I'm not sure about the pickaxe.

Slightly terrifying, that.

These houses are actually lovely, beautifully built, miners' cottages.

-They are beautiful.

-How are we going to mess them up?

We're completely ripping the guts out of this place, the reason being,

we have got to create for the whole family a wonderful, big space

that's easy for Rachael to navigate

with the wheelchair and somewhere that's got a fantastic sense

of vibrancy and positivity about it again.

Scrubs up well for a builder, doesn't she?

Julia's design has us removing most of the walls downstairs

to create that sense of space and flow,

starting with the old living room, which we'll turn into

a new bedroom and wet room for Isaac.

The old galley kitchen is going. In its place, a spacious

kitchen-cum-dining area. And at the back of the house,

we're constructing a timber-frame extension on existing foundations

to create a comfortable lounge.

Right, let's pop upstairs.

Here, we're widening the old, claustrophobic hallway,

remodelling the family bathroom and bedrooms,

and we'll be installing a monitoring system for Rachael and Andy

so that sleeping downstairs on a mattress will be

a thing of the past.

They are a great team together,

but they need to be a couple together again now.

So I think in doing what we're doing,

we're going to create a home that really does allow her

to breathe again, I think.

-Come on, boys.

-To achieve this,

Chris is sending a crew of 30 to destroy the upstairs...

..and 50 downstairs to remove all the internal walls.

We're literally tearing it apart quicker than we can get rid of it.

And chucking it in skips.

Now, tell me this bloke doesn't look like John Prescott.

How are you doing, mate?

Nice to see you. You're here to save the day.

But the workload's not worrying him or her,

because we're working with skilled people who know exactly

what they're doing. And Billy.

What I'm doing is getting rid of all the old cables.

Unfortunately, they brought some new ones in

and I got rid of them as well.

Pilchard!

Unbelievably, the timber-frame extension is almost up,

making the floor space downstairs bigger by a third.

Why is there a double truss here and why are these sections in here?

We just had some extra stuff that we had to use up.

At the back, we're stripping the old garden, which is massive,

a colossal 29 metres by 10.

Luckily, that's Julian's territory.

Look through there. Look who's got his feet under the table

with the neighbour. Cup of coffee,

choccy biscuit, conversation in the sun.

Which is no bad thing because access is an issue,

so the neighbours have allowed us to destroy their fencing.

That's nice, isn't it?

The neighbour said the house on the corner,

that was the knocker-upper's house.

He'd have a big stick with a knocker thing on the end,

and would walk up the street and bang everybody's doors

and get everyone out of bed.

What happens if you were already up?

-The missus wouldn't be happy!

-He ends up knocking up the wife!

Do you want to finish this section off for us now

so we can move on to something else?

We shall go over to Jules and see how he's doing in the garden.

I'm not in the garden, I'm here!

We were going to see Jules...

Imagine, you have him for one hour this week,

we've had him for 16 years!

Out back, the activity's picked up and what we need is a creative plan

for this colossal space.

Luckily, Julia has come up with one.

The design marries both the family and Isaac's need

for sensory stimulation.

We'll be sourcing around 100 railway sleepers

which will frame an artificial grass descent with sweet-smelling borders

and rustling plants. At the bottom,

a much-needed therapy hut with hydro-pool,

so Isaac can stretch and work his muscles every day.

It's impressive, but, to be honest, VERY ambitious.

It is going to be so stunning.

If we ever get it done. There is a heck of a lot to do.

That's an understatement.

Come on, lads, let's have it.

Right, we'll start with the ten tonne of concrete

required for the hydro-pool room foundations.

Bang on.

Therapy is vital to Isaac's health and happiness,

but he currently only has access to it twice a week

at his specialist school.

And you're about to see just how much it means to him.

We still don't know a lot ourselves about what the future's

going to hold, in terms of what his development's going to be.

He's giggling.

ISAAC GIGGLES

'He has a visual impairment and we don't know to what extent.'

The images coming into his brain are struggling to be processed

because of his brain damage, basically.

You see that one? Well done, Isaac.

'Any therapy we do with him helps with his condition.'

I like the red lights.

That's very good.

He catches where they are.

Isaac is absolutely a dream.

He's a very happy young boy, very sociable,

he needs the environment to be right for him,

so that he can develop all his senses.

He needs stimulation.

I mean, Isaac absolutely loves swimming as well,

so something to do to give him an opportunity with water

would be lovely.

Lovely.

'I try to take things one day at a time and not think too far ahead.'

We just want to try and help him be the best that he can be, really.

And that is what we want to do for him, in his own home.

Unfortunately, the house is currently being held up

like a melon on cocktail sticks,

so it's time to get some strength back in with steel joists,

and what we need is someone intelligent to explain

what's happening here.

What's going on at the moment? Someone explain it.

-They're lifting it up.

-I can see they're lifting it up!

Don't patronise me!

Do you know what the Egyptians done?

Murdered each other? Slept with Julius Caesar?

What did the Egyptians done?

You're setting a massive piece of stone, you place it on ice,

so you can get the straps out,

and the ice melts and slowly goes down into place.

How do they make ice in Egypt?

I did not know whether it was the Egyptians, but somebody done it.

It is like talking to an encyclopaedia.

An encyclopaedia that's lost the index.

This is steel number two of five to go in,

all donated to the build by our lovely trades.

We've got a three- or four-hour turnaround, thank you very much.

It is a lot of money's worth, why have you decided

-to join and help out?

-My sister's got a daughter who basically

got cerebral palsy and they gave her a week to live.

She's still here now, she's fighting.

She was 28 the other week, that's gone week to week, so...

-Wow.

-She's done really well.

The lads have all contributed their time for a good cause.

Brilliant. We really appreciate you joining, as well.

Thank you. See you again in the morning.

All right, see you tomorrow morning. Thank you very much.

Out the back, the guys are now tamping the concrete foundations,

which should set in time for a big push in the garden tomorrow.

What a day, what a day! And all the house is now held up on Acrow props,

because we've taken walls out and put new steels in there,

new steels in here, new window there...

In fact, new windows all around the house apart from two windows,

a chimney breast taken out, through the Acrow props again,

grooves in the floor for drainage,

through more Acrow props which hold up the back of the house

because it isn't there any more, cos this is the new extension

with a new roof on already.

Look at the size of it. It's just fantastic.

Back through the Acrow props to a doorway

that wasn't here this morning. Oh, and we've made a good start

on the electrics and the plumbing.

Not bad, eh?

Tomorrow, we'll get busy.

Good morning. Bit too close.

All right. Yesterday was a magnificent day,

I feel today is going to be equally magnificent

although we are facing a bit of an issue with access

in the egress to the garden. We'll work it out, though.

Yesterday, we cleared out the old backyard, or bombsite,

as we like to call it, so today it's onto the hard graft,

constructing our ambitious new garden.

All this area here is going to be artificial grass.

All this grass has to come off, the topsoil has to come off.

Landscaping almost 300 square metres

is, frankly, a big ask from Julia but it is not worrying Farmer Giles,

sorry, Farmer Jules...

# Dig, dig, dig, dig, dig it

# Dig a little trench with m-e-e-e-e! #

TOOTS HORN ..or Mark.

But it is affecting Billy. He's none too happy,

as I've dabbled with his wiring.

They filled it in with the concrete and they forgot to put the pipe...

-I asked them not to.

-But you shouldn't.

It goes up the outside of the building.

The parties that are involved must be informed,

not someone come along and say...

Don't, Mark.

We don't need people coming along and saying,

we ain't going to put it in there.

-Don't belittle us. You're belittling us.

-Who's belittling?

-You are.

-I'm not!

-We don't want cuddles, we just want to get it sorted.

-He might want a cuddle.

-He doesn't. He's got me to cuddle.

No, I'm upset because no-one involved us.

We do it for a reason, Nick, not to be undermineded.

That's what we've been done - undermineded.

Undermined-ed?

LAUGHTER

I think for the next few hours,

Billy is best left alone or avoideded.

In the house upstairs, the wall stud himself,

Mr Frediani, along with some new buddies,

are busy changing the room configurations

so they feel more spacious.

I just want to pick these bricks up, and throw them

into no-man's-land, really.

Nothing is being left to chance.

Now, since Isaac's birth,

Dad, Andy, has not slept in the bedroom upstairs,

but on a mattress in the living room,

so he can keep an eye on his son, and that has to have taken its toll.

You're one of the world's worriers.

I don't know if I'm the worst, but I'm certainly not the best.

I worry about things that I can't have any influence over,

but, needless to say, it doesn't stop me worrying.

The big thing is Isaac and the kids, Connie and Violet.

How they deal with the family life that they've been brought into.

Connie, with how she's dealing with adapting to Isaac, as her brother,

with the needs he's got.

Isaac, for the first six months of his life, he was in pain,

abdominal spasms, muscle spasms, the impact was huge.

When he was still in hospital, she drew a picture

and stuck it on his bedroom wall.

And that...

..upset me, because she drew him with a big smile, saying he's cute.

Within two weeks of him being home,

she drew another picture, and it had a big, sad face,

"Cos he's always crying, I don't want him here."

And that's really tough.

So, I do worry about how tough mentally she has to be at her age.

Do you worry about the future or try not to think about it?

It does scare me.

There is a life expectancy for all of us. Isaac's has been compromised,

but we don't know by how much.

And once that's been said to you, how do you deal with it?

This kind of thing would put a massive pressure

on your relationship and it has to have done, the stress, strain,

worry, the sleep deprivation...

I have seen Rachael, when she's...

that...strength isn't there.

I guess, that's one of the worries, that might become the norm.

I do think a lot of Rachael at home, wanting to be there to help her out,

with the pressures of dealing with Isaac.

We have drawn on a hell of a strong relationship.

And I think the value of that to me...

..has made me worry a bit more, cos I don't want to lose it.

I worry that the stress is going to be...

..reach breaking point.

'To have Rachael in an environment that is stress-free,

'that's one less stress that's on Rachael's shoulders,'

and that will hopefully have a release of the pressure

all around from the relationship point of view and the family.

-And you're still obviously very much in love with her?

-Yeah.

Cos she's...she's amazing.

It's clear to me that the work we're doing on the house

won't just help ease the situation with Isaac,

but relieve the pressure for Andy and Rachael, too.

There is, however, a slight problem.

We're getting numerous deliveries but none of them are carrying

the key ingredient required for Julia's epic garden design.

OK, not to worry, I understand. OK.

She wants 100 straight railway sleepers to cut into circular paths.

I am so keen to keep the shape that we've got

cos I think it's going to work so beautifully.

So, I'm going to have to amend the design a little bit.

-Tree to joist?

-Tree to joist, about 40 metres off.

-Rather than sleepers.

-If you can get 50, then it allows us

-a little bit of leeway.

-I shall see what I can do.

Hmm, an 8x2 inch

rectangular wooden block doesn't sound very circular.

8x2 joists will not give you a curve.

According to my garden specialists who happen to be experts

-and not TV presenters...

-You said we're going to try

and get 8x2 joists.

She'd like the feature of the timber sticking out of the ground.

Yes, but she's a designer.

At some stage, we've got to go, "That's enough."

-We've changed.

-We listen to the designer...

As opposed to listening to a TV presenter!

I'm here for a reason - to make it all look wonderful

and for it work, surely.

There comes a point where you've got to say,

"We're not going to achieve that."

We're not quite at that point yet.

-It's achievable.

-Thank you.

All will be well.

Before I had a conversation with Nick,

I was quite happy as long as it ended up working the way I wanted,

but now that we've had that conversation,

I am absolutely determined it's going to be finished, frankly.

Fighting talk from Kendall there,

who used to be a boxer when she was a man.

There's one bit of the garden design I am happy with.

When it's up, the therapy hut will house a hydro-pool and hoist,

which means more electrics.

Upstairs. Sparks in the bathroom.

Billy and his team are installing

over 1,000 metres of electrical cable in this build,

which is a big responsibility.

We just found two cables. We're wondering where they go.

You can't win them all, Bill, something won't switch on.

We are winning in the old living room, however,

as the timber frame for Isaac's wet room has emerged.

And the boys on the roof have been very busy.

What do you make of the site? It is weird and different.

It's busy. Never seen so many blokes on site.

It's nice you've got so many people giving up their time to do it.

Sometimes, you give money to charity, you don't know

where it goes. With this, you can see physically what difference

you're making in someone's life.

Who's the big fella? Is he one of your lot?

-That's John.

-That's Grandad.

-That's Grandad!

-Is that right?

-It's my father-in-law.

-Is that right?

-Godfather of fascias.

The Godfather of fascias!

And Chris's team should feel very proud of their performances

in the bedroom.

Basically, we've had the joiners in,

we've replaced all the rotten walls, ready for a big day tomorrow,

the plasterers will be here,

and we can start putting this little baby back together again.

Now, that's an offer we can't refuse.

MUSIC: Theme from The Godfather

He really IS the Godfather!

It's our third day on site and it's centre stage for Mr Frediani's

favourite trade, a veritable spread of plasterers.

My boys, look at them, look.

They're like ants all over it.

There's a couple of rolls of scrim there.

Big ants, mind you. Rachael felt the walls were closing in on her,

so Chris and the boys have been working on getting

the upstairs area feeling and looking more spacious.

Beautiful.

We've just pushed these walls out to give more access up here,

so they're going to re-board and then re-skim the upstairs,

giving the sparkies and the plumber time downstairs

to finish the kitchen area, but I'm very excited

cos there's about 16 plasterers

on board and they've only got the upstairs to do.

So, they'll eat this.

Nice.

Christopher is a happy work bunny, but after Cablegate,

I'm approaching Billy with extreme caution.

-Am I allowed to hug you today?

-Course you are!

That's all forgotten, that is all forgotten.

I have to say, I'm sorry that I undermineded you.

So long as the...it's, erm... What can I say now?

Aw, he's all totes emosh.

Outside, they're bricking it,

and in the garden, someone's digging it,

having a lovely time courtesy of a three-tonne machine.

But despite my reasonably and politely explained objections,

Julia is refusing to scale back on the garden design,

which is putting these guys under pressure.

We are on top of it.

-We're getting there.

-Enjoy the rest of the day

and I'll try and keep the designer away from you.

LAUGHTER

At the bottom of the controversial slope,

the therapy hut is up and, I have to say, is looking fantastic.

It's being clad in natural cedar, which is hard-wearing

and, by the way, smells fantastic.

I wish you could have a scratch and sniff telly

so you could smell the cedar. It's really beautiful.

Very lovely. It's pretty, isn't it?

Feel free to dance to the music, by the way.

On the inside, we're waiting on the plasterers to do their thing.

Look at them go, they're magnificent, it's flying up.

It's manic, mate, absolutely manic in here.

It's a good laugh, though. But it's mad.

It is mad.

Nevertheless, Chris is ploughing on

with making the floors wheelchair-friendly.

Where you had the walls,

there's a slight discrepancy, so we need to self-level it tonight,

get everyone out till tomorrow, when we can carry on

with the plasterboarding and skimming. That's our plan.

The reason everyone's working so hard? Well, it's the family.

This house hasn't fitted their needs for some time and that's especially

hard for Mum, Rachael, who feels trapped in her own home.

What would people not understand

about what you do on a day-to-day basis? How do you cope?

The honest truth is I don't know.

Every day with a child with special needs is hard,

even just getting them dressed, getting him in and out of his pram,

putting him to bed, he's on pain relief all the time because

he has a lot of muscle spasms as part of his cerebral palsy.

SHE BREATHES IN DEEPLY

He's got a sleep disorder, so we have broken sleep most nights.

That makes it difficult to function.

If you're getting sleep, you can pretty much cope with anything.

That's become the norm, really, broken sleep every night.

That's an internationally banned form of torture.

Yeah, it is. I can see why.

How do you think Andy copes with it?

I always worry more about Andy than about me.

It does put a massive strain on our relationship together.

I used to feel that nothing could touch us but, as time has gone on,

it's hard sometimes. I think Andy's struggled a lot more than me,

to be honest. I know he feels a lot of guilt that his life

hasn't really changed.

He still goes out to work every day, whereas I'm at home

and he worries about me a hell of a lot.

Would it be fair to say that it's been wearing you out?

I feel pretty wrung out just lately.

I do have my days when I could just sit and cry.

It can come over me all of a sudden. If I was to actually start crying,

I would be worried I wouldn't be able to stop.

You can see every day what Isaac gets from you,

what do you get from Isaac?

Just the joy from seeing him laugh,

the fact that he can show pleasure for things...

He's just amazing,

every single day is like the first time you've seen it.

ISAAC LAUGHS AND GURGLES

Even if a doctor categorically told me he's never going to do this,

I think, as a parent, you've still got that fighting spirit.

You might be able to do something, you never do know.

There's always got to be that hope there,

and I suppose that's what keeps us going, really.

Well, we might be 2,500 man-hours in,

but this place is far from finished.

And Mark knows it.

HORN TOOTS

-Where do you want to be today, then?

-The pub.

Really, where'd you want to be HERE?

We want this circle feature in,

just to prove that it does work,

so when Nick comes back he can say sorry.

Is that Nick the garden designer or Nick the electrician?

-Nick the Oracle.

-Nick the Oracle, right, OK.

So we can say we were right.

I'm not accustomed to sticking my nose in,

but I will say getting ten tonnes of hardcore down

in four hours is asking the impossible.

THEY WHISTLE Theme from The Great Escape

That's it.

Yeah, but there is no escaping this job!

If that's all done tonight,

I'm going to pull my pants down and run down the garden

-with my bare bum out.

-Yeah, please don't.

You know who I blame?

Kick-arse Kendall, that's who.

It'll get done.

Honestly. Have faith.

The guys... See how many there are out there!

They're all looking at each other going, "Help!"

See?

Irrespective of the garden issues, we've got a schedule to stick to,

so the kitchen's arrived and joiners are joining things.

But the inside isn't quite ready.

However, they are smiling.

-Are we all happy?

-ALL:

-Yeah!

And they are all happy, I didn't have to give them any money.

Cup of tea on the go whilst working.

See, he's happy, look.

Chris's boys have now happily worked their way over

virtually every piece of board in the place,

that's every wall and ceiling.

Another hour-and-a-half of skimming this and then we'll be done.

The old living room's gone

and in its place is a wheelchair-accessible bedroom

and wet room.

We're also making it easier to get into the house with widened doorways

and a new flattened curve.

There are no half measures here

which means a phenomenal amount of work,

so Billy is boosting morale.

My granddaughter's got a pet mouse and it died.

I got the phone call, it's died. It was called Elvis,

it was caught in a trap.

It's a joke.

I think I preferred him angry!

That's the last bit of plastering.

Have you enjoyed it?

-Yeah, it's been great.

-Fantastic.

I'd be here for blimming six weeks doing this by myself,

do you know what I mean?

It's good craic. Throw the boys at it, they'll get it done.

OK, just four days left in the build,

normally at this stage we'd have broken the back of the garden,

but this job looks like it might break us.

The thing is we simply can't ask any more

of the people working on it.

Very suddenly, we have to put a gentle rocket

-up the posterior of the garden.

-Of the garden, right.

You can't ask any more!

This is a very big job, a lot bigger than what I was hoping.

Yes. And I said the design wouldn't help.

We've been trying to cut circles out of square timber

for the past five days, and it's nowhere near finished.

I warned you, I said.

Comes round all the way, that.

-Both sides.

-Yes.

That would do it, wouldn't it?

It will be a lot easier.

Finally a voice of reason.

Thank you.

That's more like Chagford.

This is getting ridiculous, we're not going to finish this.

It doesn't matter what the designers say, there's got to come a point,

when we go, "That's it, that's enough." Whatever we've got,

we have to lawn the rest of it and finish.

Let's give it until three o'clock this afternoon.

Cos we've got a lot of extra people turning up and if they turn up

and we have a good push on, then we'll call it at three.

Fair enough.

So the garden is in the balance,

but at least the house is looking less wrecked, which means

the decorators get to splash on some colour.

Just realised she's on telly.

It's going to the wire, I suppose,

but everyone knows what they're doing, don't they, so...

We're used to a bit of pressure.

The decorators aren't the only team under pressure.

The joiners have a lot on their plate.

Julia's design has space-saving cupboards

-and a new fabulous kitchen area.

-Looking good, isn't it?

-Yes, it is.

I'd like to see it all finished, and everyone's out of the way,

and when it gets presented back to the family.

Yeah, that's something we're all looking forward to.

Every single member of this family

has been affected by Isaac's condition.

When Isaac was born, Connie was only four.

And his illness had a big impact on her.

Connie loves to draw pictures of the whole family,

so Julia has asked her to create something just for the house.

I found these really lovely little pennants,

and I thought what we could do

is paint one for everybody in the family.

Shall I do one for your dad, maybe?

Mm...

-Yeah?

-You'll have to put quite a lot of football on the front.

Football on it! Will I?

Forest and football.

Right, OK, so, off you go, then, sweetie.

I'm doing a bit of a dinosaur cos Isaac likes creatures.

Yeah. That's lovely.

So, what's it been like up until now, until we got hold of the house?

It's been...

It's been a bit tricky for everyone, especially my mum.

-Right.

-And my sister's a monkey, so it's even harder.

She's a monkey, is she? Aw!

I'm going to put some smiley faces, because Isaac's always giggling.

He IS always giggling, isn't he?

I've noticed that. He seems very, very happy. It wasn't like that

in the beginning, was it, I think, when he was born.

Much better now, but he still cries a bit.

So, do you think that when Isaac's got his own bedroom

that it's going to make him happier?

Yeah? That's lovely.

You're going to have a nice, big, smiley face.

Yay! That's fabulous.

I think he's going to love that.

I think so too.

Back at the house, and the garden isn't where it needs to be

at this late stage, but we have got extra people

and they've brought gifts.

Can I guess, from the van, that you've got a hot tub for us?

-Oh, yes!

-Is it big?

-Yeah, massive.

Look at the ridiculous...!

-That's never going to go in the shed!

-Oh, yes, it will!

It's all been designed for the size of the hot tub.

It is the most... I don't know what they were expecting, you know,

it is a hot tub, it's not a bath. And frankly, you know,

of course all the family are going to want to use it.

They're not going to expect the other children

to stand by and watch, are they? I mean, how ridiculous.

Release the tub!

See, I told you it would fit.

Yeah. No, it does fit. It does fit.

Up, and...

-Oh, yeah.

-How's that?

-That is...

More realistic?

OK, I'll give her that. She can get a tub in a shed.

But this design is becoming my nemesis, it's crazy.

We're on version three of the circles,

and all the posts need individually cutting and placing.

HE IMITATES A TRUMPET

The last post.

The last post!

LAUGHTER

That's pretty good, actually!

With only two days left, it's now decision time.

We said that at three o'clock we'd take a view on where we are

with this garden. Are we now in a position we can say we can

stick with the design, or do we have to cut holes in it?

-Stick with it.

-You reckon we've got it back under control?

Yeah. Just.

Just. Really, really happening.

Well done, you, because this has been your... Can I interrupt

-your brownie just for a second?

-It's not a brownie! It's actually tiffin.

-And it's really, really nice.

-Well, I don't care how nice it is,

I'm trying to interview you for the programme,

and you're sat there chewing away like a munching cow.

So... It's almost finished, now.

What, the garden? Are we still talking about the garden,

-or the tiffin?

-The tiffin.

Unbelievable.

In the house, the guys are busy installing equipment

that should make life much easier.

A new top-of-the-range hoist will mean Isaac can move comfortably

from his bedroom through to his wet room.

A bit of grouting going on in here, which is very lovely.

A nice finish on the tiles.

The boys are fitting one of these all-singing, all-dancing toilets.

Fantastic.

With so many trades all in at the same time,

things can go wrong.

Yes, not good.

What's happened here?

-Er...

-Oh, that's not good.

-Plaster's coming off the wall.

That's bad. That's unusual, in fact. In the rush to get things done,

we've ripped some wallpaper and tried to replace it with a new bit,

but the plaster has come away with it.

16 years, first time I've ever seen a plastering disaster.

-It's not a disaster.

-Well, it's come off the wall, Chris,

-I'd say that's a disaster.

-No, what was a disaster

was the chipping of the wallpaper. If it hadn't have pulled

the wallpaper off, it would have dried it all back in.

-Oh, it would have sucked it in and stayed, would it?

-Yeah, yeah,

-we'd have been all right.

-All right, so it's his fault, then, mostly.

-The joiner's fault.

-The big fella there is going, "Oh..."

I don't believe that. I don't believe it.

Are we all rights to do that, lads, strip it back to that corner?

-Yeah, yeah.

-And then... And then just wallpaper straight over.

-Have we got enough wallpaper to carry?

-Yeah.

-Fine. Brilliant.

Excellent. Crisis - and blame - averted.

Everyone is busting a gut to push this over the line.

I'm still not convinced, however, about the design.

-What's gone wrong here?

-What do you mean what's gone wrong?

It's beautiful. We've got a fabulous wallpaper here,

just introducing some texture and colour.

Wait. It will be lovely.

Do you... Yeah, hm.

But it's going to take a bit more than just trust

to get the outside done on the last day.

Well, at least it's not raining.

The weather has actually been very good to us whilst we're here.

I'm not convinced, though, what I'm being told,

which is that this space out here is going to be a beautiful environment

in which the family can enjoy themselves as from tomorrow night.

I still think there's at least two days' work here,

which is a bit of a worry cos we have to finish tomorrow night.

We've only got one day left. But, then, what do I know?

We'll find out whether I'm right

or they're right tomorrow. See you, then.

Overnight, we've received some bad news.

Isaac has been rushed into hospital

with seizures and breathing difficulties.

He is now stable,

but will stay in with Dad, Andy,

while Mum, Rachael, looks after the other kids.

It's times like this I'm reminded of the worries

this family must face every day.

Since Isaac's diagnosis,

it's tested my strength and my family's strength beyond...

anything we ever thought we'd ever have to go through.

Worrying about...

how long we may or may not have with him.

You don't think...

any of your children are going to go before you.

I worry about Isaac because he's just so vulnerable,

because he can't tell anybody what he wants.

I try to...

I try to stay positive,

a lot of the time, and just try and hope that...

He won't be able to do certain things.

It's scary to think that he might...

he might never know who I am.

It scares me that...

..not only will he not know who I am but...

..he'll never be able to run to me,

give me a cuddle, he'll never be able to say, "Mummy."

Isaac has had to fight for life from day one.

But his strength continues to surprise both medics

and those who love him most.

Things we take for granted, he struggles with

every second.

So, if he can keep going with that fight every day, then that...

that gives me the strength to keep going.

We are on our last day,

and with news that Isaac is doing better, we are now more determined

than ever to give this family a home to come back to.

And, at last, the garden has turned a corner.

Or, if you like, a swirl.

-You've got a big day today, haven't you?

-Very big. Very big.

Is there a resin you use to bond it all together?

-Yeah, there's a glue that we use.

-How long does that take to get on?

-Normally, 24 hours.

-We haven't got 24 hours, really.

We need to keep off the joints.

And not all of us are feeling the stress.

# Don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me

# Don't you wish your girlfriend was a freak like me... #

Arr, proper 'andsome, he is!

The inside is looking a little underdone,

but I can't fault their enthusiasm.

You enjoying yourself in there? Are you having a good time?

Is it just you? Who are you talking to you in there?

It's a little bit of a squeeze!

We had six in there yesterday.

You've got 20 tonne of topsoil turning up. How are you feeling?

-ALL:

-Yeah!

Well, there's just three hours to get the job done,

and we're still bringing

huge amounts of materials into the garden.

However, the plants have arrived.

Sensory-wise, this is great, cos when the wind gets you,

you get all the noise of it rustling.

That garden that was a dead space is going to really come to life,

isn't it? Julia's design aims to ease the family's situation,

but, right now, it's putting the thumbscrews on this lot.

I've been laying this artificial grass for the past six years.

This is the most difficult, intricate job that I've done yet.

Yeah, sorry about that.

Julia!

Finding it stressful, are we?

We've got to be out of here in about ten minutes, I think.

We're under a bit of pressure, to be honest.

If you don't need to be in the house, don't go into the house.

Good job.

Greengrass, it's not going to your house.

LAUGHTER

But, as we rush to the finish line, I can't wait to hand it back.

Eight hours ago, I said this garden wouldn't be finished,

and I was wrong. It is. But we can't show it to you,

at this point, we're not allowed to.

Go on, just a quick, sneaky peek, then.

That's enough.

It's good, isn't it?

Just nine days ago, we arrived to find a family in despair.

Struggling day-to-day with everything from sleep deprivation

to leaving the house.

It literally just feels like the walls are just closing in on me.

With a severely disabled son needing special care around the clock,

their home was claustrophobic and working against them.

I worry that the stress is going to reach breaking point.

At a time when they needed to be strong and come together,

the house was forcing everybody apart.

Cos Isaac's got special needs, Daddy's always sleeping downstairs.

Something had to be done.

Look, it's busy. Look!

We sent out an SOS, and Derbyshire responded.

Heroes, every single one of them.

Just take a look at what they've built.

At the front, there is a new drive, and wheelchair-friendly ramp,

and widened doorways so Rachael and Andy no longer have to

struggle to get in and out of their own home.

Inside, the old cramped kitchen has gone,

and, I have to say, Julia's design is magnificent,

with a new kitchen and a fantastic dining area.

And, at the back of the house, we've extended out

to make a comfortable family lounge.

Something they were desperate for.

The old living room, which doubled as Dad's bedroom, is no more.

In its place, we've built a brand-new stylish bedroom

and wet room for Isaac, all easy access,

with the equipment he needs,

without ever looking clinical.

Upstairs, we've widened the hallway,

making the whole area feel less cramped,

and redesigned the family bathroom.

Violet's room and Connie's room have been transformed.

Now, they are spaces to be proud of, bright and girlie,

and worthy of sleepovers.

And, finally, Mum and Dad's room.

A fully integrated monitoring system connects with Isaac's bedroom,

meaning Rachael and Andy can finally get some rest in comfort.

And that's not all. The garden,

once inaccessible to a little boy reliant on his senses,

is now breathtaking.

Julia's circular paths are bordered with plants that will appeal to

Isaac's hearing and sense of smell, leading to the therapy hut,

where he can have regular hydrotherapy sessions

to help with his development.

85 construction workers today have been working to try

and give you the house you need. So...

open your eyes.

Oh, my God!

Oh, my...

It's just amazing.

Oh, God.

That's incredible. Absolutely incredible.

I love it. Absolutely love it.

We get to live here.

Oh! Look what they've done.

Can I draw your attention to the middle one,

the face that Connie's painted for Isaac.

-Oh, he's smiling.

-Big smile.

She always drew him smiling when he was first born, didn't she?

Oh, that's amazing.

-Have a look.

-I love all the colours.

She couldn't have got the colours any better, could she?

I just love it, love it all.

-So pretty.

-How lucky are we?

It's just amazing.

It's incredible.

It's overwhelming.

Look at the pictures.

It's just beyond my wildest dreams, to be honest.

Well, we've only just started. There's a lot more to show you.

-OK.

-Will you come and have a look?

-I think so.

-I think so, yeah.

-Right, come on.

-Get my mind round all this.

-Oh...

-Oh, wow.

It's not the same room!

Oh, God, look at his...

It's amazing.

His bed, it doesn't look like a hospital bed!

It's just...it just looks like a little boy's bed.

That's what we wanted, isn't it?

Just...

his own space, a bit of a choice and some dignity, and it's...

-It just doesn't...

-You guys have given it us.

Given it him.

This is phenomenal.

The monitoring system will link to a tablet which we

have for you as well, so that, basically,

you two will be able to be upstairs in your bedroom

with being able to see him all the time that you want to see him,

you'll be able hear him all the time you want to see him on the tablet.

That'll just make such a difference, won't it?

-That's it.

-Just feel that.

-Oh, wow.

-Oh, what a space!

It's amazing. We'll be able to just move him from here...

..just to over there and not having to lift him up and down the stairs.

I feel like words aren't enough. I can't believe

what my eyes are seeing, to be honest.

-They've nailed it, haven't they?

-Completely.

This isn't a house just for Isaac, obviously.

It's got to be a house for you guys as well.

Family space downstairs, but you've got to get other rooms upstairs.

Ready to see some more?

I think so!

-Oh!

-Oh!

-Step in.

Have a look.

Oh, beautiful...

I love it. I love it all.

Is that a big enough mirror for you?

Yeah, don't think you're getting a look-in.

Oh, wow!

Oh, God, it's stunning.

-Seriously?!

-It's absolutely stunning, isn't it?

Wow.

It just feels like everything's changed, but it's...

I think something had to change, because we'd...

we'd pretty much hit rock-bottom, to be honest.

It just means the world.

To take the pressure off Rachael on a day-to-day basis was always

a big worry of mine, and so much of those worries have just dissipated

with what we've seen today.

Can you see the future being better now?

Yeah... I can see it...

I can feel it already.

I can visualise what it's going to be like now,

just moving around in the house and just doing day-to-day things.

It can give us time to be...

to be a couple again.

I think the light at the end of the tunnel's just...brighter.

Definitely.

-What do you think, Connie?

-I like it.

-Disco ball!

-Look at your light!

One day, can Emily come and sleep over?

Course she can, darling. Yeah.

Violet Rose, what do you think of your room?

Oh, what is it? What is it?

Do you like it?

Wow!

-SHE GURGLES

-What do you think?

-Hey, mister.

-Hey, look at your new room!

It's your new bedroom.

-Look at it.

-It's your new bedroom. What do you think to your bed?

Have a look at this fox, mate. It's your bedroom!

-What is it?

-Yeah. Look at him.

-Yeah.

-Do you like it?

He's going to like the light over there, I think.

The light.

Out you come.

Oh!

Oh, wow!

I'm just speechless.

What do you think, Connie?

-I love it.

-It's wonderful.

Kind of cute, isn't it?

I could never have dreamed of it being this fantastic.

Well, let's go for a little walk, cos these are designed

for you to be able to take the children up and down.

And the whole point of the garden is that it's a sensory garden.

-Wow.

-Wow.

-It's kind of cool, isn't it?

-It's...

-It's... It is absolutely brilliant.

-You've just thought of everything.

You've just... There's nothing that

-you've not thought about, is there?

-It is out of this world.

And then, of course, there's this whole issue of the room

at the bottom, here. Got one more little surprise.

SHE GURGLES

LAUGHTER

And let's have a look inside, shall we? Come on.

HE INHALES SHARPLY

In you come.

Oh, my God!

Oh, wow!

Obviously, hydrotherapy pool.

Why do a hydrotherapy pool for one...

when you can all jump in with him?

-It's kind of cool. Let me show you. Look.

-Oh, wow.

Look at the jets.

Shall we just press the button and see what happens?

Wow!

There's a light show as well.

Connie, what do you think we might be doing this weekend?

-It's pretty cool, isn't it?

-It's just...

Can I get in it after school?

-Sure, you can.

-Yes, you can. And...

at the end of a stressful day, not only is it good for Isaac,

it's good for you. You can come down and de-stress down here.

It's just...

I'm just completely blown away by it.

Imagine all those jets, and the way it will work his muscles and

-everything.

-He's just going to get so much benefit.

Way, way beyond anything that you could even imagine,

dream of, wish for.

It feels like I'm back in a family house.

And that...we can all enjoy it.

How can you not enjoy this? How can you not?

I think that it's going to help us a lot

because Daddy doesn't have to worry about Mummy,

Mummy doesn't have to struggle,

and it'll just make Isaac really happy.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Everything that all you guys,

everyone of you has done for us is just...

it's just massive.

I just feel different already,

I just feel like a big weight's been lifted.

I've been living in that house for so long that I was feeling like

the walls were just closing in on me. I just feel like

we've all been given a new start.

We've just taken you all to our hearts, and we'll just...

we'll never forget what you've done.

It'll just change all of our lives.

We've got everything we need to fulfil Isaac's potential now,

thanks to you guys.

You've made this our home again.

The fact that people have just selflessly put themselves

through all that and put the effort in for us, for my family, just...

..there will never be enough thank-yous.

-Will there?

-No.

APPLAUSE

-Hope it makes a difference to you.

-Thank you.

I hope you all really enjoy it.

They say helping someone doesn't change the world,

but it makes a world of difference to that person,

and these trades and suppliers have absolutely proved that.

Rachael said that she was coming to the end of her tether,

and, despite her best efforts, the walls were closing in on her,

and Andy was worried for the future unity of the family,

but that's what this lot have done.

They've brought the family back together, as husband and wife,

as father and daughter, as brother and sisters,

and who knows what Isaac can now achieve?

You know, you can't help everybody, but everybody can help someone.