The Big Build - Bidford on Avon DIY SOS

I was a very, very independent teenager.

I'd just always be doing something.

I wasn't the sort of person that would be just at home doing nothing.

But two years ago everything changed.

We never knew that Chloe's illness

was going to take this sort of turn for the worse.

And today, this 20-year-old's home is her prison.

It's like these four walls that I'm stuck in and I can't get out.

And I listen to everyone else in the other room,

like watching TV together.

It's very difficult.

This is a family in crisis.

Illness and uncertainty are in danger of tearing them apart.

It's that desperate that Chloe said,

"I think you should put me in a care home."

And that shatters my whole world.

We're here to stop that happening,

helped by hordes of local heroes.

It pulls on my heartstrings

and I just want to give something back to the community.

It's an epic task...

That'll be heavy.

..that won't be easy...

It's an on-site mistake, it happens.

..but it'll be worth every inch of effort.

As usual we have just nine days,

we've already found an army and we have him and we have him

and we have him and we have that.

And our designer this week is the inimitable Lawrence Llewelyn-Bowen.

-Hello. This is DIY SOS...

-No, I say that.

This is DIY SOS: The Big Build!

This is Bidford-on-Avon, Warwickshire,

home to 20-year-old Chloe who's doing her best to cope with

a chronic illness in the house she shares with her mum Susie,

stepdad Phil and stepbrother Josh.

When I have to explain my condition, first of all I say to people,

"Don't expect a quick answer, have you got a while?"

And then...I start explaining.

Despite health problems since childhood,

Chloe was well enough to enjoy much of her teenage life.

But, at 18, her condition suddenly worsened

and the impact was dramatic.

Until we found out what was wrong,

there was no way I could have left that hospital,

so it meant pretty much the whole year just there.

And that sort of thing gets very lonely.

After months of tests, doctors diagnosed a mastocytosis -

a rare genetic disorder that will require lifelong intervention.

So I have a problem with my mast cells

and they're a type of cell in your blood.

And they deal with all the allergic reactions.

They basically make me have allergic reaction symptoms

when I'm not allergic to something.

My throat closes, I get an ulcerated mouth,

my skin is constantly like blistering and bubbling.

Chloe needs constant access to oxygen,

and has to be fed through a tube in her chest.

As her condition also affects her heart,

she's prone to seizures that stop her breathing and every day,

her joints dislocate.

She's in excruciating pain all the time,

because of that, because of the pain receptors, they've actually...

her brain's pain receptors have shut down the use of her legs.

The illness has affected the whole family,

mum Susie has given up her job

managing the family's car repair business

to devote herself to being Chloe's round-the-clock carer.

We're getting about,

well, between two and four hours of sleep a night.

Chloe does rely on her mum a lot.

Chloe does feel guilty about it

because she feels that everybody's life revolves around her, um...

And the more frustration... Well, the more she thinks about it,

the more frustrated she gets with it.

And it's a vicious circle.

-Yeah.

-It is a vicious circle.

Luckily, Chloe also has 12-year-old stepbrother Josh to lend a hand.

Chloe's amazing, she puts up with a lot of pain.

I like to help her out cos she's a great sister.

Joshua is amazing, she's turned into my little big brother.

If I start having a seizure,

Josh will just run down the stairs as quick as he can to make sure that

there's nothing I can hurt myself on,

he's turned from a little boy into someone

that knows he's got responsibility and he likes that, I think,

cos he can be a part of helping.

But despite this close-knit family strength,

their house is making everyday life incredibly difficult.

Chloe's wheelchair is too wide to get into most of the rooms

so she's confined to the rear lounge,

a much happier space when she was younger.

I made a big papier-mache elephant in here, we've painted footballs,

made bunting, played The Game Of Life on the table.

And then it just all had to go.

For the last 18 months, this has been Chloe's...

-Everything room I call it.

-..everything room.

It's not my bedroom and I don't ever call it bedroom.

I just call it my cell,

because it's like these four walls that I'm stuck in

and I can't get out.

With no room for Chloe to call her own and isolated from everyone else,

this cramped home is physically forcing the family apart.

Chloe spoke to me a few weeks ago in the middle of the night

and she said, "I think you should put me in a care home..."

She said, "..because I've taken over your lives,

"I've taken over the house."

And as a mum, I couldn't find an answer.

I couldn't find an answer to keep us together as a family.

And that shatters my whole world.

If this young woman is to have the independence she so badly needs,

her home simply has to change.

I just... I just want some space to call my own.

And having my own bedroom that's not the lounge,

so my family have some space too.

I want space for them as well.

And that's where we come in.

Particularly upsetting that Chloe can't join us this morning.

-Yep.

-So what's happened over the weekend?

Chloe had a particularly bad seizure.

She was taken to hospital,

and then unfortunately on Friday morning she had a cardiac arrest.

But she's OK.

Is that something that happened before?

Not as bad as this.

So this is as bad as it's been?

Yep. What do you need... what do you need from this house?

-Just some...just some space. All we ask...

-Just some space.

-Yep.

If you were able to adapt the house

so that she was mobile around the house,

then it would bring the whole family together.

We're going to have to break your house to do it.

You put a smile on his face.

I think it's the break bit.

It's the breaking bit.

He'll enjoy that bit.

Morning, everybody.

I'd just like to say thank you ever so much for everybody.

It means an awful lot,

Chloe is really sorry she can't be here today.

Chloe is restricted to an electric wheelchair,

so she's just had to live in the front room.

And it's as Chloe put it, it's her cell.

There's not enough room in there for us all to go in,

and she can't get in with us

so we sort of shout through a wall so we're very segregated.

-Just need to be a family again.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Are we up for doing that? ALL:

-Yeah.

As usual, we have only nine days to get this gigantic job done,

let the orgy of destruction commence.

To give Chloe some independence,

we're building her a self-contained flat.

We're also going to open up the downstairs

so she can use the whole space when she wants.

And we're rewiring the entire house too.

Thankfully, for everyone's safety, Billy's not on his own.

He's got ten electricians to "lead".

To be honest, see, I'm Jurassic sparks, you're the young sparks.

We'll get it together and we'll do it.

Luckily, there's not much work to be done upstairs.

We're going to move these walls back here and make the hallway bigger.

We're changing the bathroom round.

We're rewiring up here.

We've ripped all the carpets out. Billy's got sparks everywhere.

We've got furniture up the stairs

and we're going to have to redecorate and carpet

and put a new bathroom in and dress all the rooms.

So, yeah, we're not doing much up here.

Yes. And of course we need to get stuck in straightaway

as there's no time to waste.

You can't just run into battle. Come up with a plan and stick to it.

That's what we're doing. I'm getting your pipes,

you're getting the ripping bar, we'll pull the ceilings down,

we'll expose the underside of the joists.

-Let Doug see the rabbit, see what's going on.

-Yeah. See.

Not sure how Chris and Jules speaking Devonian

will go down in these parts.

Anyway, to rip this place apart and rebuild it,

we're going to need a grand plan and for that we need a grand designer.

Here he comes. Here is he, in the middle of the build,

everyone's turning around, look, look, by limo, Lawrence.

By limo. You going with the vampire look again, are we?

Oh, we are, you know, keep the undesirables at bay.

Do you have a routine to go through before you get started?

I do, I need to be entirely lubricated

-so I can just slide straight through the side.

-Lovely, well, let's see.

Anybody want to volunteer to lubricate Lawrence?

'No volunteers and no wonder, Lawrence isn't completely human

'which is good because there's too much design work here

'for a mere mortal.'

What's the over-arching theme and what is their emotion...

-Cornwall. Cornwall.

-We're in the Midlands,

we're in the middle of the Midlands.

They have spent a lot of time in St Ives,

I think we should use colour and texture in a way

that will be modern and exciting.

Just because it has to be disability friendly,

it doesn't mean it has to look disability friendly.

Listen, this is really important to me,

my mother was severely disabled for most of my life.

I grew up with it. She was adamant that...

She used to say, "Stylish first, ramps second."

For a young person like Chloe, design is incredibly important.

Chloe wants to have a glamorous life.

You facilitate the life, I want to make it pretty,

that's the way it always works. That's why we're such a good team.

That's why we love you. You come in and you spangle up our ordinary.

And Lawrence has pulled out all of his spangles

to not only give Chloe a place of her own

but also to create a space for the family to be together.

First up, we need to widen the hall and doorways and make room

for an open-plan kitchen-diner that's fully accessible for Chloe.

The front room we're keeping the same,

but the major magic is happening in what was the back garden -

a massive extension will provide Chloe with independence

thanks to her own self-contained apartment,

complete with bedroom, wet room and sitting room.

Upstairs, the bathroom and spare room are getting a total revamp

and Josh's bedroom will become an urban chic chill-out zone.

Well, that's how Lawrence put it.

And we'll be turning Susie and Phil's bedroom

into a well deserved Cornish retreat

because, well, these guys have had a really tough few years.

So in effect we're totally transforming 99% of the house,

except the front room.

That is sacrosanct and must not be touched.

Hang on a sec, hang on. Did you not get the memo

-saying we're not going to do too much to that room?

-Yeah, we're not.

Well, I can see how little you've done to the room already.

We're not touching that wall.

We're just taking this wall out and we're moving that wall in.

And we had to take the ceiling down because the steel's to go in.

We'll put it all back, you won't know.

-Really?!

-Yeah. No.

-Yeah, cos this is her favourite room.

-Was!

So we're not touching it.

We were told that the blinds we're retaining as well

-so that's why we've left that piece of ceiling there, so.

-Right.

Memo got squished, so now just keeping the blinds in that room.

That's it, is it? That's all that's left basically.

Yeah, you see, communication has never really been our strong point.

At least out the back,

everyone's been working as one on the extension.

Look at it fly up.

And this time we are using structural insulated panels

or Sips for short.

They're like a board sandwich with a foam filling.

This is the shape of the building

which you can see they're already starting to put roof timbers on.

Extraordinary, isn't it, the speed that it goes up?

So that's incredible, that's two hours.

But it's not just the building materials

that are going to provide warmth here,

there's a lot of love from the local tradesmen helping out.

So you know the family anyway?

Yeah, I know Suse, I used to socialise with Suse back in the day.

I like to think, you know, someone would do it for me

if my daughter was in the same situation

so, like I say, I know Suse so it was a no-brainer.

-What do you get out of it?

-You get a sense of community,

you're helping someone who really needs something.

And with the level of graft on the site turned up to the max

we have somehow managed to take a house apart

and created an entirely new building in the garden.

Not bad for just one day's work, is it?

What have you built?

-It's huge.

-I know, it's massive, isn't it?

My God. It's what you wanted.

Now this little problem is

that we've got to get it roofed and ready for tomorrow night.

Get the whole thing watertight,

we have got to get the steels in tomorrow.

You think you've got problems, I can't find a particular shade

-of dusky pink I need for her bedroom curtains.

-Oh, my God.

That's a crisis.

Can someone call Ban Ki-moon at the UN and tell him what's going on,

see if we can get a task force together to help Lawrence?

Thank you.

You know, after 16 years,

this programme still never fails to amaze me.

All this in just seven hours.

And this isn't all of it. Come through this way.

Here's another part of the extension.

We aren't even in the original part of the house.

If you turn left, I'll go into what was Chloe's room,

you can go into what was the kitchen,

past the only remaining wall holding up the ceiling.

It's incredible. But even we have to go home

when it gets really, really late.

First thing next morning, we're back in

and it's reassuring to see that everyone's 100% focused

on the things that really matter on this build.

That's the key thing.

You're over-haired and you're just a bit scruffy.

I'm trying a new look. It's winter, I'm going into my winter plumage.

Yep, but it's scruffy, you look un-kept.

You should be smart, you're representing us all.

You don't want to walk around looking a bit trampy.

Well, I'm on a building site.

You know, I shave. I look respectable.

You haven't got any hair at all.

I mean, there's a distinct lack of hair all over.

-Are you sure this isn't jealousy?

-No, it's not jealousy.

-Really?

-Honestly, I've never, ever, ever

been bothered about being balding.

Never.

-Doesn't bother me.

-It's just that it does grow quite quickly.

And it, you know... But it looks good, though, doesn't it?

-Like a hobo!

-All right, no, I'll take it on board.

Thanks very much your input.

It's not nice, is it?

I've got feelings!

Well, if my new look's not impressing everyone,

this certainly will -

the start of Chloe's self-contained flat, complete with wet room.

One of the things I'm doing is I'm making a big fuss

of the central wet room space, as a kind of a feature, if you like.

So it's not a sort of a, "Oh, we've had to squeeze in a wet room!"

Actually, it becomes part of the architecture.

I'm changing colour on it, changing texture on it.

It's funny how something we all take for granted

can become such a problem.

Chloe's been unable to get to the upstairs bathroom

for the past two years,

so even a simple trip to the loo presents problems.

And having a shower involves a two hour round-trip to her gran's house,

which has a ground floor wet room.

The scenario is that Suse has to get her out of bed, dressed,

into her chair...

Here goes trouble.

..then into the car, round to Mum's house.

-You OK?

-Yeah.

Not having a bathroom is one of the hardest things.

It's, like, as a 20-year-old girl, you kind of just expect.

It's degrading in a sense.

It takes away that dignity.

It's a couple of hours' job, which it takes a lot,

a lot of effort for both Suse and Chloe.

And just the strain of a car journey can cause Chloe to collapse.

Chlo? Darling? Mummy's just going to take you back out to the car. OK?

We couldn't wash her today.

She's just had a small seizure.

Her brain says, "Thank you very much, but no thank you."

To protect her body, it sort of shuts down.

We're home, Chloe.

Chloe can't live in that room all of the time.

She can't do it. If she did have to go into a home,

it would tear the family apart.

My family are my absolute world.

I'll do anything for my family to keep them together...

..and to...

..make our family work...

..as a family.

Anything.

And so will we, Suse.

On site, there's been an arrival that's causing something a stir.

That'll be heavy.

What, you think so, Chris?

Really? You think so?

That's 89 kilos a metre.

-We'll need more men.

-If we just cut it in half, we can just...

..use half the amount of blokes.

-It's not going to work.

-No.

Cos it will...

Quite right, Chris. Now, this big steel is heading for the hole

that's at the bottom of the original house.

Well, I say that - it would be, if it wasn't too short.

The structural engineer has made the opening for 5.7.

5.7 opening.

And given the amount of people involved in a job of this size,

we can't be sure how the steel ended up too short.

He recalculated, said, yes, but the steel wasn't altered.

It's an on-site mistake. It happens, doesn't it?

-It's a bit of communication, really.

-Yeah, yeah, it happens.

Problem is, we've just got to get over it.

I told you - communication isn't really our thing.

Open that up. We'll get a foundation in,

-we'll build a column on there to take the steel.

-Do it.

It's a little bit of extra work, but it's got to be done.

Yeah, there must be a simpler solution.

What have we got on the end of that steel, leaving that there?

We've got a...

200 bearing.

Doesn't matter how many times you measure it, Chris,

it's not going to get any longer!

See, we were going to cut it back to here...

..because of the kitchen design.

The answer to the problem is leave that pier there,

and let them redesign the kitchen.

Do the job.

I'm paid for thinking.

Did he just say, "Redesign the kitchen"?

That means talking to you-know-who.

I've got to tell you something.

Have we... It's not... Are we doing the wrong house?

It feels like it. No, I'll tell you what we're doing.

We've got a slight problem with the steel.

The pier is about 700, which comes right through your kitchen.

You what? 700?

-Deep?

-Right out into the room.

No. No, no, but that's fine. That's work surface depth.

That's just exactly what I was going to do to it,

which was to take the original 300 and pack it out to be 700.

I love that man.

So, you know, what's your problem?

-Absolutely love him.

-Let's talk about the curtains.

This is why I love working with him,

cos you give him something like a massive problem like that,

and he just, like, in his head it's dealt with,

and he's rearranged the room.

Oh, I love that man.

Two, three!

It looks a lot better up there

than it did on the floor, doesn't it, lads?

A good feeling to get the steel in. You're getting somewhere then.

Every step you take, you're getting nearer the end.

Every brick that's laid, you're getting nearer the end.

Every shovelful of rubbish that's lifted,

getting near the end.

Every breath you take, I'll be watching you.

Mind you, this is not a dumb site.

Our tea lady's an off-duty lawyer,

so that's a barrister playing a barista.

Had some friends walking their children to school

who thought it was hilarious that I was this side of the bar,

so I've been ribbed a bit about that.

But I know that if the teas and coffees don't run on schedule,

then everything else goes to pot.

So that's when I thought, "I've got the DIY skills of a hamster,

"but I can make a mean cup of tea."

So she's a barrister being a barista.

Everyone here wants to give this family the space they need -

not least the next-door neighbours.

They just need to become a family again.

And this is what you're going to provide for them.

I mean, Chloe's been stuck, a prisoner.

And all of a sudden they can sit down at the dining room table

and have a meal together, and Chloe will be able to have a shower,

which has got to be the most important thing.

The whole plan is basically to have

-everything for Chloe on the ground floor.

-Yeah.

She had independence before - she was a normal 18-year-old

and did all the things you would expect somebody to do.

And all of a sudden she's confined to a wheelchair.

And that's just horrific.

I don't know how... I do not know how Susie's done it.

I really don't.

So we have to get this house rebuilt in just a short space of time,

and the only way to do that is to burn the midnight oil.

After a good late night, it's day three

and although the turn out of trade so far has been brilliant,

today something weird's happened.

We're very low on trades.

We started off with 20, we're now up to 23, which is good.

Another carpenter's just pulled up, so that's 24.

Excellent. So I need another...

probably 36.

Be handy.

You're not any good at plaster boarding or chipping, are you?

If only!

We need people to help out.

We need a big weekend, basically.

We need people to come and help us over the weekend.

We need the numbers up to even have half a hope of getting the walls,

doors and windows done on this behemoth of a building.

I'm sure the police will speak to her about this.

Hello, if you don't have any carpenters at all, do you?

OK, all right. I'll be back in a minute, they're just taking me

to a carpenter who lives around the corner.

That really happened.

That's how low on trades we are.

He jumped into the back of a car!

And whilst the lack of chippies is concerning,

Billy's swimming in sparks.

He seems to have started something of a cult.

I think he's every electrician's aspiration.

Whenever they come into the trade, he's the mascot.

But also he's the guy that we aspire to.

He's living our dream.

There isn't anyone else.

-He's your mascot?

-He is.

-That smile...

-That winning smile.

-Look at it - that's it.

-That teethy grin.

-This is costing me a fortune, this has.

So, Billy is...ambassador. Can you imagine?

-Saint Spark.

-Yeah, yeah.

Outside, the hunt for local tradesmen continues.

Don't think we'll find any down there, mate.

One, two, three.

FROG CROAKS

Turn around there, and then go back in there.

Yeah, there's two chippies in the van!

Keep at it, Mark, we'll get there in the end.

At least the back garden's coming on - sort of.

And Chloe's uncle Dave has big plans for it.

I'm Chloe's great uncle.

Thought I'd do as a bit of a surprise a piece of sculpture.

I always think of Chloe as our flower.

-Right.

-Cos she's never complained.

You'll never hear her complaining, or, you know,

being bitter about her condition.

Obviously, I've been in the little back room with Chloe with the bed,

taking most of the room up,

floor to ceiling in medicines and whatever.

So, yeah, it's a big transformation.

You seem very emotional about the transformation.

I'm emotional about it, yeah.

Yeah, as I say, just I know what the family have been through

and, as I say, we look at her as our flower, really.

So I'm doing a vertical steel...

Sorry, vertical timber pillar with a big steel flower on the top.

I was thinking maybe a 70 foot colossus version of myself

-in a sort of Nero-style Roman way.

-Yeah.

I've seen the drawing up in the office, actually.

-It does look like it.

-Does it?!

And there's some good news on the trade front.

All the boarders and plasterers have turned up in one hit.

I reckon there must be about 25, 30 of them.

Double chippy? Did you bring any fish with you?

Yeah, the locals want a really have stepped up to the plate -

and I'm not just talking about the chippies.

Everyone wants to pitch in.

No, that's wrong, because you haven't got the hair like that!

Have you lot never, ever read a fairy tale?

Do you know what these women are?

They are witches and those are possessed gingerbread people.

Really? And there was me thinking they were just kind-hearted bakers.

Thank you very much indeed.

I shall take great delight in eating bits off myself.

We've done you a little gingerbread man.

-Good, isn't it?

-I understand that you've got a biscuit, too.

-Yeah, I did, yeah.

-She said, "We've done yours, it looks dishevelled."

-Why is it ginger?

-Look at the direct sunlight on my hair.

-Look, it's actually... Can you see it's coppery?

-Do you know, though,

you are the king of the jungle.

That is the mightiest mane I have seen...

What, the big hair?

..on a human being, apart from Mufasa, the king.

I take that as a compliment coming from you,

possibly the most flamboyant head male on television.

And appearances aside, we're pushing on with this one.

The upstairs has got walls going on.

Nice!

And outside, Billy's fame's growing by the second.

Oh, and the extension's been made watertight,

thanks to the roofing material,

which has got Jules and Mark thinking there might be

another outlet and a chance to earn some money.

Feel that. I'd love a pair of pants made out of that.

-A full suit.

-Yeah.

-Full body suit.

-A full rubber suit.

Maybe a short pair of pants.

Yeah. Or like a vest and pants...

-In one.

-In one!

-In one.

-That'd be nice.

-That'd be good cos you could

cut it out, the one shape in front, and then glue them together.

-Yeah.

-Or staple them together.

Yeah. No, you'd glue them, you'd do this.

Rubber bond them.

That's a bit of rubber bonding there. Look at that.

I tell you what would be nice as well, if the weather's bad,

you could do a bit of knee... You could make some knee-high socks

out of it, in case there with puddles.

And a little rubber hat.

And a rubber hat. Yeah, that would be nice.

Yes, you were watching two builders talking about

having rubber suits made.

And round the front, all the praise has gone to Billy's head.

-EB has taken LB's taxi.

-Out.

Maybe I'm not. Maybe I'm not!

Can someone get me a damp cloth?

Seriously, look what he's done to my upholstery.

-Look.

-It's leather sausage.

Nice try, Bill.

Halfway through the build and there's still a lot to do.

We're struggling to get carpet fitters,

and there's a couple of hundred square metres

of driveway still to lay.

This is epic.

-All right.

-Good morning, Nicholas.

You look slightly different this morning.

Well, I took on board what you said about me looking my best,

not taking it seriously,

so I've had a bit of a haircut and tidied myself up a little bit

and wondered whether this would suffice as your representative

of the programme, cos I know you were very upset about it.

I think it's a vast improvement.

I think you could have went a little further.

All I can say is thank you

for taking a bit more care in your appearance.

I feel ready to face the day now.

Cos I felt slightly down on myself last week.

-I think you should have as well.

-Thanks.

'Jules really knows how to make a person feel special.'

But nowhere near as special as the tons of trades hard at work here

to give Chloe and her family the house they need to move forward.

It pulls on my heartstrings,

and I just want to give something back to the community.

I could do stuff, I'll help out,

I'll do anything that needs to be done, I'll get in there and do it.

Have you known Chloe for a long time?

-Yes, I went to primary school with her.

-Primary school?

The word on the street is that your partner is currently

-in labour.

-Yeah.

-And you're here...

-Yeah.

..knowing that your new-born might be popping out at this moment in time?

-Yeah.

-Mate, respect.

-Thank you.

Or brave. I don't know which it is.

I would say more stupidity, to be honest.

'Never mind that, just leave work and go be with the girl.

'Volunteers like George know just how hard life has been for Chloe,

'who's still in hospital. Her years of illness have had an impact

'on the whole family, including stepdad Phil.'

Was it frustrating that you couldn't get the house the way you wanted to?

I find it very humbling the fact that all these people have come

to help us on something that I wished

I'd have been able to do myself.

I just think it's fantastic that you live

in a community that actually cares that much.

It's going to be difficult to find enough thanks for all these people,

for what they've done.

It did feel like we were fighting, at some stages, a losing battle...

..just to get a 20-year-old girl what she needs.

Fair play to her, Susie...

she's banged on a lot of doors and hit a lot of brick walls,

really, trying to get what Chloe needs

and to try and slow Susie down is easier said than done.

Even when I say to her, "Come on, Suse,

"we've got to think about what did happen before."

She has been told by doctors and what have you

that she's got to slow herself down, but she doesn't.

And for a husband, it does scare me.

That's the thing, though, you fall in love with the whole package.

Yeah. Yeah.

Have you thought about what it's going to be like

once the house is done?

-All I hope for is independent living for Chloe.

-Yeah.

Which will make her life much easier,

which in turn will make Susie's life easier,

because obviously Susie being her primary carer -

bring Susie's stress levels down, I'll be happy as anything.

That's massive.

We're heading towards the final push

to try and get this build done in time.

Now, here's the good news.

Paint is going on upstairs in the bedrooms.

Here's the bad news.

The flooring suppliers have just dropped out.

Oh, my God.

And the electrics are at the second fix stage,

plus Chloe's apartment's almost ready to be decorated.

I'm a happy bunny, my boys have been in, look, plastering fairies.

This is Chloe's bedroom, so Chloe's bed is going to be here.

And guess who's putting the wall on the wet room -

George the plasterer, whose partner is still in labour.

How is your girlfriend?

She's all right. The closest they've got is 17 minutes apart.

I had hardly any sleep last night.

It's been the longest labour in the history of the world.

It'll take your mind off it.

I thought I'd come here and do a bit more spreading.

That's a plasterer for you.

That front room is almost like we've never touched it.

Almost. The kitchen-diner is getting a kitchen and a wood burner,

which is nice.

And Mark's fretting about more than just the flooring,

but then he worries about everything, he's a worrier.

Listen, Pete, I'm seriously worried about your driveway.

-I know.

-It's a massive driveway.

Now, there's only two days left,

but at least one of Mark's prayers has been answered.

We've finally got a floor.

It's very nice stuff. At such short notice,

you're kind of in the realms of "get what you're given", but...

You know how short the notice is?

Two and a half hours. That's genuine.

-It's two and a half hours.

-Can you come over for a hug?

-This isn't any old rubbish. It's good stuff.

-It's good stuff.

-It's very good stuff.

-The thing that has really sorted my day out

is just this influx of glamour.

I mean, the floor is nice, but you lot...

-None of us...

-Can we keep you?

Thank you.

It's people like that who make the magic happen here,

which means we can improve life for the whole family,

including Chloe's brother Josh.

I idolise my brother a bit.

He's a boy of few words, until he knows you.

Josh was very hands-on and he's very creative.

I want to help her out.

I did a garden outside the garage

so she can, like, look out the window

and have a look at it and stuff.

Josh loves getting his hands dirty,

so we thought this budding DIY-er might like to visit the site.

No peeping now.

You grab that and I'll come and sit with you.

We've been living in here, we've been eating in here.

-We've obviously taken the house completely apart.

-Yeah.

We've wrecked your room.

We're going to put it back together again,

but what would you like in... Anything you fancy seeing in there?

Like graffiti and stuff.

What did you say?

Banksy and stuff.

You're into all that street art?

-Yeah.

-I love it. Respect, big fella, respect.

I like your style.

'So this is how it works.

'A young lad who turns out to be the best little brother in the world

'says he likes street art, and immediately we get someone in

'to give him a bedroom in that very style.

'It's always going to be child's play for the Duke of Decoration.'

You were talking about how you...

your mum had disabilities when you were younger.

When you look at Josh trying to help out his older sister

and the first one whenever she needs her bed changing,

-do you see something of you in that?

-Oh, very much so.

I think in many ways his room

is probably one of the most important rooms in the house.

It's a way of giving him an environment which is his,

which he can control, he can take charge off.

Everything out there he can't control,

he can't control his sister's condition,

he can't control the way the rest of the family is, but actually,

when he shuts that door,

I want to feel that he can recharge his batteries

in a much more efficient, much more powerful way.

So it's all hands on deck to get Josh's room shipshape...

..turn the extension into a stylish self-contained flat for Chloe,

and make a garden out of a mud pit.

Oh, and fit a kitchen.

And lay what feels like the largest driveway in the Midlands,

and hang about 100 lights.

And we've only got one day to do it.

Off.

On.

Some people.

Off, on.

Plus, we still have to finish decorating the rest of the house,

and there's bad news again.

You have to be out and cleared and everything swept...

Absolutely everything...

..by six o'clock to give the floor layers a chance.

Because if they don't, we're screwed.

I'm worried about this one, honestly, I am worried by this.

Let's get it emptied.

There's a crazy amount still left to be done,

but there's no stopping these floor fitters.

# Why do flies suddenly appear

# Every time you are near? #

Look, he's dancing on our brand-new floor.

-They finished it overnight.

-Love it!

Plastering on our last day.

It's not a good sign, is it?

Yeah, but we'll get there. We'll get there.

A lot of love around the place.

He's doing a blinding job here.

That's a builder's joke, by the way.

What do you call this process?

Blinding the driveway with sand.

-See?

-What, have you told a joke to do with blinding?

-I said he's doing a blinding job.

-Oh, right.

And what I've done is I've taken what the process is called...

And turned it into a joke.

-..added it to a colloquialism...

-I see.

-..to create a moment.

Do you think it's funny?

This boy is never happier than when he's driving plant.

Full steam ahead.

But really, today belongs to only one, being...

Oh, blimey.

-Looming.

-Was I looming?

Did you feel the air get slightly colder?

I did.

If you look very carefully, there is no reflection of him in the window.

'Special forces are at work here. Well, they must be.

'Or we wouldn't stand a chance of getting this finished for tomorrow.'

This is the big day for you, isn't it?

This is when it becomes a kind of cushion apocalypse.

Yes. And it's a kind of day, really, where your vision

that we were talking at the beginning of the week,

that you have, this strange vision

that you can have that I don't have...

You're really bouncy this morning.

Well, it's the last day, I'm excited.

-I'm excited.

-You're going like this.

-Here we are, here is your vision,

it's been fed through our mincer where we've mangled your vision

with what we can achieve, what we can get hold of,

what we can afford to pay you for and what people have given us.

And now only you can mess it up.

Yes. Or symphonically turn it into great genius.

I'm on that knife edge this morning.

Yes, I think he's been on a knife edge his whole life, to be honest,

but he's staying the right side of madness at the moment.

Outside, there's still the entire extension to render

and what's left of the garden to landscape.

Luckily, the family's friends have rallied round,

including Phil's mechanic mate, Hugh.

Chloe lives at home but only in one room,

and they haven't really been together as a family.

-Is this going to do the job for them?

-Absolutely.

Through that new build,

Chloe will be living in there and she can come in,

into the main kitchen area there in a wheelchair.

It will be amazing. Absolutely amazing.

As we rebuild Chloe's family home, she's still very sick in hospital.

And we haven't been able to speak to her on camera.

Earlier in the week I went to catch-up with Susie

to find out how her daughter's doing.

Every big event that's happened, Chloe's missed out on.

She's got herself overexcited and everything else, and then...

There's a physical effect.

-..the physical effects.

-You've been through such a lot,

and it must be, as a mum,

massively taxing to see your baby go through all this.

Yes, it's heart-wrenching.

If I could take it all away from Chloe and I have it,

I would do anything for that.

I really would. For a split second when you wake up in the morning,

everything's fine.

And then your heart sinks because you realise it's the reality.

And it does hit you.

I couldn't answer Chloe's daily question - "Why me?

"What's going on with me, Mum?"

And I didn't have the answers.

I actually had a breakdown.

Do you think that's because you weren't accepting

that your best was your best?

Yeah.

And I became very low very quickly.

Very low. And I had to go into hospital.

You put so much pressure on yourself that you can't take it any more.

And it's true what they say, until you've reached rock bottom

and you can wake up one day and say, "Enough's enough."

What gave you the strength to be OK?

-Phil.

-Was it?

Yeah.

The fact he didn't leave,

he didn't stop telling me how much he loved me.

He just carried on.

He just carried on, giving me hugs every day.

And telling me that, you know...

..I was the best thing in his world and that I had to come home.

They needed me.

And just to genuinely feel that.

-You see, that's a proper love story.

-Yeah.

-Not all this rubbish you see on films.

-No.

With everything that's happened,

-do you feel lucky or unlucky in life?

-I feel very blessed.

I feel it's part of a journey, and you ask Chloe the same question,

and it's Chloe who has taught me that.

Have you thought about it, how life's going to be from now on?

It just means that Chloe can carry on living at home,

which in turn means that we can carry on being a family.

And, erm...

..our motto is family -

where life begins and love never ends.

And by you coming and doing that for us...

..we can be a family.

Well, there's no better reason to do what we do, is there?

Mind you, we've still got a lot to get done.

This is our final day.

There's not much daylight left.

And there's still close to 200 square metres of driveway to lay.

Time is most definitely not on our side.

Hang on. Is there supposed to be a gap in the splashback?

That's amazing.

But what's amazing is the fact that you didn't measure it.

-Who actually measured it?

-I don't know, but it wasn't you.

Yes, thank God.

What it's going to be, it's going to be one of those impromptu design

features that actually lift the scheme from the ordinaire,

the plebeian, the expected, into something actually borderline genius

because it's not quite right.

Go on. Go on, boy!

Hey! Go on.

Go on, LLB.

It's one of those imperfections that actually makes creativity

-what it is today.

-Go on, keep going.

You see, we are breaking him.

Right! Let's get them on the wall.

'Whilst we break him inside, Julian outside - part man, part machine -

'can't quite overcome the size of this driveway.'

You're a bit tense?

Too tense. I'm a wigwam and a teepee.

You see, not too tense to make a joke.

That's what I like about you, Jules,

even in times of extreme stress.

But you've had a day on the digger.

In fact, you've had two days. Three days on the digger.

Yeah, it's looking like I'm going to have a whole night on the digger.

We've got another 12-14 hours' work here ahead of us,

at the rate it's been going today.

I think it's going to suddenly accelerate.

'I'm lying, of course, but I want to encourage him.'

It's six o'clock in the evening now

and we are sailing pretty close to the wind with this one.

Truth of the matter is, we'll get as done as we can,

finish maybe two, three o'clock in the morning

and whatever state it's in then,

that's how we'll show it to the family.

I think people sometimes think we make this up, the jeopardy,

it's always this tight.

Well, maybe not quite as tight as it is this time.

And even though Chloe's still in hospital,

we're hoping she'll be well enough to return home

and see what all these volunteers have done.

But she's only coming home if she's well enough.

Nine days ago, chronically-ill Chloe was a virtual prisoner,

confined to just one room in the family home.

It's not my bedroom and I don't ever call it a bedroom.

I just call it my cell.

A 20-year-old woman in need of some independence.

I just want some space to call my own.

And having my own bedroom that's not the lounge

so my family have some space too,

I want space for them as well.

Chloe said, "I think you should put me in a care home..."

She said, "..because I've taken over your lives,

"I've taken over the house."

I couldn't find an answer to keep us together as a family.

This is literally the only way I have a chance at independence.

And to have it in sight, it's hard to believe.

So, hopefully, with the help of these West Midlands heroes,

we've done just that.

I'd like to think, you know, someone would do it for me if my daughter

was in the same situation, so.

Nine days of incredible graft.

And we've pulled off a blinder.

The access to the front has been improved,

with a wider door and hall,

so Chloe can enter and leave easily.

Inside, we've knocked down walls so she can also access the front room

we weren't meant to touch but kind of did.

And the narrow doors and small rooms have been transformed

into this stunning, spacious open-plan kitchen-diner

where all the family can get together.

But, most importantly, a massive new extension at the back of the house

means Chloe will no longer be captive in the room

she called her cell.

Instead, she'll have the space of her own she so badly needs.

This young woman now has a self-contained apartment

on the ground floor

that Laurence has decked out in her dream decor.

And she's finally got a bathroom,

so she doesn't have to make the exhausting journey to her nan's

just for a shower.

Plus, she's got an electric hoist to move herself around.

The garden is small, but perfectly formed,

with raised beds Chloe can reach,

plus her uncle's flower sculpture.

Upstairs looks totally different too.

As well as a new family bathroom,

Josh's bedroom has a new urban chic look.

I know he's going to love it.

I mean, what teenage kid wouldn't love it?

And Susie and Phil can now retreat to their own space,

for those rare moments they get to relax.

Chloe is still in hospital,

but what will they think of their almost unrecognisable home?

What you needed from us was to make a home

where you could all be together,

space you could enjoy as a family,

because the way the house was set out was keeping you apart.

I hope we've done that for you.

Open your eyes.

SUSIE GASPS

God.

-I just don't know what to say.

-Oh, my gosh.

Is it what you need?

-And then some.

-It's just amazing.

Oh, my goodness.

-The room that was Chloe's room, that was the prison room...

-Yeah.

..was just this bit here.

-Yeah.

-It's mind-boggling.

It really, really is.

-You're not saying much.

-No.

Speechless.

PHONE RINGS

Hi, darling.

We can't have Susie and Phil out of contact with Chloe,

so we're pausing just for a minute, just to make sure she's OK.

OK.

-How are we doing?

-Yeah.

She's had a really bad night, but we've tried to say to her, look,

-"You don't have to come today," but...

-She's determined.

..she's so determined.

-She's missed so much.

-Yeah.

So let's go en route. So, dining table, we wanted to make sure...

You said you wanted somewhere you could all eat together.

What we've done is we've made sure there's oxygen throughout down here.

That just means we can all just be together.

If she wants to stay in this part of the house with us,

she doesn't have to go back for oxygen.

That is amazing.

That is absolutely brilliant.

Oh, my God!

Oh, wow.

-This is Chloe.

-Oh, my goodness.

Oh, wow. Look, there's a hoist system and everything.

Oh, wow.

-Well, it's her own space, isn't it? And independence.

-Yeah.

It's as if she's come in and done it herself.

Yeah, yeah.

'Now, sadly, the whole time we've been here,

'Chloe has been in hospital.

'We've all been wishing her a swift recovery.

'And, of course, over the years,

'she's missed so many important family events.

'But we had to be sure that the doctors gave the all clear

'for her to come home before she could.

'And do you know what? They have.

'Chloe is coming home.'

-How are you this morning?

-Fantastic.

-Yes.

-Is that actually true or are you just saying that?

No, but I'm here, so it's fine.

OK, just so you know, you can't normally have a gravel driveway with

a wheelchair, but just underneath, there's this hexagon stuff.

-Oh, I see.

-So that's why it works.

-Ready to come see your house?

-Yeah.

-Come on.

-And I can get round?

-Yeah, cos we widened the door for you.

-And widened the hallway.

-Oh, gosh.

No way.

-Way.

-Way.

Oh, no!

-What do you think, Josh?

-I love it.

It's magic, isn't it?

Isn't it magic?

Got a table.

This was the room that you couldn't get into

and now...

-Oh, my gosh.

-..you can.

I can!

No way.

Oh, my gosh.

-Isn't it amazing?

-It's longer.

-Yeah.

-But we moved that wall on the left in a bit,

that's how you can get the room in the corridor,

-so you can get your wheelchair in.

-But it works.

Good quality reversing.

I'm a female driver.

You might want to open that door.

-Can you get to that door and open it?

-I can get to everything.

-Do you know what's in there?

-This one? Oh, wow.

-How cool is that?

-Do you know why we put it on this side?

-So then I can get to it.

-Yeah, you can put your own washing in then.

What did you do that for?

What we've tried to do is build your independence...

Yes, you've done a really good job.

-..which means you have to do your own washing sometimes.

-Yeah.

-I can live with that.

-That's on camera, Chloe.

One other thing you might notice in the corner?

Oxygen. That's good.

That will help a lot.

And it's piped through that door there...

..which leads into your tiny little cupboard space.

-You've got your own apartment, effectively.

-No way.

No way!

Well, just have a look.

Oh, my gosh. Oh, my gosh.

I can't speak. And I can never not speak!

No. Look at the walls.

That's what I wanted.

-And they did it!

-Amazing.

So, designed by Laurence for you, specifically for you.

-Nobody else has got that.

-Laurence designed my wallpaper?

-For you.

-He's awesome.

Right, don't go on about him. He's all right.

No, I won't, I won't, it's fine.

You don't have to work with him.

Is your bum clean, sitting on my chair?

Sorry.

-You know.

-Good point.

This is going to be a shoes-off kind of house.

-Let me show you a couple things. Your own front door.

-Yes.

Own access down the side of the house.

All your friends can come in and out of here as well.

If you hold this so that it looks like the corner of the room,

-see what I mean?

-Yeah, yeah, yeah.

-Then press the middle one.

-That one?

That one there.

Oh, my gosh.

That also opens those doors out into the garden.

-Medical area.

-Yeah, that's a good set-up.

-Oxygen.

-Oh, wow.

-Josh sometimes helps you with this?

Yeah, he gets all my stuff out and I time him to see how quick he is.

So your new work area then as well?

Oh, wow.

Hello, hoist track.

-Track takes you in there...

-Yeah.

-..wet room bathroom.

Yeah.

-And through into...

-Oh, my magic bedroom.

Oh, wow.

This is insane.

We're going to give you a bit of a view.

No way.

Oh, my gosh. Is that my uncle Dave's?

Is it? Oh, wow! Is it?

Yeah, it is. So, if you're going to be sat here in bed...

-I've got something to look at.

-..you've got something to look at.

It's just amazing.

-You know what's cool as well?

-What?

There's a chair for you to come crash in here with me.

Oh, I love you so much.

-So, um...

-Keep going.

-It's changed up here as well.

Oh, wow.

-This is your Cornish retreat.

-Yes, it is.

Can you feel the love and effort

that's gone into this from the community?

Our door will certainly be open to everybody.

I can actually take a deep breath, which is...

-First time in a long time?

-Yeah.

One less thing to fight for, love.

Who got you through?

My rock.

My Phil.

And I love him to pieces.

And Phil and Susie aren't the only ones with a new upstairs bedroom.

We can't forget Josh.

Oh, wow.

Oh, cool.

-What did you say that you're interested in?

-Graffiti and DJ-ing.

Graffiti and DJ-ing? Mate, you help your sister out,

and we're so, so proud of you, mate.

Come here.

Oh, wow.

Did you take on a bit of a job?

Little bit, yeah.

Nine days. It was a bit of a push.

-Did you have some good help?

-You know what,

you've got some amazing people around here. Just amazing people.

They're incredible.

Thank you.

Can you tell them I'm going to read my poem?

Chloe wants to read a poem to you, so all nice and quiet, please.

I tried to find the words but they just wouldn't do

To share our thanks with each and every one of you

Instead, I will try and keep it brief

By saying the love I feel is beyond belief

Our lives were turned upside down

We were left on a roller-coaster, often wearing a frown

This time in our lives is just hard to believe

But as an army of supporters, you provided help and relief

Our house is once again a home

And through old friends and new, it's clear we're never alone

Please take it from me that when times are troubled

Reach out for support as it's often doubled

So I'll say it again from the bottom of my heart

Thanks for giving us a brand-new start.

We can just be a family again.

Not talking to each other through walls.

And, er...

..to some people, that's a really small thing, but...

..to us it's been what we've lacked.

I cannot thank you enough.

From the bottom of my heart, thank you so, so much.

Thank you.

APPLAUSE

All right, Grandad?

Charlie.

-Thank you so much.

-You're very welcome.

All right, mate?

You know, it's very clear

that this family are incredibly close emotionally,

but they couldn't be physically close

just because of the layout of the house. It's incredible to think

that it can make that much of a difference.

What's happened is that their greater family,

the community around and this wonderful village,

has come together to make a difference,

to change the layout of the house, so they can be together,

like a proper family.

All the things we take for granted are there for them now.

Isn't that amazing?

Maybe you know somebody who needs your help.