Veteran Street DIY SOS

Last time we were in Manchester, we took on the challenge of a lifetime,

all to help veterans,

like triple amputee Lamin Menneh...

I was devastated, because I thought, "I'm gone."

..and John Borge, who daily deals with post-traumatic stress syndrome.

Nothing prepares you for seeing children just...

..being hit by an IED and stuff like that.

It's just... Nothing prepares you for it.

What ex-servicemen like these needed was a community to feel secure

and supported. So, we started to build one that could last, here.

This street in Manchester will soon become the biggest build DIY SOS

has ever taken on, because we're here to turn empty houses

into homes for veterans.

It was a truly epic build,

so important that it even received a royal seal of approval.

We've got the same name.

Tell them what our name is.

-Prince of Darkness.

-There you go.

But it tested us like never before.

OMG!

In fact, it almost beat us.

This is the first time, ever,

that we've gone over the allocated time for us, in the 16 years we've

been doing this.

But through sheer persistence, the plan succeeded in transforming

this old, unloved street into the first stage of a

vibrant veterans' village, bringing the street back to life,

creating new homes for John and his son, Noah,

and Lamin and his family.

-Wow!

-Oh, my goodness.

Since our last visit, veterans' charity Haig Housing

has renovated another 15 empty properties, leaving just one home.

So, we're back to finish the job and build the very last home

for disabled veteran Simon and his children.

I don't want my kids living like this. It's just...

It's heartbreaking.

It's going to have some special challenges.

You don't run cable to it, you run cable from it.

'Course, it's a dynamo, ain't it?

Oh, I know, I know now.

But we are all pumped up for this and it feels like we're back

amongst friends, because we're back in the Veterans' Street.

This is DIY SOS: The Big Build!

Simon Flores is a veteran and a single dad

to three lively children, Kobi, Lilly-Anne and Damaso.

Having separated from the kids' mother,

Simon has them four nights a week.

What we'll do now, we'll go home and have our tea,

but first things first, let's put these on the right feet.

-Mine's on the right feet.

-Yeah.

I'm on my feet, running around after them, you know.

Do you want it spiked? No.

Up and down the stairs, make sure they're fully dressed,

make sure they're fully fed.

They keep me busy all the time, which I love.

-Love you.

-CHILDREN:

-Love you!

SIMON GIGGLES

Apart from his kids, one of his biggest passions is cooking.

Come and have a taste for Daddy.

And this doting dad won't compromise on the food he feeds his family.

I just love cooking. It's a big part of my life.

I like to make sure the kids are eating proper home-cooked meals,

you know instead of frozen meals or frozen nuggets.

-Are you enjoying that?

-Yep.

It actually de-stresses me.

It's like I can forget all the troubles or any everyday problems

and I'm in my element in the kitchen.

I love it.

If being a single parent wasn't hard enough,

Simon has other challenges to contend with.

Who wants to take daddy's leg off?

-Me!

-Me!

-We'll have a look at it, see if it's sore.

OK, go on, then. They argue about who's taking my leg off.

They help out a lot.

-Oh!

-What?

Oh, look at that red.

-That's sore, ain't it?

-Aw! Yeah.

-Ow.

They understand that I get sore every now and then, it gets painful.

Aw, are you giving kisses?

SHE GIGGLES

Simon was injured on active duty in Iraq.

Having always dreamt of serving his country, he signed up, age 21,

but his dreams turned sour during his second tour

of the country in 2006.

The patrol was going fine, you know.

And as we were coming back, we were about 2K away from camp...

..and the next minute, explosion had happened.

LOUD EXPLOSION

You know, I thought this was it.

"They've got me. The swines have got me."

I felt a pain in my foot, which I thought was shrapnel or something.

You know?

As I went down to pull it out,

because I was going to pull that shrapnel right out

of my foot because it was...

the pain was excruciating.

As I went down...

..I was like...

"..hang on, where's my, where's my...?"

"I've got no foot."

I had my foot in my hand.

They literally blew my foot off.

Despite his devastating injury, Simon refused to let it

break his spirit.

After my second day in the field hospital, I was over it.

"It's happened.

"Deal with it now.

"It's not going to grow back.

"So, let's stop dwelling on the past, and move forward."

I love in the mirror and I see a man who's evolved from losing

half his leg,

to a man who's got three beautiful kids.

So, they do keep me sane,

even though they stress me out sometimes.

But they keep me firmly on the ground.

Home for Simon is this two-bed council house.

But the house really isn't helping this amputee,

as he's in almost constant pain with his leg injury.

When I'm cooking dinner or anything like that, you know, I get fatigued.

Say, like, ten minutes,

because I'm constantly on my foot and I'm putting pressure

and it just gets so tired.

The upstairs bathroom isn't designed to make everyday tasks,

like washing, easy, and with no downstairs bathroom,

it's a struggle to go to the toilet.

I would love to have a downstairs loo, you know.

It's going up them stairs.

I mean, they are quite steep, I think, and I do find it difficult,

you know, to walk up and down the stairs.

Pick them up, please and put them away now.

It's my pony!

With only two bedrooms, Simon has to share his bed

with two-year-old Damaso.

He just isn't getting enough rest, and the house work is getting

on top of him.

I don't want my kids living like this. It's just...

It's heart breaking.

But when the children are at their mum's,

Simon is left alone and isolated.

I have a handful of friends here.

But I can't speak to them like I can with veterans and ex-servicemen.

It would be so good just to get back into that community again.

His sister, Amanda, knows just how much it affects his morale.

I know he comes off as he's got so much confidence,

he's a bit of a likely lad.

But actually, he's just such a sensitive soul, and life,

when it's hit him, it's hit him hard, but he hides it so well.

This decorated war hero feels forgotten.

That one's from when daddy got hurt.

That belongs on there.

And he's struggling with Civvy Street.

-Do you want these?

-Why, do you want them?

-Yeah.

-Maybe when you're older.

Love you.

It's hard for somebody to admit that they need help.

But...

..there's that time and there's that point where you just say...

"..I need the help."

Yeah, I need the help.

So, we're going to move Simon and his kids into the last house

on Canada Street...

There we go.

..one year after we started the project.

So, this is going to be your house.

-It's big, isn't it?

-Do you like it?

-Yeah.

I mean, difficult to imagine, I know, as a house at the moment,

-but you're right, there's quite a bit of space.

-Yeah, there is.

It's just what, you know, the kids need, as well.

-And then through here is going to be the kitchen area.

-Kitchen area.

Yeah! Wow.

How will it be, being in an environment and a street

where you know that a lot of the other families living here

have similar experiences to you?

It'll be fantastic because, you know, where I live,

there's not many people I can talk to about

my past experiences and stuff, and not many people understand

what veterans or, you know, people like myself

have actually been through.

Well, there's an army of trades and volunteers here today

who do understand, and they're here to rebuild Simon's life.

APPLAUSE

-Morning everyone.

-Morning.

I just want to say, you know, all the people that are volunteering,

this means a lot to me.

It's... Wow.

It's...

Thank you. Erm...

Er...

-Has it kind of hit you a bit?

-Yeah, it has actually.

I didn't think it would.

You know, I'm just overwhelmed, you know,

the amount of volunteers that are here, it's brilliant.

As you look around, a lot of familiar faces,

a lot of people who came and helped us the first time around.

So, in ten days, you're going to walk back into

a fully finished house, and that means that, effectively,

that'll be the end of the mission we started out on.

-Are we up for this? ALL:

-Yeah!

There you go.

And, as ever, Manchester hasn't let us down.

What a great turnout we've got.

It's lovely to be back.

It's nice that we're going to be finishing it.

Are we happy, boys?

Shaun was here last year,

Sam was here last year, and Simon's coming up later and him and Sam

will run the job, and I'll just sit in the Winnebago,

you know what I mean.

It's really nice to see everybody back.

It's amazing the pull that the military have.

You know, they just come in here...

It's just lovely, lovely.

Lovely to see you again.

What's your vibe on this one? How are you feeling about this one?

Great, great. Lots of old faces, yeah. It's like...

..we're finishing the job.

We started together, we'll finish together.

But, unfortunately, one of our family members is missing today.

Poor old Chris has got a terrible migraine.

So, we've lost him for the day.

I hope it's only just today, because I need him back here, ASAP.

Yeah, too right. These boys don't mess around.

The internal walls should hopefully be up by the end of the day.

-First window in.

-See, we've only been here an hour

and we've already got the windows in, but there's lots to do,

and our designer, Gabby, has got big plans for this old house.

What specific things are you going to be piling into this house

for him and his family?

Well, the tricky thing about Simon is, despite the fact he's had

this horrific injury, is that he just wants to crack on.

You know, he's a proper soldier. He doesn't want complicated equipment.

He doesn't want anyone feeling sorry for him.

-So I've got to...

-Stairlift or...?

No, he doesn't want it. He does not want it, and it's actually bad,

I think, for his morale. He is really, really upset

at even the thought of it.

So what I've got to do is put lots of, kind of...

I suppose in military terms, like, covert ops assistance.

So I've got to put lots of things that are going to help him.

He can lean on things.

There's lots of spaces for him to sit down.

We just have to really think our way round it.

It's invisible, but it's there to help him.

Right, pay attention, you horrible lot! This is what we're up to.

Downstairs, the family lounge at the front will give

Simon and his kids space, but it could also act as

a breakaway sanctuary if Simon needs to rest.

In the kitchen, at the back,

a huge centre-piece table will help draw the family together.

They'll be able to bond over Dad's delicious home-cooked meals.

Importantly for Simon, we'll be installing a downstairs bathroom,

easily accessible through the large utility space

and specially-widened doors.

It's upstairs where the advantage of having a double width house

really shows. Three generous bedrooms means that Dad

will get his own room,

and the kids will have plenty of their own space

in which to play and grow into.

And the bathroom will be bespoke for Simon,

designed to support him in subtle ways

that means this proud ex-soldier retains his dignity.

Problem is, Gabby's big plans for the bathroom

are going to put a strain on the fabric of this old house.

So, my worry is - these walls are rubbish.

And they're really old and crumbly, and I'm trying to hang

a cantilevered bench off this.

Not just for fluffy design reasons, but because we need a dry zone,

then moving into the wet zone, so he can remove his foot,

scooch along the bench and then have a lovely shower and then come back.

This bench needs to take a lot of weight,

so these walls must be ply lined.

And the same throughout this house,

there are various sections that we have to have lined,

so they can take the strength of what's going to hang on them.

She's very good, isn't she?

Now, I've left Jules in charge of the garden,

which may have been a mistake.

You don't mind me saying? What the hell is going on?

I walked out of here with a perfectly flat garden...

and you've made holes all over it.

Well, what we've done - you know we like to do things properly.

-Yes.

-We didn't like the look of the drainage.

It was really old-fashioned, everything would've blocked

-and hung up in it.

-You reckon?

-And the thing is, now is the time

to do it, innit? You don't want to, like, set a patio

and then start having problems with the drains and have to rip it

all up, so we've replaced everything.

Taken the whole system out?

The whole system. So everything's...

Yeah, everything's going to be brand-new.

You quite like a bit of drainage, don't you?

Yeah, I don't mind a bit of drainage.

It's all about laying pipes, really.

-And over the years...

-Yeah.

-..you've laid a bit of pipe, haven't you?

-I have.

Well, he seems happy enough, I'm going back inside.

You know what that is up there? That's a Flanagan.

-I know, the Flanagans are back.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

-Let's go up.

I'll go up and say hello. Come on, I'll introduce you.

Mr Flanagan, thank you.

Mr Flanagan is actually a councillor, who worked with us

all the way through the last one. From the council's point of view,

last year, fantastic job of everybody joining in.

Is it something that's ongoing?

Has it changed how people think about things?

It sure has. I mean, the vets that have come into the area

have engaged with the community and we've had them involved in

various events, but the community around them as well,

it's really lifted them.

As you can see, the street, it wasn't just the vets' house

that you did, you did the whole street, and from what was

a very rundown street, there's a real energy now.

Take an image of what you first came to and what you did.

Amazing, amazing job.

Being back on the street to finish it off is proof

that the real legacy is the birth of a special community.

And it's one that's helped veteran and PTSD sufferer Mark,

who has moved onto the street.

One of the best things is, even if you're having a really bad week,

it's easy for other people to identify that much more

than in, say, a normal community, where you haven't got...

a high percentage of veterans,

all kind of suffering from similar conditions, and types of disorders.

So, if I'm kind of in the house,

and people will notice that much more easily here,

that I'm not being as kind of sociable as I normally have

and they'll kind of make more of an effort to dig me out

and cheer me up. And it's the same with people, like John

and other guys on the street. If I notice they're struggling,

I'll be able to identify that really easily and help them out.

It's all a part of that bigger community picture, really.

It's great.

It's clear the street is working, and someone who knows just

how much Simon and the kids will flourish here

is his older sister, Amanda.

You can never quite understand what these guys have been through,

and having residents that he'll befriend

and being part of a community.

I've heard the residents here are just so close knit.

I think it's exactly what he needs,

because he needs support around him, a social support,

you know, that he hasn't got right now.

-So, it's perfect.

-When you talk to him about it, he's like...

-He does his cheeky chappy thing, doesn't he?

-Yeah, yeah.

He's like, "Ah, no, everything's all right, everything's all right, everything's all right."

But you can see actually underneath, everything's not all right...

-No.

-..and he's fluffing over it.

-A lot of bravado.

-Yeah.

-He's struggled to find a way to deal with

everything that he needs to deal with, that most of us do in life,

whilst feeling very disabled.

-It's a challenge for him, isn't it?

-Of course it is.

You know, nobody ever sets out to be a single parent

and that's really effectively what he is.

It really is a challenge.

I think having three kids is a challenge for anyone.

I don't have three of them at any one time!

I can handle them quite well,

-but he's amazing with them, with those kids.

-Is he?

Yeah. Oh, God, yeah.

How he does it, I do not know.

With one leg, no idea.

The patience of a saint.

-Do you think he can grow in place like this?

-Absolutely, yeah.

Having that community spirit and having what will feel

like an extended family, it'll just give him that support that he needs.

So, this build is all about building a home that works for Simon,

with neat and subtle touches that will help him.

Trouble is, Gabby's still adding extra bits and pieces to her design,

which isn't good for Mark, but hilarious for us.

Can I open that fireplace up?

Yeah. Yeah. So you're putting a fire in there as well?

-Yeah.

-Oh, yeah, that's nice.

So I'm putting a fire that you don't know about in there.

In a hole that he doesn't know about.

In a hole that you don't know about, and I'm panelling the room.

And I'm doing brick slips in there on the wall.

Brick slips on what?

On two walls in the kitchen.

You're putting brick slips in the kitchen?

He's about to go.

He's about to go!

I told him to be nice, but he's about to go.

NICK LAUGHS

How is anyone going to clean brick slips?

Really? How is anybody going to clean brick slips?

We knew it couldn't last.

You can't put brick slips on a wall in the kitchen, can you?!

What's so funny?

Are you mad? Are you absolutely mad?

She's not putting brick slips on anything in the kitchen,

-she just wanted to see how far she could push it.

-I am, I am.

-You can't really put brick slips in.

-I am. It'll be fine.

Well, there's in point in arguing with Gabby

when she's got an idea in her head, but, to be fair, she has put a lot

of thought into the kitchen.

This massive space will become the heart of the house.

It's where Simon will be able to cook,

and we know how important that is to him in his mental health,

as well as his physical health, and feeding the kids.

As you can see, we're making progress downstairs

and upstairs, too.

All the partitions are happening, so we're starting to see

separate rooms. This is the bedroom, this is another bedroom.

Another bedroom over here, and then finally,

the big family bathroom in this area.

All the electrics are in, the plumbing's starting to go in.

It's been a pretty good day and there's a great vibe on site.

In fact, there's a great vibe on the street.

There's my mate, Lamin.

These three are Lamy's kids.

And there's more over there. Hello!

-How are you doing?

-Fine, fine.

-Nice to see you.

-Nice to see you, too!

How's your house?

-Fine.

-Do you like it?

-Love it!

-Your bedroom still good?

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

Isn't that lovely? Kids hanging out of the windows, chatting,

kids playing in the street, family looking out the window.

It's just how it should be.

Love it, love it.

It's day two of the build.

Morning.

And look who's back.

Morning. Are you all right, chaps?

Here we are, look.

The last one.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Return of the Chris!

Yes, he's back, and not a moment too soon.

Billy and his boys have been going like, well, billyo.

This is now finished up here.

We can give it to the plasterers,

and we can now go downstairs and concentrate on the kitchen area.

Well done, Bill, I think he deserves a little treat.

Bill, Bill, Bill, wait, wait, I have some news for you.

What sport do you love most in the world?

-Well, football.

-Yeah, thanks.

Why was that such a long time to say...?

Because sometimes you get disillusioned with the way

some of the players react and act, but football is my passion.

But you live for the big games, don't you?

-The massive games.

-There's actually quite a big game on in Manchester,

-isn't there, today?

-I know.

-I've actually managed to get two tickets.

You.. Is he having me on?

"Two tickets will be left on City home reception

"at the Etihad Stadium for collection at 4.30pm by Billy.

"Thanks for doing what you're doing in our community."

INDISTINCT

It's amazing.

Oh, Bill!

To see it live, one of the top games you're going to see in the football.

-You know...

-You've gone and welled up, haven't you?

Yeah, cos you don't get chances like that, do you?

Two tickets. Two!

-Two tickets!

-Who can I take?

Well, you could take like one of your best friends.

Yeah, cos they've go the time to get up from Welwyn Garden City,

-haven't they?

-Or you could choose somebody that's

really close to you, maybe...

Chris likes football now, because since he's been working with us...

Chris has got to work late tonight. It's a plastering day,

he's doing a lot of prep around here, so Chris can't make it,

your mates can't make it from Welwyn. Who could you possibly...?

-Jules, Jules.

-Jules doesn't even like football!

Who else might you be able to ask?!

I'll have to ask one of my sparks.

Man City aren't the only generous people around here, of course.

These plumbers have not only given up their time,

but they've paid for the materials out of their own pockets.

Aren't people magnificent?

So, are you ex-forces yourself?

-I am.

-You are.

-Yeah.

Is that why you really wanted to get involved and go the extra mile?

Well, to be honest, being ex-forces doesn't really come into it.

It's just about giving something back a little bit.

When a situation comes along or you're given the opportunity for you

to do something, using your skills, to help somebody,

that clearly that has helped us,

we're all over that and make sure it happens for him.

Brilliant. Brilliant.

I'm really chuffed. Thank you, lads, I really appreciate it.

We'll get out of your way and let you get along with doing it.

Thank you. Amazing, lads, eh?

And elsewhere, the commitment to the cause is evident in the garden.

Now, we don't have Chelsea gold medal designer Adam Frost

this time round, we've got Gabs.

Less green finger, more gold finger.

The main thing is that she keeps it simple.

Yeah, well we've got loads to fit in here.

Simon wants to be a personal trainer.

-OK. Good.

-And so we're going to put some amazing outdoor gym equipment,

that we've tailored specifically to his needs, and also

will be really fun for the kids.

I think Manchester's the ideal place to have outdoor gym equipment.

It's not known for its weather at all.

Darling, it'll be fine, he's a soldier.

So we're trying to build an environment in which it will

be difficult for him to train because he's a soldier?

There's an army saying, my love, "skin is waterproof", it'll be fine.

-Is that right?

-Yeah. And then we're going to plant loads of fruit,

loads of veg, cos Simon's also really keen on healthy eating.

He loves cooking for his kids. He really prides himself.

-OK. That's very lovely.

-Yeah.

So, we're keeping some high-end design loveliness...

-Of course.

-..in amongst what is actually a fruit and veg garden

with a gym in it.

You just ruin everything, don't you?

-Here's your mate from last year.

-Paul.

-Paul, come over.

Paul, come here.

If I bring you over here and she talks to you,

-do you promise not to get emotional?

-I won't cry, no, not this time.

-Are you sure?

-Are you going to cry, you look a bit serious?

-I might cry.

-I'm just tired.

-So, how is it to be back then?

Finishing off a street, knowing that there'll be 17 families

in it now, that didn't have homes before?

It's great. It is.

-It means a lot.

-Has it changed things for you?

Has it changed your life being involved in this?

-If I could do it every day now, I would do.

-Would you?

-I would.

I find this better than putting my hand in my pocket

-and putting some money in a jar, if you know what I mean.

-Yeah.

Because you see the result of what you've done.

And nowhere is that more keenly felt than with our first two residents,

Lamin and John.

When we first met triple amputee Lamin,

he was struggling to be a father to his five children and just wanted to

be able to get upstairs and read his kids a bedtime story.

I can give them what they want. I can be there for them.

And PTSD sufferer John, that experienced such severe flashbacks

that he was barely able to leave his house.

It's just like living in, like, a constant fear of being haunted

by the things that you've seen and done.

A year on and the difference in these two men

is nothing short of incredible.

Nice to see you two boys in here together.

And, of course, from the moment that you became neighbours,

-you also became buddies.

-Yeah.

So, as a project, we were hoping it was going to work,

but it was your lives that were experimented with.

-We're the guinea pigs.

-Kind of, yeah.

Has it worked for you guy, individually?

In 12 months there's been a massive improvement in me, definitely.

You can see it.

You know, the man that I met 12 months ago when we first came up

to do the project was a different man altogether.

I think the best thing for me was before I didn't have

no social network whatsoever or no friends

cos I wasn't from this area, really.

Since that build, I've become really good friends with a lot of the volunteers

that worked on the project and I've build an awesome social network.

Going back over a few moments from last year as well,

one of the things that a lot of people talked about was Lamin.

When I talked to you about the difficulties you were in,

you were very strong and in control

and yet when you finally walked down the road and saw the house...

LAMIN LAUGHS AND SOBS

..that was like a massive emotional release for you.

What was it that you saw that suddenly made you emotional, do you think?

When I was walking along, there were so many people

putting some effort just to make this happen.

As a human being, it was overwhelming,

so much so that I can't contain it.

-So it was about the fact that people care.

-Yeah, people care.

It's just so overwhelming the amount of people that are here

to actually support this.

At the time I was thinking that nobody cared about you at all.

And, again, I felt so alone and isolated,

but then to see everybody there coming together

was just unbelievable.

It's so important to show our veterans that people do care

and everyone on site is pushing hard

to get this final house completed in time.

It's like theatre.

They're all working in unison, lovely.

Well, it's not Shakespeare, but they are shaking a leg,

and it's starting to look like a front room.

I'm hoping, right - don't told me to it -

that all the plastering will be done by tomorrow evening.

The house, finished.

That's where I want to be.

Hallway, hallway all skimmed out up here.

Look, whoosh.

Beautiful.

And in here all plastered out, ready for tiling now.

We can clean this out.

We've got the shower tray in.

Hold on, we have got the shower tray in.

And it's not the only shower.

The weather's taken a turn for the worst.

Well, it is Manchester.

Still, this hasn't stopped a very special little visitor coming

to check up on your progress.

It's Noah. Hasn't he grown?

Hello, young man.

What do you think to this back garden then, do you like it?

-Yeah.

-It'll be nice when it's finished.

You're going to have some new neighbours, aren't you?

-Yeah.

-Yeah. Another young family moving in?

Yeah. You need a hat for bricks doesn't fall on you.

Oh, I should have a hat on.

Yeah, I should have a hat on,

but lucky I'm outside and there's no scaffolding above me.

-Yeah.

-THEY LAUGH

Looks like we've got ourselves a little health and safety expert there.

-Well, Noah, it's lovely to meet you again. I'll say goodbye.

-Bye.

Bye-bye. Lovely to meet you.

-See you tomorrow, John.

-Yeah, see you later.

All right, I'm going to go and plaster these walls up.

-Yeah, no worries.

-See ya.

Yeah, let's get you out of the rain.

So it's a nice hot bath and a mug of cocoa for Noah,

several hours of plastering for Chris,

and for me, it's a night at the footie.

Yeah, Billy finally saw sense and invited me!

Morning. Morning.

Morning. Morning. Morning!

Oh, he's like a little cockerel.

I said cockerel.

Bacon sandwiches all round and the vibe is good on site.

The enthusiasm that was generated last time inspired some, like Paul Matson,

who wanted to do his own version of the project in Hull.

-Nice to have you all here and...

-Yeah, of course.

..you were with us a year ago,

and it made such a profound difference on you,

-that you decided to try and make a difference where you live, so tell us about that?

-Yeah, yeah.

Well, basically I went back to Hull, having done what we'd done here,

and realised that lots of veterans are in need.

Cos I really didn't know that lots of veterans was in need.

I fell down a little bit when I went out of the army,

and then came here, seen what we was doing here,

then went back to Hull and seen some derelict houses and thought - why not?

Paul enlisted the help of some mates,

and together they renovated a number of houses for veterans.

But having now become a registered charity,

along with the local council,

they've got big plans to create brand-new homes

on this patch of land for veterans and their families.

The people of the city of Hull were straight on board.

We got 16,000 people on our Facebook group within a week, which was phenomenal.

And then as soon as that happened, we started talking to the council,

the council straight away backed us.

It was...

I went with a big argument, I wanted a big fight and we never got one,

we just got backed straight away which was absolutely fantastic.

So the city of Hull, the people of Hull, we can't go wrong.

Brilliant. And it's that amazing commitment to the cause

that's driving this build onwards.

This is really exciting -

the kitchen's going in.

I know you think - why is that exciting?

I'm telling you, it's exciting

cos I know we've only got four days to go when the kitchen goes in.

Yeah, I think you need to get out more, Mark.

And whilst Gabby's design is being realised on site,

she's gone off to commission some bespoke ceramics,

enlisting the help of Simon's kids. Kobi, Lilly-Anne, and Damaso.

They are, after all, designers in the making,

and they love their dad.

It's going to be a Batmanbile.

-A Batmanbile!

-Yes.

If your daddy was going to be a superhero,

what kind of superhero would he be?

He'll be Superman.

Yeah, I think he's superman.

Because he's nice and he's kind.

That's a pretty good reason.

And is it cos he's brave and strong?

Yeah. I love my daddy.

What do you think your new house is going to be like?

Are you excited about moving house?

Yeah.

And it's the best house.

Would it be nice for you to have a bit more room to play at home?

-Yeah.

-And do you think...

Do you have any place to play where you're living at the moment, Kobi?

-No.

-So you can't play outside?

No, because when Dad's foot is hurting,

when I'm at my new house,

then I can get to play out every day.

That would be really cool, wouldn't it?

Isn't it interesting what kids think is important in the new home?

Back on Canada Street, the gym equipment for Super Dad has arrived.

It is state-of-the-art stuff, although a little bit hi-tech.

-What's that?

-Hand bike.

-It's a hand bike.

-It's outdoor gym equipment.

-Right.

With a motor and a generator in it which will actually provide power,

so you can run some lighting from it,

or you can just plug your phone in and charge your phone while you're exercising,

so you're not wasting your not wasting the energy.

-Nice!

-You're putting your own energy to good use.

Blimey, what's Billy going to make of this?

I happen to notice there's an electrical cable in there.

It's amazing. It's the first time we've ever put one of these in, isn't it?

Apparently they stick them in parks and stuff

so that people can come up and plug their phone in

and sit just there pedalling on the thing.

If your phone runs out whilst you're out, you can go and plug it in and pedal it.

But if they put them in parks,

I mean, that must be such a long cable run.

It must be, mustn't it?

They're not on battery, are they?

So, if you put one in a park and we've got to run cable to it, it's got to be a massive cable run.

You don't run cable to it. You run cable from it.

-When you...

-Of course it's a dynamo, innit?

Oh, it's like them old push bikes we used to...

Oh, I know, I know now.

LAUGHTER

And welcome back.

It's nice of you to catch up finally,

after we've been talking about this all week.

You don't run cable to it, you run cable from it, Bill.

Which then generates electricity for what?

Low-voltage lights or anything.

You could charge your phone up on it, couldn't you?

Oh, I tell you, it's so funny.

He just keeps you laughing all day, doesn't he? You know that.

-How does this work, then?

-LAUGHTER

Did you hear that in the background there - "How does this work, then?"

18 years this.

18 years!

You see this, this is the downstairs loo.

No more traipsing up and down the stairs for Simon.

It's rather nice in here.

Everywhere else is cluttered with loads and loads of stuff

and yous have got a lovely peaceful little room to be on.

-And is this the last one, is it?

-Last one, yeah.

-All done now.

So all the plastering will be done today?

-All done.

-Thank you very much, gents.

-Thank you.

-You've done a cracking job.

And the good work continues upstairs, too.

So here we are in the fabulous bathroom.

Amazing cantilevered bench is in,

and Ollie and the guys are tiling around it.

And luckily I've chosen some really small tiles for a lot of wall.

So, Ollie, are you OK down there?

Yeah, yeah it's all good.

There's just so much stuff, just in this one room.

I could be freaking out just about finishing this one room alone,

but we've got many more rooms to do.

And many more to freak out in.

Well, Gabby we did try to warn you,

but you did want your own way and it usually works out in the end.

Your brick slips are going on in the kitchen, by the way.

I still don't think they're a good idea,

but there you go what can we... Oh, no, what's going on there? That doesn't look good!

Spud, seriously, what's happening?

There's been a bit of a mess up.

HE LAUGHS

What's happened here is the opening is bang on

and there's only about 2 or 3ml play in the frame.

So what we've got to do is we've got to put one side of the frame in so we can swing it round.

To be able to swing it round like that, you've to cut that wall back, really, really tight.

It means we've got to do a load of plastering to sort it out tomorrow

and tomorrow's supposed to be the last day of the build.

Spud, we'll let you tell Chris about the replastering job.

Right. We're at this end.

Just one minute, boys.

Take the bottom in a bit.

How many builders does it take to fit a bifold door?

-It's in!

-CHEERING

Obviously that many.

Come on, let's go for the pint.

We could all do with pint but everyone on site wants to stay and get the job done.

So, we've still got quite a lot to do and it is dark,

but we have lights, we have a good attitude

and we have 24 hours to get this finished.

I think we're going to do all right on this one.

It's the last day of the build and I'm waltzing in,

literally waltzing in.

Ha-ha!

Oh, look at the state of that. Chris doesn't look happy.

-Morning.

-What's going on?

-I think everyone is ahead.

We are ahead at the moment.

The garden's ahead of the schedule that we usually are.

Downstairs is ahead. Decorator's been in.

I think by this afternoon people will be moving furniture.

Gabs' cantilevered bench is getting its stone top.

That looks lovely, doesn't it?

And with toilets being installed both upstairs and downstairs,

life should be a lot easier for Simon in this house,

especially in the kitchen, where he spends most of his time

and we're putting in some pretty special things.

So these guys are actually putting in what we're calling a rising hob,

which is an interesting thing, so that you can sit down and cook,

for people, obviously, with wheelchairs,

but people, obviously, like Simon, who has a leg injury.

It's sore for him to stand up for any length of time

and if he spends a lot of time cooking, which he likes to do, sitting will be better.

So we have a rising hob,

which is going to go up and down on these things here.

They're fairly complicated.

They're great when they work,

and we're hoping that that will be the case by the end of today.

-Yes, no?

-Definitely.

Great, a positive mental attitude.

So at this point I need to ask you what exactly are you up to?

Well, we're testing it, aren't we, Richard?

Have you built this off site?

Yeah, we've been in Leeds, building this one.

And what do you make of the whole project?

I think it's amazing, what they've done, what we've all done.

My grandad served way back in the Royal Engineers,

and I think he'd be really proud of what's going on now, so...

I think he'd be really proud you for the work you're doing as well.

He passed in August, so just gone now

and I think if he was still here now and could see at all, he'd love it.

I think he'd be very proud of you.

-Beautiful work, by the way.

-Thank you.

-And thank you very much, I really appreciate it, thank you.

-Yeah, no problem.

By giving Simon a bedroom to himself,

he should be able to get a decent night's sleep,

possibly for the first time in years.

Not much to ask for an injured hero.

-Did you like soldiering?

-I loved it. Yeah, I did.

You get to make new mates from different parts of the UK

and just have a real good bond.

How difficult is it, then, to find yourself removed from all that

and back in Civvy Street and trying to find a place?

It is hard.

You know, I've said before, you know, not many...

No civvy understands what we've been through, what we've seen.

For us, you know, to come out of a job where we're working 24/7,

to come out of all that and try and get your head around it,

you know, it really is hard.

You know, I'd always have to keep myself busy, because...

it would be like a constant just...

You'd just end up being lazy and that's not a British soldier.

British soldiers ain't lazy.

So what does the future hold? What are you going to do with yourself?

I do want to have a career in personal fitness

and help other people with physical disabilities.

So if we could set up something like, I don't know,

to help you with your physical training, that would be handy.

Yeah, I'd like to...

You know, cos I don't see many people with physical disabilities in gyms these days, you know.

And that's something that's missing,

because, you know, just because they've got a physical disability

doesn't mean that they can't do it.

Exactly right. I mean, we've seen that from the Paralympics, haven't we?

So instead of sitting down, you know, come and find me,

and I'd be more than happy to help you train, yeah.

I might be a bit strict about it, but at least it gets it done.

You're going to beast people, aren't you?

-THEY LAUGH

-Yeah.

You seem to be jolly, easy-going about things and not much of one for feeling sorry for yourself.

No, not really. Well, I do, but I keep it all to myself.

But when we walked out of the house the other day and met all the guys waiting to get started on the house,

-that was actually very emotional for you.

-It just caught me, you know.

-Why?

Because it's people taking time out of their normal day lives

to earn money for themselves for their families,

and helping somebody they've never known, never known before,

and, you know, they're helping them build a home.

You know, and to me, that's just...

If the world had more people like them,

I think it would be a better place.

-What's the most important thing in your world?

-My kids.

I'd do anything for them, you know, I make sure they get the best.

They give me a reason to wake up of a morning.

They give me a smile when I go to bed,

especially when I've got Damaso beside me all the time.

You know, they...

They make my life complete.

Well, let's hope that we can actually give you a house which will make it that little bit easier

to go forward and develop those relationships,

-because that's what you're doing, isn't it?

-Yeah.

-You're making memories for the kids now.

-Yeah, it's all about the kids.

Back on site it's all hands on deck as we get the house finished

and ready to hand over to Simon and his kids tomorrow morning.

I tell you what, look how bright that is!

-The lights are on...

-Look what he's done.

..but no-one's home.

I've tightened it up cos it was too easy for me.

I'm absolutely knackered.

I'm not surprised, you've been working with Billy all week.

Simon Flores joined the Army at 21

because he wanted to make a difference.

But during a tour of Iraq, a roadside bomb took away his foot.

I had my foot in my hand.

They literally blew my foot off.

But Simon is not a man to be afraid of what would get most of us down.

He rebuilt his life and became Dad to three gorgeous kids.

-Who wants to take daddy's leg off?

-Me.

-Me.

Yeah, we'll have a look at it, see if it's sore.

OK, go on, then.

But he's found working difficult because of his devastating injury.

Oh, look at that red.

-Aww.

-It's sore, isn't it?

And the house he shared with his children was small,

un-homely and difficult for him to use as an amputee.

I do find it difficult, you know, to walk up and down the stairs.

I would love to have a downstairs loo.

Thanks to our amazing volunteers, we've turned this empty shell

into a family home fit for a hero.

The living room has been transformed.

What was bricks and mortar is now a warm, inviting escape for Simon,

somewhere he can relax after looking after the kids all day.

It was hard to imagine what the kitchen would look like ten days ago,

but now it's a cooks' paradise for Dad.

He'll love the hob that goes up and down

to take the weight off his feet.

And, yes, Gabs was right, even the brick slips on the wall look great.

Before the garden was a blank canvas,

but now it's a multi-zone area for rest and play,

and somewhere that Simon can work out and start a new career.

Upstairs, the boys get to share a room perfect for little explorers.

Lilly-Anne's room is a starlit haven away from the chaos of the boys.

And Dad finally gets a room of his own,

complete with a beautiful bespoke four-poster bed.

And simple design features in the bathroom

mean that finally Simon can bathe as easily as anyone else.

Ready?

Open your eyes.

Whoa.

Wow.

Whoa.

This is... Look at it, it's beautiful.

It's all about family time. This is the area, the relaxing area, the family place.

Wow, it's brilliant. Wow, thank you.

Oh, man. Look at it!

This is just... This is amazing.

Come through and have a look around.

This is your new family living room.

Oh.

Storage, plenty of places to sit,

nice big chair for you to take the weight off.

And actually as we go around the house,

you'll see a lot more of this - somewhere to take the weight off.

-The other really important thing, though, for you is cooking, isn't it?

-Yeah.

SIMON LAUGHS

Wow!

It's like... Wow! This is... Yes, man!

This is brilliant!

-Copper-top table.

-Oh.

Captain's chair at the end and it's got wheels on it,

so if you're cooking and you want to stand that's fine,

but I know with your leg and the prosthetic,

-every now and then it gets too much.

-Yeah.

What you can do is go over there... Come here, you're going to love this. Come over here.

So what you do is you take...

-..the cooker down.

-Look at that!

But if you want to do it standing...

..you take the cooker up.

-No way!

-Yeah.

-That is ama...

Wow, I've never seen anything like that before!

So, basically, when you get tired of standing up,

you can actually do your cooking sitting down.

This is more than what I expected.

This is... Oh, again, come here.

This is amazing!

It's absolutely brilliant.

It is kind of beautiful, isn't it?

This is the type of home I've always wanted,

and for yous to do this for me is...

You know, you've made my dream come true.

And I can't wait to see the kids again, we're going to love this.

Thank you very much.

Oh, mate, it's not me, it's the huge number of people

who've turned up from all over the country

to do this and build the whole road,

and you're the last piece in the jigsaw as far as they're concerned,

to actually make this community come together.

But that only works if your family works.

So you just needed a space where you can make that happen,

where you're not climbing all over each other.

So that's what the guys here wanted to give you,

they didn't do it for a thank you, they did it so you could

start to go back in the direction you needed to go.

-Yeah.

-Build that family time.

We're going to be... We'll be a happier family now.

We've got all this to enjoy together and, um...

There's another room over there, I'll just show you that.

Let's go, let's go and have a look at the rooms.

Downstairs loo, really important.

Yes, when I take my leg off sometimes and it's...

You know, having to put it on and go up the stairs,

you know, a downstairs loo is essential.

Yeah.

You've only seen half of it, do you want to have a look upstairs?

-Wow!

-SIMON LAUGHS

This is brilliant.

I wanted a room like this when I was growing up.

Wow.

I might actually come and stay in this room instead of the kids.

They can go into mine.

Well, wait till you've seen yours before you make that decision.

-I can't wait.

-Happy with it?

I can't wait to see their faces, they're going to love it so much.

So that's the boys done. Who else do we need to look after?

Lilly-Anne.

Right, let's go and have a look, come on.

This is Lilly's room.

-Oh, my God!

-SIMON LAUGHS

Oh, wow!

Bless, she's going to love it!

Oh, look at the bed.

-Yeah.

-It's all tucked away.

Oh, may I?

Yeah.

You don't have to keep asking me permission

to sit down on places, it's yours.

It's just force of habit, force.

Oh, she's going to absolutely love this.

Come here, thank you very much.

Wow. She's going to... As long...

It's mainly for the kids, you know?

I want to see them happy

and be able to come and bring their friends to stay over, sleepovers.

Even though it will kill me having sleepovers -

that many children -

they can finally have a home to be proud of,

to say, "Come to mine, come and have dinner at mine."

And that's all I want,

for my children to be happy and to enjoy their home.

But it's not just about the children.

Your room.

SIMON LAUGHS

Oh, wow.

This is beautiful, Nick, this is really beautiful.

Still want to swap with the boys?

No. They can have their room now.

SIMON LAUGHS

The idea of the four-poster is not just because it's a four-poster,

it means that when you come in the room,

should you not have the leg or whatever,

or when you take the leg off,

you've got something to hold on to, so you sit down.

And the same thing in the morning, when you get up in the morning,

you can actually swing yourself round

and you've got something to hold on to, to get yourself up.

Tried to think of everything every way around

to make sure that you've got seating opportunities everywhere.

The plan is that whenever you feel that you need to,

without having to make a big deal of it - "I'm sorry, kids, I can't do this,

"I can't go in there, just leave me, I'll stay here."

There's always something there for a bit of aid.

Always somewhere where you can sit down and take the weight off.

And nowhere more than in the bathroom,

with Gabby's cantilevered bench.

-This is a little bit important, isn't it?

-This is cool. I like this.

I like this. And look at the size of the bathtub.

When you actually bath the kids,

what we've done is we've brought a bench in,

so that you can pull a bench over and you can sit with them

-so you're not having to stand.

-Oh, yes.

You can sit with them comfortably, not having to stand on that leg,

that painful leg all the time,

difficult for you to sit down on the floor with it.

But you can actually come here and sit next to them and be with them,

put this next to the bath.

The other thing important for us was for you, for when you shower,

-cos, of course, when you shower, you actually have to take the prosthetic off.

-Yeah.

-And then you're on a slippery surface...

-Yeah, that's right.

-..on the one foot.

What you do is - go and sit over in the corner.

So you sit down, take the prosthetic leg off.

-And slide along.

-Slide yourself along.

Stand if you want to, shower, you've got somewhere to sit,

slide yourself back over, dry in the dry area...

-This is...

-..leg back on.

Nick, this is amazing.

-The handles there as well.

-Yeah.

-In case.

That's right, handle to help you there.

And push away.

-The towel rail is actually a grab handle as well.

-OK.

It's made solid so you can stand up and get there.

And the same, you've got one over by the bath

so that if you're leaning over with the kids

and you start to feel unbalanced you can go for that one as well.

They've all been built solidly into the wall so they won't come off,

you can use them as handrails.

When I use the shower, it made me feel...

..incapable.

You know, and so just to have this, you know,

I can still feel capable and just getting in the shower,

and even not that far from the bath either.

But it's in the garden where we've given Simon the tools

to push his capabilities even further.

Wow!

You realised you said that a lot when you walked into rooms.

-NICK LAUGHS

-Because I'm...

I'm...

..breath taken.

Cos I remember what this looked like.

-When you came out here and met the builders.

-Yeah.

-SIMON LAUGHS

-This is amazing!

Absolutely amazing.

-Plainly fitness was the key.

-Yeah.

We wanted a garden where you could be active, the kids could be active.

Sorry to interrupt, what's that?

Ah, very good point. Do you want to go and have a look? Have a wander over there.

Oh, right!

I know, it's like a cycling machine but with your arms.

Very good. Sit yourself down.

-Didn't, um...

-See how many watts you can power up.

I'm in a blazer here.

OK.

-Oh, no way!

-SIMON LAUGHS

That's so cool.

Oh, wow, that's brilliant!

Monkey bars on the other side there, basically you can run fitness classes here.

-Yeah, I can, from home.

-Mm.

I'm literally... I am literally lost for words now.

Look what yous have done to this place.

You've made it a home, made a home for me and my children.

Right. Shall we show the family?

Let's do that, let's see their faces.

Open.

KOBI GASPS

My bed!

-What did you do with my bed?

-Which one's yours?

-Which one do you want?

-I think I want...

-KOBI GASPS

-My new car!

That's brilliant. What do you think of your room?

-Choo-choo!

-I like all that and I like Dam's bed.

-Like it, Dam-Dam?

-Yeah!

-This is your room!

-SHE LAUGHS

SIMON LAUGHS

-And that frilly dress.

-Frilly, yes. A tutu.

Look at where your bed is.

-Do you like it?

-Yeah!

Want to lie in it? Jump in it!

-Isn't that cool?

-Yeah!

Come here, give me a cuddle.

-Thanks, Dad!

-It wasn't me.

We've got to thank the people later.

-Yeah!

-Yeah.

-Ready?

-He's gone.

-Go.

-Go, go, go.

-Look at him.

-Look at him!

-Go, go, go!

-Kick!

-Wow.

One hand.

Go.

What do you reckon?

I can't, I can't describe how happy I am.

I'm actually almost tearful, I've got a big lump in my throat.

It's a great fresh start for him, a great new life.

I think the children are going to be so happy here as well,

and there's so many great kids on the street,

I think it's just wow.

-You know what we're going to do now?

-What?

We're going to thank the people

for making this house possible for us, for us to live in,

and then I'm going to let you run wild on them

and give them big hugs and kisses and say thank you, yeah?

-Yeah!

-Cool. Let's go then.

-Let's go. Come on.

CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Look at all these people.

I'd like to say, you know, on behalf of me and my children,

you've turned this house into a dream house for me and my kids.

I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Yous don't know me and I don't know you.

For yous to volunteer and do all this

for me and my children is amazing.

Um, I never...

I never thought that there was that many people out there

who was willing to do stuff

for people like myself and other veterans.

Thank you very much. I love you.

APPLAUSE

-Thank you.

-Thank you.

Thank you, Dave. Thank you!

OK, John, a year ago you were walking out the front of your house

and talking to people in the same way,

and as you were stood here, I saw you getting emotional.

Is it cos it was bringing back memories,

-or you knew what he was going to do or...?

-Yeah, I just, oh...

I'm proper struggling.

But, no, it's just like...

Knowing everything that Simon's going through today,

I felt really, really happy for him.

It helped change my life around

and now it's going to change his life around.

He can build this community.

-Is it working, the street?

-Yeah, yeah, definitely.

My door is open for you any time, kids,

you want to go and mess around, just bring them to us.

I'll send them your way as soon as I can.

LAUGHTER

Last year the people that were here, you know that it was hard,

it was really, really tough what we took on last year,

but everybody that I've spoken to this week

is telling us that it's working, and not only that,

but it's actually branching out across the country.

Help For Heroes are helping here, they're doing amazing things

and we know that other parts of the country are doing it

and other parts of the country are looking at it.

And by coming in and joining in, not only have you built the homes in the street,

you've built awareness for people around the country,

so they have a better idea of what's going on.

You've done that yourselves. It's actually all of you that have made that happen.

This week, rather than it being a tough build like it very often is,

this week has felt like a celebration, hasn't it?

It's felt like people, friends, coming back together and really having an amazing time.

We're really, really proud to work with you, so thank you very much.

This is Lilly, this is Damaso, and this is Kobi.

Hello, you all right, sweethearts?

Our veterans don't want charity, what they want an opportunity.

A year ago, we set out on a project to build not just homes,

not even a whole street, it was actually to build a community,

and it's here and it's working, and how do I know it is?

Because I see people with two cups of teas, going knocking on the door,

having a brew in the street, seeing the kids riding around on bicycles, kicking a football around.

This is how it was 100 years ago.

These people did that.

You know, I've said it before and I'll say it again.

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

Isn't it fantastic?