A CO Down family have had their home transformed and their quality of life improved by a team of volunteers from the popular renovation television series DIY SOS.
Presenter Nick Knowles and his squad of helpers spent nine days renovating the McCreight family home in Bangor.
Filming for the episode of DIY SOS: The Big Build took place in June 2019 - before Covid-19 - when the team worked with the family who have complex health conditions.
Living in a house that did not meet their needs meant the family of four were forced to spend much of their time apart.
Mum Mandy has Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, Postural orthostic tachycardia syndrome, fibromyalgia and gastroparesis.
Her health conditions meant she was confined to the bedroom most of time as she finds the stairs difficult to negotiate and cannot use her power chair within the house.
She tells the programme: "I am completely isolated in my bedroom from the rest of my family whilst dealing with my conditions".
Her husband Davy, who is her registered carer, juggles looking after his wife as well as being a full-time father to their children Ben and Kara, who also have health needs.
Mr McCreight also finds the stairs hard to manage, with a back injury, burning feet syndrome and problems with his knees.
The layout of the house needed to be reconfigured to suit the family's needs with appropriate bedrooms and a wet-room that has direct access for carers.
Doors were widened throughout, with a new lift installed to access the first floor, allowing the families wheelchairs to move freely throughout the home.
A redesigned kitchen also provided a space for the family to come together and work for Ben who is keen to learn catering, but needs one to one supervision.
The big build also involved reconfiguring and future proofing the entire house and providing access to the garden to bring independence and many health benefits to the family.
As well as the support and generosity from volunteers from the local community in Bangor, the build manager for the project was Mark Millar, who made a welcome return to his home-town.
"It was my proudest moment in 34 years to walk back in to my home-town and be surrounded by trades people from all across the province, working, laughing and sharing so much love together all for a family that none of us knew," he said.
DIY SOS: The Big Build is on BBC One on Monday at 9pm.
