DIY SOS: The big build 🔨
Did you catch the recent episode of the BBC’s DIY SOS?
Southampton couple, Ahmed and Rifat, featured on the show after a rogue builder began work on an extension that was later deemed unsafe. The two parents are profoundly deaf and communicate with their three young children using British Sign Language.
The show’s producers contacted our Southampton Healthy Homes team for help with turning the family’s situation around. We’re pleased to have secured funding that contributed to the property’s new solar panels, heating system and glazing.
Southampton Healthy Homes, the city’s affordable warmth service, helps homeowners access vital energy upgrades that are otherwise unaffordable.
The service recognises that households with disabilities and health conditions have unique challenges when it comes to keeping their home at a comfortable temperature. In 2025/26, it facilitated more than 240 large energy efficiency installations across the city.
We wish Ahmed, Rifat and their family all the best in their healthy home!
Photo shows hundreds of contractors and volunteers gathered outside the family home as part of the DIY SOS reveal.
