Finally, John is moving in! George, the project architect, and Arthur, the landscape gardener, take us round the garden and explain how it's designed to increase biodiversity. Over the past few years John has been making his own furniture, from a burnt down shed, and from upcycling other bits and pieces he's found. He's excited, and nervous, to finally have his dad round for tea.

About this series

At 55, John found himself living in a shed in a yard full of engine parts. So when We Can Make asked him if he wanted to pioneer the first home of a revolutionary sustainable housing project, he jumped at the chance. Join John as he finds the land, designs his house, pushes it through planning permission and finally starts getting his hands dirty...

And if this sounds like something you'd be keen to do yourself, listen closely and get in touch, as We Can Make is only growing…

The Build is a No Bindings production for We Can Make. It is supported by Knowle West Media Centre, the Nationwide Foundation and the Audio Content Fund.

Produced by Eloise Stevens and Tatiana Powell. Executive produced by Steven Rajam. Presented by John Bennett.

John is getting on with building the cassettes for his own home. But due to lockdown and Brexit, the project budget is running tight, and We Can Make has to come up with some creative solutions. John tears up a wooden floor in a school that is being demolished, and lays it in his own home, together with Toni and his daughter Emily.

About this series

At 55, John found himself living in a shed in a yard full of engine parts. So when We Can Make asked him if he wanted to pioneer the first home of a revolutionary sustainable housing project, he jumped at the chance. Join John as he finds the land, designs his house, pushes it through planning permission and finally starts getting his hands dirty...

And if this sounds like something you'd be keen to do yourself, listen closely and get in touch, as We Can Make is only growing…

The Build is a No Bindings production for We Can Make. It is supported by Knowle West Media Centre, the Nationwide Foundation and the Audio Content Fund.

Produced by Eloise Stevens and Tatiana Powell. Executive produced by Steven Rajam. Presented by John Bennett.

‘It’s kind of like big lego,’ explains John. He goes to the We Can Make factory in Bristol, where he tries out various companies’ MMC, or Modern Methods of Construction. These are big cassettes made out of plywood, which can be assembled easily, and repurposed at the end of their lives. John is looking forward to the house, but his parents’ ill health is starting to really worry him…

About this series

At 55, John found himself living in a shed in a yard full of engine parts. So when We Can Make asked him if he wanted to pioneer the first home of a revolutionary sustainable housing project, he jumped at the chance. Join John as he finds the land, designs his house, pushes it through planning permission and finally starts getting his hands dirty...

And if this sounds like something you'd be keen to do yourself, listen closely and get in touch, as We Can Make is only growing…

The Build is a No Bindings production for We Can Make. It is supported by Knowle West Media Centre, the Nationwide Foundation and the Audio Content Fund.

Produced by Eloise Stevens and Tatiana Powell. Executive produced by Steven Rajam. Presented by John Bennett.

John has finally got planning permission for his house - hallelujah! He discusses the pitfalls and complications with Toni, who has been waiting just as long as he has for permission for her two-bedroom home. We also hear from Mike Rogers, from the Bristol City Council, who tells us why the process took so long.

About this series

At 55, John found himself living in a shed in a yard full of engine parts. So when We Can Make asked him if he wanted to pioneer the first home of a revolutionary sustainable housing project, he jumped at the chance. Join John as he finds the land, designs his house, pushes it through planning permission and finally starts getting his hands dirty...

And if this sounds like something you'd be keen to do yourself, listen closely and get in touch, as We Can Make is only growing…

The Build is a No Bindings production for We Can Make. It is supported by Knowle West Media Centre, the Nationwide Foundation and the Audio Content Fund.

Produced by Eloise Stevens and Tatiana Powell. Executive produced by Steven Rajam. Presented by John Bennett.

Before John could start designing his one-bedroom home, he needed to make sure the neighbours would be happy with it. Melissa tells us about the Design Code, a set of rules co-written with the community in order to get the homes through planning permission. He also chats to Sam, who is in the process of co-designing his own fully accessible home.

https://kwmc.org.uk/projects/wecanmake/

About this series

At 55, John found himself living in a shed in a yard full of engine parts. So when We Can Make asked him if he wanted to pioneer the first home of a revolutionary sustainable housing project, he jumped at the chance. Join John as he finds the land, designs his house, pushes it through planning permission and finally starts getting his hands dirty...

And if this sounds like something you'd be keen to do yourself, listen closely and get in touch, as We Can Make is only growing…

The Build is a No Bindings production for We Can Make. It is supported by Knowle West Media Centre, the Nationwide Foundation and the Audio Content Fund.

Produced by Eloise Stevens and Tatiana Powell. Executive produced by Steven Rajam. Presented by John Bennett.

John invites us into his shed. It’s cosy, but not exactly comfortable, and he's too embarrassed to invite his parents or grandkids round. He talks to Melissa from We Can Make, who explains how they’ve been finding plots of land for the housing project, and Bill, who’s letting him build in his back garden.

About this series

At 55, John found himself living in a shed in a yard full of engine parts. So when We Can Make asked him if he wanted to pioneer the first home of a revolutionary sustainable housing project, he jumped at the chance. Join John as he finds the land, designs his house, pushes it through planning permission and finally starts getting his hands dirty...

And if this sounds like something you'd be keen to do yourself, listen closely and get in touch, as We Can Make is only growing…

The Build is a No Bindings production for We Can Make. It is supported by Knowle West Media Centre, the Nationwide Foundation and the Audio Content Fund.

Produced by Eloise Stevens and Tatiana Powell. Executive produced by Steven Rajam. Presented by John Bennett.

At 55, John found himself living in a shed in a yard full of engine parts. So when We Can Make asked him if he wanted to pioneer the first home of a revolutionary sustainable housing project, he jumped at the chance. Join John as he finds the land, designs his house, pushes it through planning permission and finally starts getting his hands dirty...

And if this sounds like something you'd be keen to do yourself, listen closely and get in touch, as We Can Make is only growing…

The Build is a No Bindings production for We Can Make. It is supported by Knowle West Media Centre, the Nationwide Foundation and the Audio Content Fund.

Produced by Eloise Stevens and Tatiana Powell. Executive produced by Steven Rajam. Presented by John Bennett.

Knowle Westers sorting out their housing.

Recorded with a live audience in the prototype We Can Make House, in this episode, hosts Makala Cheung and John Bennett chat with Bristol builders, Aaron and Jordan from Modern World Builders, about the importance of negotiating and communicating with neighbours when it comes to building new homes.

Get stuck into this episode's game 'Find that number'. Get to know our guests. Discover the results of the show's (very technical) opinion polling system 'snog, marry, avoid' as it is used to review some radical projects and policies out there in the world that are making use of local construction resources.

Artist Gaby Bran wraps up the show with initial ideas for an artwork inspired by the show. The final illustration is available in The We Can Make Chat Show limited edition postcard packs here: https://www.nobindings.co.uk/shop/p/we-can-make-chat-show-riso-prints

About the series

The We Can Make Chat Show brings together people from the garden city neighbourhood of Knowle West in Bristol, UK, to chat about how they are sorting out their housing. Over four episodes, Knowle Westers explore how communities can get beyond the housing crisis. They share personal stories, uncover inspiring housing ideas from around the world, and think about what would work best for Knowle West.

Artists were invited to sit in on the recordings, and created poetic and visual responses to the discussions, captured in a unique collection of postcards that are available to purchase in shops and online.

The Chat Show is part of the wider We Can Make project, which is developing citizen-led approaches to creating affordable homes by working with the assets and knowhow of communities.

The We Can Make Chat Show is brought to you by We Can Make, No Bindings, Knowle West Media Centre and White Design, and, made possible with support from Bristol City Council, Arts Council England and the Nationwide Foundation.

www.wecanmake.org/

www.nobindings.co.uk/

www.kwmc.org.uk/

www.white-design.com/