Family give up creature comforts

Going green... the Davies family are to give up all their mod-cons

With more than 70 electrical appliances in their home and little time to recycle, the Davies family haven't exactly embraced the idea of going green.

So Tim and Gaynor and children Toby, 14, and Fern, 12, face a complete culture shock when they agree to leave their home comforts behind in Holywell, Flintshire, and head for an extreme green, eco friendly community in mid Wales.

The Davies swap their Holywell home for a yurt

How they get on can be seen in a six-part TV series, Changing Lives: Going Green which follows their educational, emotional and often entertaining journey as they experience a very different lifestyle.

Their new temporary home, in the grounds of the old Llanfyllin Workhouse, is the focal point of the Cain Valley green community.

And the first surprise awaiting the family is that they have to build their own residence from wood and canvas.

Luckily help is on hand from their neighbours who can show them how to assemble the one roomed yurt which will house all four of them for the 10 day experiment.

Gaynor finds cleaning her new loo quite an experience

And there's another surprise in store as the en-suite facilities aren't quite as they imagined!

With no money, toiletries, make-up or detergents the family have to live by the community's ethos. They will learn how to generate their own energy, recycle all materials and live off the land.

When faced with the question of climate change, Toby's attitude reflects that of the whole family.

"It's not going to happen any time soon and I'm going to be long gone before then. I can't make that much of a difference on my own."

Will their experience of living in a sustainable community change this attitude and will the family go green or just go home?

Changing Lives: Going Green is part of BBC Cymru Wales's Green Wales series of programmes on television, radio and online.

Changing Lives: Going Green

Mondays and Thursdays, BBC One Wales, 8.30pm