Darwin Bunnings immortalised in Lego by kids on the spectrum

More than 4000 pieces, hundreds of hours and many life lessons have gone into creating a replica of a Top End store made out of Lego.

A team of budding builders has worked together to create the largest Lego Bunnings in the Southern Hemisphere.

And in the process a lot more has been bonded than just tiny plastic bricks.

Dawin’s own Brick Buds group, an initiative started during Covid, was given the challenge of making a store to scale, which involved planning, designing and building the site without a manual.

Group facilitator Sonya Kapser-Wotton said there were about 40 members of the group, including her two sons, with a mix of neurotypical and non-neurotypical students.

She said building Lego was an opportunity to “express ones self in non-judgemental and creative way, limited only by their imagination and fuelled by endless possibilities”.

Mackinley and Cameron Bacon, Isiah Giannikouri, Sebastian & Tobeas Kapser- Wotton have constructed a to scale replica of the Darwin Bunnings. Picture: Glenn Campbell

“Basically, my homeschooled boys wanted to develop friendships with similar interest-minded kids of their own age,” she said.

“Being on the Spectrum has its own challenges and after years of bullying, the boys wanted to be around others who wouldn't judge their emotional and behavioural quirks and could understand the sensory needs they experienced.

“Using Lego is a sensory experience and there are educational and developmental skills acquired along the way of having fun creating.”

On show at the Coconut Grove Bunnings store for Father’s Day weekend, the building is a complete replica down to the sausage sizzle out the front.

The structure has a mix of more than 4000 genuine and recycled pieces, with all parts operable.

Only six people worked on it, having spent 100 hours over three weeks building it for the display.

Ms Kapser-Wotton said parts were already in motion for the next project.

“Having created one of the largest brick Bunnings in Australia has given the boys such positive self-esteem and a drive to build large scale projects,” she said.

“The bricks haven’t even been packed away for this project and the next build is already underway — SuperMario Land for the Tropicon on October 1,” she said.