Nineteen-year old Leon returns home to take care of his alcoholic mother and adjust to life as an adult after an adolescence spent in and out of foster care. Frustrated by his lack of an education and his bleak financial prospects, Leon finds solace in the boxing ring. He soon meets the rebellious and beautiful Twiggy, who is squatting in abandoned houses to escape her family’s unfeeling affluence. As rumblings of riots begin in the streets and police and protesters engulf his neighborhood, Leon must decide whether to join his friends and fight or seek a new life with Twiggy.

The Nest is a Cathy Come Home story for Generation Rent; a warning tale of how quickly social harmony can break down when people are pushed out to the sidelines. Janine is a single mother struggling to raise her children at odds with the local community. And her daughter Clemy is an angry teenager trying to assert her growing independence. This tense environment is exacerbated by the fact they are living illegally in a squatted house. After being evicted the family is forced to confront their growing sense of resentment and frustration at the world around them.