‘We maxed our home's POTENTIAL'

Transforming an impractical, dated layout into a sociable family hub has given Lucy’s home a new lease of life

- CASSIE PRYCE

Searching for our long-term family home meant we embarked on our house hunt armed with a lengthy wish list of must-haves,’ says Lucy.

‘We looked for over a year, and eventually realised we had to compromise on the style of property we were after. When this detached 1970s house came on the market, it ticked so many of our boxes and I could instantly visualise knocking down walls to create exactly what we’d been looking for. The potential was just too good to pass up.

Starting the search

Both Damien and I were keen to put down family roots in Cheltenham, as we knew the area well and loved the mixture of town and countryside living it offers. There are lots of festivals and familyfriendly events throughout the year and having pretty Cotswolds villages on our doorstep was an added bonus. I originally had my heart set on the kind of Regency style property that Cheltenham is famed for, but we also wanted off-road parking and a garage, which limited our search somewhat. With house prices steadily rising, we had to speed up our search and compromise on the style of the house, which opened up a lot more options. This spacious four-bedroom property popped up at the right time and offered bags of potential; as a couple, we aren’t afraid of DIY or getting stuck into a project, so we jumped at the opportunity.

Time for change