Surrey Homes | SH40 | February 2018 | Wedding supplement inside

Above: The walls of the master bedroom are painted in Manor House Gray by Farrow & Ball. A king-sized bed by Sofa.com takes
pride of place next to a pretty lantern window
having two separate rooms. A fashionably worn leather sofa
and a piano take pride of place in this room. “We get lots
of morning sunshine in here, which is lovely, and there’s
lots of storage to hide toys.” Storage; another great feature
of older homes, that modern houses so often lack.
In case we’re in any doubt that this is a period property, a
magnificent cast iron fireplace with dark green tiles is the focal
point of the room. Every room in the house has a fireplace, of
varying size, with jewel-like tiles surrounding it in either dark
green, blue or red. “We did look into putting a wood-burner
in the snug, but it would have meant ripping out the fireplace
and I love the fireplaces,” says Caroline. It’s easy to see why.
Leaving behind the oak boards of the downstairs, we
proceed upstairs, on thick pile carpet. The stairwell and
landings are open and light, giving a feeling of spaciousness
that is soon realised, even on the top floor. This is no
poky attic area but home to the children’s bedrooms, a
laundry room as well as Caroline’s ‘home office’.
“I worked for a few months in a creative agency in
Tunbridge Wells, doing marketing, then I had the summer
off with the kids which was wonderful,” says Caroline. “Then,
at the end of October I started my own business – Twelve
Communications – specialising in digital marketing.” This
move, into a home office, has transformed their lives almost
as much as their move from London. “I work from home
which means that I can pick the kids up and watch their class
shows or help in class if needed,” she says. “We wanted a better
work-life balance. In London I was working full time, the
kids were in child care 7am until 6pm. They were long, long
days for everybody and we thought ‘What are we doing?!’ ”
The move suits Simon too. “Although Simon still commutes,
he gets to sit and read on the train. When he comes home,
the house is all sorted and I’ve done homework with the
kids. Everyone is so much happier and less stressed.”
Looking in on Caroline’s workspace emphasises the
benefits of home working. Her neat, mid-century-style
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