It’s been a labour of love to convert and modernise this ivy-clad Victorian family home in one of Bradford’s leafy suburbs. Paul and Cecile Simpson have taken several years to create the look and feel they wanted since they moved to Yorkshire from Hereford 11 years ago.

They took their time deciding on the right place this time after having moved home six times in five years before that. In five weekends, they looked round 42 houses in the region before finally deciding that Nab Wood was the place they wanted to be with their two toddlers.

Cecile said: “I came to Saltaire to view another house, only to be told that it had been sold, but another one had unexpectedly come back onto the market. It was obviously fate and I fell in love with it immediately.

“The location was perfect – countryside at the top of the road, not to mention a golf course and Northcliffe park and a fabulous mix of shops and restaurants a short walk down the hill in Saltaire, plus a great primary school just a five-minute walk away. “The ‘wow’ factor was the sheer size of the house and its great potential, with the incredible garden. This one had everything. Although it is semi-detached, it’s so big, it feels like a detached house and we’ve never heard the neighbours at all.

“We are set back off the road with a long driveway and have a secluded and private garden on three sides.”

The five-bedroom house needed a lot of work, but that was no problem for the Simpsons as they wanted to make it really special. It didn’t even have central heating or mains gas connected at the time. After replacing the tumbledown porch they introduced Victorian features which had been ripped out in the 1960s. “We replaced fireplaces and coving, removed panels from the doors and had them stripped and waxed. “We also had a doorway knocked through from the kitchen and a raised decking area created, so that the garden really formed part of the house. I think it was almost the best thing we ever did as we live out there in the summer, weather permitting.”

Unsure of the best way to make use of the potential of the house, Paul Batty, of the Design Works, was asked to do detailed floor plans of the house and come up with ideas.

Cecile said: “It had six bedrooms, but only one very small bathroom and the only other toilet was in an outside shed! Built-in wardrobes and a great en-suite were added to the master bedroom and an old attic room was converted into a guest bathroom and added storage cupboards. The family bathroom was enlarged and made much more luxurious with a claw foot bath and separate shower, replacing the old airing cupboard. “We also converted a store cupboard downstairs into a WC, so instead of one toilet we then had four.”

After a break over Christmas, they started back with a vengeance in January with work on the kitchen. “Although this was already a reasonable size, we wanted a big open-plan space as we do a fair amount of entertaining. I always hated it when guests were in the sitting room with drinks, whilst I missed the fun in the kitchen. I wanted a way to cook and socialise at the same time! “The old covered yard including coal room and outside WC was converted and extended and knocked through from the old kitchen, to create a kitchen/ dining/living area.

“We initially planned to repeat the roof lights in the kitchen section in the living area, but when we removed the ceiling, the roof beams were in the way. We decided to remove the central section and put in a full glass roof, so the whole room is flooded with light. “The room is so bright and open all year round, so in the summer we have the door always open to the decking and in the winter we are all cosy with the wood burning stove and you can look up and see the stars.

“At the front of the house the family room used to be a bit dark, so we knocked through from the kitchen area and put glass doors in. It makes the whole area light and bright.”

By the time the work was completed there was an entrance hall, cloakrooms, sitting room and extended dining kitchen on the ground floor, with several basement rooms on the lower level, three bedrooms, en-suite shower to the master, and family bathroom on the first floor and two further bedrooms and bathroom on the second floor.

“Our favourite room is the kitchen. We spend most of our time in here either as a family or entertaining and it’s perfect for parties. In summer we have the door open on to the decking and its great to eat al fresco and in the winter it’s the perfect place to curl up in front of the fire with a book and a glass of wine.

“We love the garden and spend a lot of time out there, especially on the decking.

“We’ve put in raised beds for our vegetables, which we’ve been doing successfully for about four years now, and there are numerous fruit trees in the garden including pears, plums, apples and blackberries.

“If we weren’t moving out of the area for work, we wouldn’t consider moving house because we’ll never find anything as great somewhere else.”

The property in Moorhead Lane, Moorhead, Nab Wood, Shipley, is on the market at £465,000, with Maxwells Residential, Saltaire. Tel: (01274) 592280.