The Dawsons moved to the architect-designed house in Brampton 15 years ago when their second son, Harry, was just three months old and his brother James was two. The boys have since been joined by siblings Kate and Lucy, now 12 and 10 respectively.

“The location is great,” said Jo. “We’re close to Brampton and with good road access yet completely hidden. If you didn’t know where we were, you wouldn’t find us.

“It’s also very private and safe – we’ve had a young family growing up here and it’s very much a family home. We moved up from London and it was the amount of space that attracted us – it was a step up and bigger than we had before.”

The Dawsons relocated after Matt, a knee surgeon, landed a new job at Cumberland Infirmary. As a Geordie, he wanted to be within striking distance of St James’s Park football ground and Brampton is ideal for travel to both Newcastle and Carlisle.

Their house, The Stables, is on an elevated site and tucked away on a private lane off one of the town’s most prestigious addresses. It has lovely views and a south-facing garden which attracts the sun most of the day.

A spacious tree-lined drive with side lights leads to a parking area and double garage with light, power and water. The front garden is lawned and has a children’s play area with climbing frame and swings.

The back garden is landscaped over two tiers, with a patio area for al-fresco dining and small allotment. The paved area is an absolute sun trap, said Jo, and ideal for entertaining.

The house has a large entrance hall with split staircase, cloakroom and two cupboards. It gives access to the reception rooms. The sitting room is almost 21ft with good natural light and open views, French doors to the rear terrace and garden and a door to the garden room which in turn opens into the playroom.

The luxury kitchen has been upgraded recently and is split level with large island unit and breakfast bar and an extensive range of units. Steps lead down to a breakfast area with bay window. A utility room also has a range of units, a new boiler and door to the rear terrace.

The dining/living room is another spacious area with dual aspect and French doors, while one of the three en-suite bedrooms is found on the ground floor.

The split staircase leads to a generous gallery landing with lovely views and on to the remaining four double bedrooms. The large master bedroom has windows front and back and a dressing area with built-in wardrobes. It has en-suite facilities, as has the second bedroom which also has a dressing area.

Bedrooms three and four are good-sized rooms with built-in wardrobes and they share the bathroom which has a separate shower cubicle and whirlpool bath.

Outside, in addition to the delightful gardens, there is an insulated dog kennel and run – for the Dawsons’ black lab Walter – and a home office, which is an insulated timber shed with two windows, power and light. It is linked to the house alarm and has security lighting.

After 15 happy years in their home, Jo and Matt are moving to be closer to Carlisle. She said: “We’re getting to the stage where I seem to spend all my time in the car, going backwards and forwards taking the children to sporting activities.

“If it wasn’t for that, we wouldn’t be considering a move. This is a wonderful family home – one room flows into another and it just makes it such a lovely place.”

The Stables, Capon Tree Road, Brampton, is for sale at£495,000 from Hayward Tod, tel: 01228 810300.