From California to Cambridge – how this family found a new life in an old English home that merges tradition with laid-back West Coast style

Front view of a traditional brick townhouse with white-framed windows, pitched tile roof, and a wooden front door surrounded by creeping vines.

When Margo Moore’s husband David was offered a new role in tech in Cambridge, their family, comprising Eloise, 17, and Valerie, 15, Teddy a Golden Cavalier and Simba the cat, were all well established in their Californian home.

‘We had a vineyard, a pool and plenty of acreage, all in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. It really was a dream home,’ says Margo. While uprooting had never been in their immediate vision, the family had lived abroad before and enjoyed the challenges of expat life. ‘Dave and I thrive on adventure, so I’ve never felt the need to settle in one spot permanently,’ she adds.