A home with a story worthy of the Famous Five 11 holiday cottages dot the property "Finding a home with a private beach in the South West of England is like finding a hen's tooth," says Stephen Richards, a director at Chesterton Humberts. In Wales there are a few, but here it's seriously special. The South West coastal path starts here, and at low tide you can walk through the fields, down to the boats in the harbour. It's a dramatic spot - even before you know about the Enid Blyton link. "When we discovered the estate was being sold as a business, we couldn't stop thinking about it," says Elizabeth, who was running a comms company in London at the time, but had a hotel background. I was 42 when we met, and we felt lucky when our daughter was born. We'd done the London career ladder - Jeremy had been working in finance for 20 years - and we thought, 'We've got one shot at being parents, let's spend our time as a family." " Two months after seeing Widmouth Farm it was theirs, and they spent the next two years renovating the five-bedroom house and its cottages, which still had gas lighting. They opened up the kitchen, repaired the neglected farmland and put in three orchards and an 11th cottage, as the others were renting so well. The Sansoms have enjoyed life at Widmouth Farm (Pic: Christopher Jones) Just as they hoped, Jessica, now 16, has grown up in an idyllic setting, with freedom she may never have had if they'd stayed in the city. True to the Famous Five stories, she has spent every summer with her four first cousins, exploring the coves, caves and beaches, picnicking, rock pooling, canoeing in the gentle waters and feeding the farm animals. Despite the demands of running the holiday lets, her parents have enjoyed the beautiful cliff walks, opportunities for sailing, and hosting gatherings on the farm. "It has become a whole-family adventure," Elizabeth says. When Jeremy's brothers and sisters come for huge gatherings at school holidays, the children go off to the beach, and the adults pitch in with the running of the business. We've been able to hand them the reins so we can have a break. Guests often book to stay at Widmouth Farm hoping to identify caves that featured in the Famous Five production - and it's easy to set visiting children's minds racing. Jeremy has become a storyteller, having been filled in over the years by local farmers and fishermen: legend has it that customs officers blew up one of the tunnels to catch tobacco smugglers in the 18th century, that there are gold deposits and jewellery buried around the coast, and even that the Sansoms" own house belonged to smugglers. "It's hard to know what's true and what's been accepted over time," Jeremy says, laughing. We hoped we'd find a secret tunnel from our house into the cliffs, but no luck. While they haven't found any buried treasure, the venture has provided them with a solid income. They have transformed their predecessor's seasonal letting - the "brochure" was a piece of cardboard with two photos stuck to it - to a year-round business; turnover has increased 400 per cent (in 2011 they made £84,000 profit), largely thanks to repeat visits. "We have families who have been coming here for five generations, and frequently have three generations of one family," Elizabeth says. The teenagers usually drift off for a few years in the middle but come back when they're older. With elderly parents who need support, Jeremy and Elizabeth need to downsize to be more flexible. There's potential for a buyer to convert outbuildings into further cottages or a games room, or to take the property in a new direction, developing the business for water sports or weddings. Or perhaps they wouldn't change a thing. "This is hard work but fun," Jeremy says. Your customers are at their most relaxed, and it's the setting for their children's first holiday memories. That has made us really happy. Widmouth Farm Cottages is for sale at £2.75 million (Chesterton Humberts, 01823 331234)