Pickering GP Tim Thornton and his wife, Noelle, who is a Marie Curie nurse, scooped the prestigious White Rose Award at a glittering ceremony held at Bridlington Spa – although they weren’t there to receive it themselves.

Noelle said: “We were on holiday in Cambodia at the time so our daughter Rachel, who is 17 and our head housekeeper Alice Thompson, went in our place.

“They were stunned when Noelle’s Cottages were announced as the winners, but we understand Rachel did extremely well when she accepted the award.”

It is the first time the couple has entered the White Rose Awards and the win now puts them in the running for national honours in the Enjoy England for Excellence Awards run by VisitBritain, the national tourism agency.

Tim and Noelle bought Middleton Hall near Picker-ing in 1996 and after improving the main house, decided it was time to sort out the rundown outbuildings in the grounds.

The former apple store was the first to be tackled.

Tim said: “We have five children and made it into a den for them but after a while realised they weren’t really using it, so we decided to convert it into guest accommodation for holidaymakers in May 2005.

“Our guests really enjoyed it and we enjoyed having them, so the next rundown outbuilding we converted was the coach house.”

Both Applestore Cottage and the Coach House have traditional “cottagey” furnishings but the couple’s third conversion which opened this year – the barn – has contemporary decor.

Noelle says she entered the White Rose Awards to have an outside appraisal of her cottages but never expected she would win best in class for the whole of Yorkshire. She said: “We started with the idea we would like to offer the sort of accommodation and holiday experience we look for ourselves. We wanted well-equipped cottages with all the facilities you would expect at home."

There is original art-work on the walls and each cottage has its own garden area in addition to the use of the paddock with trampoline.

Plans for next year include landscaping the paddock area with more fruiting and flowering trees to offer a butterfly-friendly area, building a living hut from willow trees, mainly for young people and creating a large landscaped area in front of the Barn so guests will have greater privacy and two gardens to choose from.

Tim said the success of Noelle’s Cottages in down to teamwork – builders, landscape gardeners, organisers, arrangers and cleaners led by housekeeper Alice Thompson, together with his children

He added: “We are a little stunned but delighted to have been awarded best in class and will strive to maintain the standard.”

Meanwhile winner of the Guest Accommodation of the Year Award was Low Penhowe, at Burythorpe, which was also a finalist in the Taste of Yorkshire Award and the Tourism Website of the Year.