We had a fabulous day at Lyme Park, a 1300-acre National Trust estate, noted for acting as Pemberley in Pride & Prejudice – where Colin Firth went for a dip – and whose aristocratic history dates to the 15^th-century.

The kids preferred to roam its extensive grounds than visit the house so we played quoits on the lawn, and strolled in circular fashion through the ravine garden and rhododendrons. While they clambered through bushes and underneath ancient trailing branches, we admired landscaped vistas across the reflecting lake.

Beside the sunken Dutch garden is a sensory woodland area for children: reach into bird boxes for different textures from cones to raw wool; try the obstacle course of tree stumps, pebble and bark pits, and monkey along tree trunks.

What really excited them though was the superb Crow Wood playscape, which encourages children to play without supervision, and engages their imagination through getting in touch with nature. They leapt off tall structures, made a woodland den, and fell splat in the mud.

A late lunch in the Timber Yard Café then seemed a capital notion! We reckoned we’d ticked five off the The National Trust’s list of 50 things to do before you’re 11¾. Brilliant!

Images by Nadine Mellor