Our homes have been so much more than homes in 2020. We’ve worked from them, exercised in them and stood outside them and clapped the NHS. We’ve put our children’s drawings of rainbows in our windows and shared doorstep drinks with our neighbours. We’ve cleared out cupboards, painted walls and grown our own vegetables. In this series of blogs, we celebrate some of the ways our homes have helped us through the year – even if it wasn’t quite the year we were planning.

There's no place like home in a pandemic

I've lived in six houses in seven years but for me home is not just about where I eat or crawl into bed at the end of the day. At the age of 25, there’s still only one place I truly call home.

‘Going home’ from London requires a drive along the M4 or a train from Paddington to the town that raised me. When I get there, the smell of fresh baking radiates from the kitchen and the sound of music can be heard from every room. There’s a familiar face every time I step out of the front door, always ready for a kerbside catch up.

At 18 all I wanted was to escape, to a life that was awaiting me with bigger and better things. But in a time of crisis, when it became clear that we’d all be spending months at home, there was only one place I wanted to be, my family home.

We naturally fell back into our old routine, dinners around the dining room table, passionate debates over what to watch on television and evenings curled up in front of the fire with a good book.

But there were also signs of just how much had changed. My childhood bedroom with posters adorning the walls felt smaller, although I knew I was the one that had grown taller. When I last lived here I couldn’t run for the bus, now I run 10Ks for fun – with my legs carrying me through farms and fields I’ve known my whole life.

While this year has been one of ups and downs, I’ll always be grateful for the extra time gained with my family. For all that I felt I’d outgrown it, my family house in this small town will always be my home. HS, Wiltshire

Further information

This series of blogs is inspired by Savills new advertising campaign, To Every Home That's Been So Much More Than A Home – Thank You and Merry Christmas. Over the next few weeks a selection of guest bloggers will reveal just how much their homes have meant to them this year.