A FAMILY-RUN holiday firm now has its very own Hobbit homes after it secured a six-figure sum to help the business grow.

Set on a working beef and arable family farm near Pickering, Shire Stays now features a couple of Hobbit homes nestled in to grassy banks.

Managing director, Rob Scalding, says the money has meant they've been able to create the two, state of the art holiday pods and he is anticipating a 35 per cent increase in turnover over the next 12 months.

“The development of these holiday lets at Cliff Farm will provide a diversified income steam for us, whilst allowing customers to have direct access to the North Yorkshire Moors," said Mr Scalding.

"We’ve already had some fantastic feedback from our guests and there has been a demand from across the UK.

"We look forward to welcoming more guests onto our farm in months to come.

"With far reaching views of the Hambleton and Howardian hills, guests have been amazed at the beauty of the area.

"We are in easy travelling distance of the East Coast including Whitby, Scarborough, Filey and Bridlington.”

The family took their inspiration from JRR Tolkien's 1937 children's fiction, The Hobbit and the more recent film series which follows the quest of home-loving Bilbo Baggins who lives in The Shire.

The pair of pods are built into the ground and come equipped with fully fitted bedrooms, en-suite bathrooms, kitchen areas and king-sized beds.

The holiday lets can each accommodate between two and six guests at a time.

And each pod has its own private hot tub, along with skylights integrated into the pods.

The new premises on the 150-acre farm enables the business to diversify its revenue stream, as well as support further employment of staff on site.

Simon Harget, Agriculture Relationship Manager at HSBC UK, said: “We’re delighted to have supported Cliff Farm with the diversification of its business, providing high quality holiday lets for customers.

"The funding with allow Cliff Farm to continue building its business and create a sustainable future.”

As well as providing holiday lets, Cliff Farm is a working beef and arable farm, producing carbon friendly and highly sustainable beef.

The 150-acre farm has capacity to cater for 120 beef animals every year.