Sounds like a big project - let's see what our community think!

My biggest tip is do not do any online shopping when you've had a few, unless you want to experience the pleasure/pain of checking your eBay account to see "Congratulations you are the winning bidder" only to realise that the item is at the opposite end of the country, the seller does not arrange transport and you don't even remember why you wanted it. (Or is that just me). Other things would be to ask the seller to confirm the measurements (especially where a few millimetres difference would be critical) and hope that they can read a tape measure properly. Don't be afraid to ask for additional photographs including close-ups, if the seller can't be bothered, then don't be too sure that the item is as described, a description saying good condition can be subjective and don't forget that the camera can lie, especially with colours. If you are looking for something fairly commonplace then it can be worth waiting for it to turn up close enough to home, so that you can try to have a look before committing yourself; for the rare items you may have to take a chance, the worst case is that if you really don't like it you might have to sell it on again. And last of all, if it seems too good to be true, it usually is.

I've included my take on it (2nd pic) but the upstairs could probably be tweaked to work a little better as a larger family bathroom would be good. You could also easily change the pantry/downstairs bathroom proportions to put in a small study too if thats more important to you than a large mud room space (first pic). Both of these have the advantage of not changing too much of the existing structure so should cost less and/or mean you can tackle redecorating those spaces at a late time when budget allows.

Tony, if you are on a budget then I would not rule out IKEA for kitchens. You can buy the kitchen and find someone to fit it and if you wanted to save a little labour cost you could put the carcasses together yourself. The quality of the IKEA Kitchens is surprisingly good and although Howden's quality is also good I find that there costs are sometimes unreasonable and the range option is lacking. You could use the saving to buy better appliances such as NEFF or Bosch. With regards to Victoria Plumb you can buy directly from them and again I was surprised at the quality of their product compared with the price. For a house I refurbished in the Wirral I used them for both the vanity units with wash hand basins, wall cabinets and also for a "wall mounted" toilet unit with toilet. The caveat is that sometimes Victoria Plumb's customer service leaves a lot to be desired if something is missing from your delivery. With regards to skirting have a look at Ebay and find yourself one that has alrady been primed as you then just need a top coat of paint. Be brave with your decorating and take your time.... it is those who rush it that generally mess it up and it is not really that complicated.. and don't forget to buy dust sheets! :-) Also where there are any joints between plastered walls and architraves/window cills, wood details, etc., use a white acrylic mastic. This is easy to apply and give a nice clean finish but again take your time and follow the instructions. I generally have this done after the decorators have finished on all of my projects and it makes a huge difference.