We moved north for a better way of life

"It was for family reasons, really," Mrs Holding said. "We had a long-term goal to set up our own business. Living in London is so expensive, and we were looking for a better quality of life for our children."

Both in their early 30s, with one young child approaching school age and a second on the way, the Holdings decided Yorkshire offered them opportunities which the capital could not.

"Schools were a major factor," Mrs Holding said. "And definitely housing. For example, we owned our own home in London, and our family was growing and to move to a bigger house with good local schools in a nice area was very difficult.

"So we decided, having both come from up north originally, that we could probably find a bigger house up here. We've got family in York and we love the city."

The couple quickly realised their dream by opening the Pig and Pastry delicatessen and caf in Bishopthorpe Road, now offering breakfast, lunch and afternoon teas and popular with York residents

"York is a lovely city to live in," Mrs Holding said. "We can live close to the city centre and with nice schools nearby. And the beautiful countryside is on your doorstep."

"We're totally delighted with life here. We loved London – it was a really exciting time for us, but there came a time when we wanted to do something different and have our own business. London was not the place to do it."

The young family has continued to grow, meanwhile, with the Holdings' three children now aged 13, eight and five. The arrival of growing young families is one of the factors behind Yorkshire's population boom.

But while such a growing population is said to suggest the region's economy is healthy, experts say action is needed to make sure the region can cope with the growth.

Patrick Bowes, chief economist at the regional development agency, said local services such as public transport must be improved quickly if private sector growth is to keep pace with the burgeoning population and ensure there are sufficient jobs to go round.

Fundamental to solving the problem, he said, is making the public sector "more effective in how it allocates funds". When pressed, its clear he means that more Government spending should be focused on the Yorkshire region.

"It cuts across all sorts of things," he said. "For example, one thing that has preoccupied ourselves and local authorities in the region is transport, which is a very important topic. With a growing population, you face even more of a transport challenge – more people in work and wanting to be in work, but also more people travelling for leisure time activities.

"So it's about recognising Yorkshire's population is growing faster, and asking if that is being recognised in the funding settlements we are getting from the Government. The spend per head on transport in many other areas is higher than in Yorkshire, despite the fact we have much more rapidly increasing population."

It is in this context that Mr Bowes describes the predicted boom as an opportunity for the region to finally win a fairer funding deal.

"I think it gives us a powerful strategic argument to say to Government – focus on this region," he said. "At some point this population growth will simply overwhelm our public transport.

"At that point we would potentially start to turn away growth within the private sector. The cost to business already has been well-publicised and that will be amplified.

"This provides powerful, empirical information for Government that there's an opportunity here."