It's 1970, and 18-year-old Debbie Hargreaves is heading to agricultural college in Leeds, where she'll be sharing digs with three girls she's never met before. Although they're all from very different backgrounds, Debbie soon becomes firm friends with shy Lisa, outspoken Karen, and cool, self-assured Fran. Over the coming months, the four flatmates will share tears and laughter, drama and heartbreak, and the excitement of new romance. At the same time, Debbie's birth mother, Fiona Norwood, is struggling to cope with four young children and her duties as a rector's wife. The arrival of a new childminder should be the answer to her prayers, but Glenda's open flirting with Fiona's husband soon sets tongues wagging. Is Fiona's marriage really under threat? Meanwhile, Debbie is loving her new-found independence and the male attention she attracts. But is she in danger of neglecting her family and friends back in Northumberland, and forgetting her roots?