The day former world squash champion Cassie Jackman received her MBE was the proudest of her life - the crowning glory of a brilliant sporting career which began at the age of nine.

She remembers every thrilling moment of that summer day in 2004 when she travelled to Buckingham Palace with her Australian husband Matt Thomas, mother Patricia and brother Luke to accept her award from Prince Charles.

'It was an amazing day and I couldn't have felt more proud to be British,' recalls Cassie, 42, who won the World Open in 1991, a gold medal at the 1998 Commonwealth games and was British National champion a record six times before a back injury forced her to retire ten years ago.

'Exiled': Cassie Jackman (right) with husband Matt and daughters Erin, 9, and Lola, 4, at Christmas last year during a visit to Cassie's parents

Cassie Jackman holding her MBE alongside her mother Patricia, husband Matt (second from right) and brother, Luke (right)

'I remember Prince Charles congratulating me, saying he played squash and that it was an incredibly hard game, which it is.

'I'd never expected to receive an MBE, so it really was an absolute honour to be recognised for services to sport.'

Today, Cassie's framed MBE lies safely wrapped in bubblewrap at her parent's home in North Walsham, Norfolk - along with her Commonwealth Games medals - waiting for a place to be put on permanent display.

Cassie brought them home at Christmas, ahead of a planned permanent return to Britain this month after four-and-a-half years living in Melbourne with her Australian husband Matt Thomas, 39, and their two daughters Erin, nine and Lola, five, who were both born in Britain.

All their plans, though, now lie in complete ruins with Cassie and her family effectively exiled from Britain, the nation she proudly represented and which once showered her with the highest praise.

Despite being widely acknowledged as the best ladies squash player in British history, she and Matt have unwittingly fallen victim to immigration regulations for non-EU residents which mean they now have little choice but to stay in Australia.

So while Britain offers an open door to immigrants and their families from European nations - who benefit from freedom of movement within the EU - it couldn't be tougher for the family of one of Britain's sporting heroines.

Plans: Cassie (pictured with her daughters) had hoped to return to Britain this month after four-and-a-half years living in Melbourne with her Australian husband Matt Thomas and their two children

Devastated: All the family's plans now lie in complete ruins with Cassie effectively exiled from Britain, the nation she proudly represented and which once showered her with the highest praise

Champion: Cassie won the World Open in 1991, a gold medal at the 1998 Commonwealth games and was British National champion a record six times

Fighting to come home: Cassie and Matt with their daughters, Erin, 9, and Lola, 5, who have been effectively exiled

Big day: Cassie and Matt on their wedding day

Matt, who in 2006 was granted indefinite leave to remain in Britain after his 2004 marriage to Cassie, had his application for a returning resident visa refused last month.

This was despite the couple owning two properties here (on which they pay taxes on rental income) and Matt having a new job working for a construction firm lined up.

This unexpected turn of events has not only thrown their plans into complete chaos but left Cassie's parents Michael, 68, and Patricia, 65, - who are both recovering from cancer - utterly heartbroken.

Mr and Mrs Jackman were desperately looking forward to welcoming home their adored grandchildren and had specially decorated a bedroom for them, compete with fairy lights and matching pink bedspreads.

'Right now I couldn't feel more angry or, to be honest, unpatriotic,' says Cassie, who was hoping to find work back home coaching Britain's next generation of squash stars.

I represented my country, I was captain of the England Ladies Squash team, I was awarded an MBE, but it feels as if Britain just doesn't want us back and that really hurts

'I represented my country, I was captain of the England Ladies Squash team, I was awarded an MBE, but it feels as if Britain just doesn't want us back and that really hurts.

'Britain was Matt's home for eight years before we moved to Australia. He is married to a British woman and his children are British, so how can it be that it is easier for a family from Romania, or any other European country, to stay in the UK than it is for us?'

As for Cassie's mother Patricia, tears well up in her eyes as she tries to come to terms with the last minute bombshell that her daughter, son-in-law and only grandchildren will remain on the other side of the world.

'I don't think I've stopped crying since Cassie and her family moved to Australia four years ago. I miss them all so much and talking on Skype isn't the same as feeling a little arm around your neck or a kiss on the cheek,' says Patricia, who is in remission from breast cancer and whose husband underwent surgery for prostate cancer two years ago.

'Grandchildren just melt your heart, so when Cassie told us in the middle of last year that they were thinking of coming back to Britain it was one of the happiest days of our lives. We thought it would be so straightforward.

'Cassie and the girls spent five weeks with us over Christmas and it was just glorious. Cassie brought her MBE and medals with her because she was so worried about them getting lost in transit when they moved back permanently,' says Patricia of the proposed move just after Matt's 40th birthday on April 18th.

The unexpected turn of events has left Cassie's parents Michael and Patricia, pictured with Erin and Lola, heartbroken

Winner: Cassie Jackman after winning the Qatar Masters squash tournament in 2004 (left) and the 1999 Womens World Open (right)

Lola (left) and Erin (right) will spend the foreseeable future in Australia

The family were going to move in with Patricia and Michael, a retired oil executive, for a few weeks until their furniture arrived from Australia and they could move back into their semi-detached home in Horsford, a village six miles north of Norwich.

'When they left for Australia after Christmas, I was in tears - just as I always am every time we part - and Cassie said 'Mum, it'll only be a couple of months and we'll be back again'.

'Then one night Cassie called me and said 'Mum, Matt's visa has been refused'. We couldn't believe it, Cassie is not one to cry, but she was very upset and cross and said 'I don't like my country at the moment'.

'It's not as if he's coming here to claim benefits, he already has a job and still has his national insurance number.

'One night I was so upset, I couldn't sleep and I said to my husband Michael 'how is it that silly ladies can go off on holiday, marry waiters and then bring them back to Britain?' and he said 'I just don't know'.'

Cassie and Matt only decided to move to his native Australia in 2010 - when their youngest daughter Lola was six months old - because the economic recession had made it difficult to earn a living in Britain.

It was 2002 when the couple met on a night out in Norwich, sportsman Matt having moved to Britain that year to play cricket for a local club, working part-time for a building firm to supplement his wages.

They married in 2004 and settled in Horsford, setting up a sandwich shop business in Norwich after Cassie was forced to retire just before her 32nd birthday. During her career she'd undergone two operations to repair slipped discs, but the recurring back injury left her no alternative but to give up the sport she loved.

Proud grandparents Patricia and Michael jumped at the chance to look after the couple's first child Erin one day a week, while Cassie and Matt worked long hours to turn their fledgling business into a success.

'When Erin was born I was thrilled and fell in love with her instantly. We used to love having her here with us, taking her to play barns and dinosaur parks and she loved being with her Nanny and grandpa too.

'Of course we were devastated when Cassie and Matt told us they were thinking of moving to Australia, but we could understand their reasons for wanting a better life for their children.'

Cassie explains: 'We were working longer and longer hours to make less money, because prices were going up with the economic downturn. Matt was offered a job in Australia he couldn't refuse and we thought it would be nice to have a fresh start in his country and let his parents enjoy the grandchildren too.'

Angry: 'Right now I couldn't feel more angry or, to be honest, unpatriotic,' says Cassie Jackman, 42

The Thomas family settled in Melbourne and each year Cassie's parents would either make the long flight half way round the world to visit their grandchildren or Cassie would bring them back to Britain for a long holiday. While Matt worked for an import and export business, Cassie coached youngsters in Victoria state.

Had the family returned to Britain within two years of leaving for Australia, there would have been no problem for Matt but because they'd been away for four years it meant he had no automatic right to return with indefinite leave to remain.

Everyone keeps asking me "When is Cassie coming back?". And it breaks my heart to tell them "She's not". It's the most terrible blow. After all Cassie has done for Britain, surely this can't be fair?' Cassie's mother, Patricia

Although Government websites clearly warn that indefinite leave to remain can be revoked if someone leaves Britain and fails to return within two years, Cassie says they were unaware of this and have learned about the two year rule the hard way.

She reveals: 'When we moved to Australia we initially thought it might be for life, and while we did enjoy the lifestyle, Matt was not happy in his job and we realised that even if we sold both our properties in Britain we still couldn't afford to buy a house in Melbourne, where property is expensive, and would have to carry on renting.

'Increasingly, I missed Britain and all my family and friends back home. We already had a house to move into in the UK, so it made sense for us to come back, but we never imagined it would be so difficult.'

After his visa application was refused, Cassie and Matt immediately consulted an immigration lawyer in Sydney who told them the chances of a successful appeal were virtually non-existent and could cost thousands in the process.

Not only had Matt moved back to Australia with his family through choice, staying longer than two years, his links with Britain were not considered strong enough for an application to be successful, having lived in the UK for less than ten years prior to his return to Australia.

THE RULES THAT APPLY FOR FAMILY IMMIGRATION TO BRITAIN In July 2012 the Home Office reformed the rules that apply for families immigrating to the Britain from non-European Economic Area (EEA) countries. It included the introduction of an £18,600 minimum income threshold for sponsoring a non-EEA spouse or partner to come to Britain or remain in the country. The Home Office said that it introduced the guidelines to prevent 'burdens on the taxpayer, promote integration and tackle abuse' and to ensure family migrants can 'stand on their own two feet financially'. It acted after receiving advice from the independent Migration Advisory Committee and claiming it was a level at which 'we can be reasonably assured that the UK sponsor has sufficient means to support themselves and their foreign partner'. Advertisement

They were told that Matt could return to Britain on a spousal visa, but Cassie would have to be earning £18,600 a year before he could join her. Alternatively, the couple would have to prove they had savings of £62,000 in the bank.

Even then, new rules introduced in 2012 mean it would take five years - rather then two - to qualify for indefinite leave to remain again. The spousal visa which costs £885 has to be renewed after two-and-a-half years, but during that time Matt would be permitted to work.

Cassie says: 'We don't have savings of £62,000. My parents and Matt's family offered to gift us the money, but that is not allowed either. It would be considered third party sponsorship, and we have to prove that it is our money.

'I have a flat worth £125,000 which I bought from my squash earnings when I was 19, but that is my pension. Why should I have to sell that because of these punitive rules?

'As British citizens there is nothing stopping me from returning with my children to look for a job which might pay £18,600 a year, but I don't want to be apart from my husband for six months and I don't want our children to be without their father.

'Matt is the main breadwinner and the fact that he has a job waiting for him here with his old employers - who can't wait to have him back - appears to count for nothing.'

Cassie Jackman (left) and Dutch Vanessa Atkinson during the semi-finals of the Qatar Classic 2004

Both Cassie and her mother Patricia have written to their local MP, Liberal Democrat Norman Lamb appealing for help but, apart from a standard reply of acknowledgement, have yet to receive a response.

They also wrote to Immigration Minister James Brokenshire and this week received a reply from the Customer Service Operations team at UK Visas and Immigration dated April 1 2015.

The letter merely reiterated the new rules and stated that Matt could reapply for a visa in the future, although the outcome could not be guaranteed.

So for now, Cassie and her family will remain in Australia rather than jump through expensive hoops to return to the country she represented at the Commonwealth Games; the country which awarded her an MBE, a nation she would like to give back to again by coaching juniors.

As for Patricia, her dreams of enjoying old age with her adored grandchildren have been completely broken.