To not want my 19 year old moving to Canada alone?

Sounds brilliant op and I'd fully support ds if he wanted to do something like that when he's older (he's currently 3!). At 20 I had "no connections" in turkey (I live in England) but flew off there to do volunteer work then travelled the country. Your daughter wants to spread her wings.

I would say your best bet is to be really positive so tell your husband to wind his neck in. She's going to go, whether you like it or not. It's why she's done all the planning and paid before telling you.

BUNAC is very reputable- it's been going for years. I'm sure she'll have a brilliant time. People can do really well in life without loads of academic qualifications you know

I wish I was 19 and doing that. I’m jealous!!

She will be fine. I'd find this so scary too OP but when most of your friends go to uni and you're left behind it's not fun. Her option to go to Canada is probably a lot better than most of her options in the U.K.

I just wanted to add -

I moved to Australia many years ago. I was a bit older than your DD, and I was planning to go for good, so slightly different scenario. My mother reacted very badly and told me I couldn't go, and when she realised she couldn't stop me, she then moved on to telling me I was betraying her and abandoning her and that she'd never forgive me. She said I'd hate Australia and everyone there was racist and got skin cancer. Endless xenophobic nonsense. (Before anyone asks, she wasn't elderly or disabled, she had a job and a husband)

In all honesty I lost a huge amount of respect for her at that time and it has irreparably damaged our relationship. All these years later I am still here in Australia, with my husband and my beautiful Australian children, and she doesn't come to visit. We aren't close anymore. I will never forget that experience and I am very determined to allow my children the space they need to fly the nest and become their own people. It's awful feeling like your mum is clinging to your heels trying to drag you back. It doesn't keep them close to you, it just makes them less inclined to keep in touch after they've gone.

By all means cry and hug her for a little too long when you drop her off at the airport, but make sure she knows that even though you are going to miss her, you fully support her and you hope she has a brilliant experience.

As diplomatic as I can, OP: your hometown sounds like hell on earth for someone curious and ambitious. No surprise she wants to get out, and good for her for having the drive to organise it.

Perhaps it's an opportunity for you to broaden your horizons too and visit her.

You said she’s on the ball, don’t think twice about it, it’ll be amazing for her!
I moved to the USA on the same kind of visa back in 2007 for two years a couple months after turning 18. I had so much support when I arrived through the company i went to work with. It was the best decision I could have made. After that I’ve worked in various different countries and backpacked but always made plenty of visits back home, now living back in the UK but with amazing life experience and unbelievable memories. There is just so much to see out there, please please please don’t restrict her to staying home. Support her and be proud of her. Save up and go and visit her! My parents loved coming to see where I was living and travelling with me when they could. I honestly think I’d have so much resentment now if they’d tried to stop me from travelling but they were always supportive of what I wanted to do, however scary it may seem.
Such jobs definitely exist and if you say she has her mind on the ball I’m sure she’s done ample research and has found a great place to be. And if that weren’t the case, with savings behind her she can easily find something else that would suit her better. I had no bad experiences in my 12 years of travelling and working abroad and wouldn’t change what I’ve done for the life of me!
I know it can be a scary thought, but as you say, she’s responsible, she’ll be fine and have the time of her life!

I've done something similar but to Asia and teaching English as a foreign language. The agency was fantastic and I had a great time. I imagine your daughter will too, if I were you I'd be very proud you've raised a confident outgoing girl

‘ unless she meets somebody and they end up living together and marriage etc.’

Your girl’s got some gumption - hopefully she seem more than marriage at 21 in her future!

I did this exact thing. I went in 2014 on this working holiday scheme. Back then UK citizens got one year, but you could then apply again while you were there for a second year.

Fortunately for me the second year I was to reapply, that's when they changed it to two years for UK citizens so I got an extra 2 years!

I had the absolute time of my life. I went on my own and so did most people doing the working holiday. Definitely the best thing I have every done and don't regr2a single moment. It was amazing.

Good for her! I did BUNAC at that age and it was, and still is, was if the best and most formative experiences of my life. She’s going to have a ball, and meet other Brits doing BUNAC, as well as making new Canadian friends.
Goodness knows where this will take her, and as for education - she can get qualified in all sorts on foundation and access courses. Including hospitality.
Tell your DH to wind his neck in. My dad didn’t want me to go either, but I can’t imagine the life I would have had staying at home, in my home town compared to the one I have now. Luckily my mum thought it was a great idea - not that either of them would have been able to stop me. I went to Uni in another country too- again, dad wanted me to stay at home but at 18 it really is the time to leave home and be independent if you can.

@Kuachui

You must not frequent Shepherd's bush! Crawling with Australians (and New Zealanders). About 35 thousand people came to the UK every year under 2 year working holiday visas before covid. Kiwis call it an 'OE' (overseas experience).

To be fair, when I was in the UK despite trying to meet locals most people I met were Kiwi, Aussie or South African.

@MiddayMass Just think, if she stays the full two years you have the perfect excuse for your first overseas holiday. Go visit your DD in Canada!

She sounds sensible and has done her research. She'll have a great time.

She doesn’t have qualifications past GCSE so I don’t think she’ll have much chance of staying past the 2 years unless she meets somebody and they end up living together and marriage etc.

Even on that you’re writing her off unless she gets married! She’s got enough about her to go out and see the world and have marvellous adventure! I’m sure she’s got enough about her to get further qualifications if she needs them and not rely on man to sort her.

Waste of money’
‘We’re lucky to live in the U.K. and have everything we need, why would you bother going somewhere else?’
‘It’s probably one of them dodgy jobs where they take your passport upon arrival and make you work for free’ (I was worried about it being dodgy but not to that extent, I was more thinking about the agency maybe being an online scam and her arriving to no job.)
‘Who emigrates alone? You’ll be bored and we will be worried.’
‘Just spend your money on a house deposit here.’
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂

And he has no idea why she wants to go….?
😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

Classic!

I was on expat forums for many years before had after I moved to Australia. People like your daughter would often come along for advice. The main advice seemed to be to avoid or at least be very careful with “agencies” that apparently facilitate the WHV holders, finding work etc. They can often be a rip off, there should be no need to use such an agency.

The travel itself is a good idea, but I would encourage her to apply for the visa herself, directly through a government website and also do her own job hunting and cut out the agency which probably will just take her money.

I do have one hesitation over her age. This is something I found on the Australian immigration forums. So sometimes people would use the WHV when they are 18/19 and sometimes they decide they would like to move to Australia permanently (or at least for longer) afterwards. But at 18/19 they are unlikely to have accumulated the experience / qualifications to move more permanently whereas at 22 onwards they might have. Sometimes they use the visa up whilst a teenager and then before they are 30 decide they would like to move to Australia, the WHV can be a stepping stone to that, even if it simply provides sufficient time to prove a relationship, but they have used it up when they were 18 and so that avenue is closed as you can only get WHV once in a lifetime. It may seem like a stretch, but it is worth being mindful of it.

PLEASE don´t try and talk her out of it, for the sake of your relationship with her. Either you´ll really spoil the excitement of planning and going for her, which will be really selfish of you, or she actually won´t go and then will probably end up resenting you for the rest of her life for talking her out of this fabulous, exciting opportunity.

All parents worry. But think about her, not yourselves.

Good for her, one day she’ll look back on her life and celebrate everything she did, the places she went and the friends she made. You only get one life and you want hers to be special. Be proud of her that she’s brave and adventurous.

To be honest, in many ways it is less risky and life changing than what you did at 19! Worse case scenario, she comes home.

This is SO common. Jobs like this most certainly do exist. Almost everyone I knew at this age did something similar! Some of us went to work in Australia, America, China, Africa, Canada, etc. If anything, Canada is probably one of the safest places she could go. She won´t be alone there, she will be connected with other people doing the same experience through the agency normally. She´s 19! Not a child! This is the perfect age for this sort of thing. I was 18 when I did similar (in a significantly less safe, non-English-speaking country).

My goodness, you see so many posts on here about parents who have adult kids with 0 motivation still living at home rent free and unemployed and the OP is worried about her DD being TOO motivated and adventurous?
I completely understand missing her but what exactly is 'unsafe' about her plan?

Yes, she can always come home if it gets too tough for her. She will miss you and everything familiar very much even if she is, overall, having a wonderful time. Technology means you can be in touch all the time and you can always go out there and visit. assume she will get some leave and can come home at some point too (though expensive so maybe not an option).

I ask again, what would she be doing if she stayed in the UK and is that what you want for her?

Good for her. Don’t discourage her.