Northern Ireland

We came two years ago.
We came for opportunity to own our home as we never could have came out of the rental market in London unless it was a very very small home in areas we didn't want.
We came with jobs that WFH so have London salaries on NI mortgage.
Schools appeared better and as both kids are Summer born and the cut of for a year is a lot earlier than many in England it meant that they effectively repeated the year but with same aged peers and both have thrived.
We love it but as per user name the weather is probably the only thing I have struggled with as sometimes it's seems we have grey skies and rain for weeks.
Looking forward to the spell of good weather this coming week and in the sunshine the countryside and coast is absolutely stunning.

We live in NI and love it (I’m from England and husband is from here).

We live in a house we could never afford in England. Our quality of life is so much better. Friendly people. Great schools for the kids and the opportunity for them to go to grammar school when they are older. School finishes at 2pm every day for little ones and lovely long summer holidays. We can get cheaper holidays abroad as they finish school in June.

🤣🤣

I agree and am hugely supportive of all ability schools. I did the 11 plus back in the late seventies and went to a grammar school and felt strongly for many years that that the 11 plus was a fair system because everyone got the chance to access a grammar school education, not just those who were from a more privileged background. But as an adult, and watching my children go through the current transfer test system, I feel differently now. All that competition to see who is ‘good enough’ to get into a grammar school seems like a ridiculous amount of pressure on such young children. It labels them from an early age. Both my children did extremely well in the tests, but they found it all very very stressful. My eldest decided to go to Lagan College, which is an all ability integrated school with a grammar stream. He had very strong views, even at that age, about children being educated together. He still has that strong sense of fairness (now diagnosed with ASD!) His brother also did well. But his best friend didn’t cope well under exam pressure and, despite performing to a similar standard as DS2 in practice papers, didn’t get a ‘good’ enough grade for grammar school. Such a lovely, bright boy being put in that position where he thinks he has failed already. The transfer test system is what we’re stuck with here, but I think it is extremely flawed. I don’t know the answer because I don’t see the comprehensive system in England as being perfect either with good and not so good comprehensive schools and people often jumping through (financial) hoops to access a decent one. And the whole private school system where you can pay for a ‘better’ education for your child. None of that seems fair either. So I don’t know what the answer is.

I’m from NI, moved to England for many years, then Southern Ireland and now back here. To be honest, I don’t love it. Yes, there are some pretty places but the religion issue is a massive undertone that plays a bigger part than I recall in my youth.
it’s disappointing, really. NHS is terrible! Stats show a much higher percentage of people here moving towards private.
COL - I’d say pre-2022 it was indeed a good bit cheaper but everyday living I don’t particularly notice it massively different to Dublin or London which is saying something (house prices aside but rising a lot).
childcare fees are astronomical here with a government who continually stick their heads in the sand on it. Expect £1200 minimum per child after “help”.
If it were down to me, I’d probably prefer to live in Southern Ireland now knowing what I know.

Visited Northern Ireland’s couple of years ago and loved it. Absolutely lovely people.

Away round to yer own door

Have you been to Belfast Zoo? It is absolutely terrible and not worth a shilling more than that price!

A family member married a girl from Belfast and moved there from England. Their house is gorgeous and they couldn't have afforded anything as good here. He loves his life there and it's been a really excellent choice.

Doesn't that have a huge negative impact on the 60/40% who don't? Grammar school for a tiny percentage wouldn't, but if it is really 60% (or even 40%, but especially 60%) that must have a catastrophic impact on the self esteem and prospects of the children who don't make the cut at age 10 or 11.

Backward, parochial, misogynistic place.

I’m from there before you all jump at me

Very backward compared to uk? I’d very much disagree with this and go as far to say you don’t know what you’re talking about or perhaps you haven’t experienced as much of the culture as others. It’s an amazingly beautiful place with incredible people. Like any area of the UK there are issues, however to say it’s backward is a massive generalisation and simply untrue

NI exile here, all my family still back there. People complaining about the health service and public transport in NI don’t know they are born! Outside of London and possibly Manchester, public transport in England is diabolical, and NI health service is certainly no worse than in England. In many cases better, with services still kept in places like Enniskillen, which is smaller than my nearest town and has a complete hospital, whereas my local town has a health centre and no post 16 education.

That said, attitudes are still a bit backwards and my nephew’s SEN education was well behind what would happen here in England - he was allowed to drift with no support or identifiacoint of any issues, and the 11+ was horrific,

Belfast is great, a proper city.

It’s all over the place on Mn. This is, I agree, an unusually overt version.

And you don’t think this attitude might be why relatives with English accents ‘feel uncomfortable’?

Calling a country backward is bordering on xenophobic. And your not very thinly disguised suggestion of in-breeding is breathtakingly offensive. It’s a long time since I’ve come across such naked anti Irishness.

If you are not planning on living in Belfast or Derry (or even if you are) a car is non-negotiable. Public transport is pretty bad. Also the health trusts cover large areas, so a simple hospital or A&E appt could mean driving twenty or thirty miles. If you lived in Tyrone or Fermanagh, you'd have a long drive to the airport and ports (both in County Antrim) etc. But if you drive and don't have children you have to ferry everywhere, many of the smaller towns and villages are lovely. People are generally very friendly, but many tend to be busybodies.

My parents were from there. I’d move there tomorrow if I could get a job there. Love the north coast

Im a fan as moved here. The religious aspect is draining at times.

Government is a joke, with opposite parties taking pot shots at each other rather than moving things forward.
Nhs has literally fell apart

Neither. It’s beautiful, but very colloquial, and most could pick a fight in an empty house.

Ni great in many ways. Great schools, affordable houses, gorgeous coastline, friendly people. NHS not great - for example in Belfast 5/6 years wait for under 11 adhd, no 11-18 adhd diagnosis service at all, 4/5 years for child autism, 6/7 years for adult rheumatology and dermatology. 1 year for Camhs assessment another year for treatment. Im currently on year 7 of waiting on eye operation and no one privately does it so other than go to England I keep waiting!

NI is very lovely, but sectarianism is alive and well still in many communities. Its far more religious than GB too and had gay marriage and abortion forced in by Westminster despite public support for both. A big cultural shift from England.

I’m the same, if I can work it with keeping my job I’d move back regarding property prices in NI as opposed to Dublin. I also have school friends who moved back to NI after years in mainland Britain because the schools are much better.
There are some rough, deprived areas and rough, deprived people but that happens everywhere. Apparently it’s like the mafia trying to get a good dentist or into a GP nowadays, and the government is ridiculous but overall NI is beautiful with plenty to offer.

Does not being represented or less represented in the UK Parliament affect anything now (still sinn Fein MPs do not takes their seats). Or as so much is devolved and not as many MPs mean no real difference? I know there was the time when the Tories relied on DUP so more power.

I haven’t been but would love to. My mother spent her first year or two working in Belfast coming from India but well before I was born. It’s nothing like when she was there though - she said you could see tell from how loud the noise was what part of the city had a bomb and whether you
were likely to get casualties. Also a time tarring and feathering. She also said most of the people were wonderful.

Love NI. A friend and I (half seriously) talked about a double move there when things were going a bit tits up in our lives. She’s from there, it was just nostalgia for me from holidays there as a child. It’s a great place with lots of upsides but ultimately I think I’m probably better off in Scotland.