Moving from Scotland to England-Differences.

[IcedBunsForMe]

I'm planning a move from Scotland to England in the next year. Still finalising area now that I have it narrowed down. I know that it isn't like moving abroad but there are still some differences including water charges and prescription charges.

I know that every place is different but if you've made the move from Scotland to England.Or vice versa. What differences did you notice. Practical or cultural? And what did you miss? Morning rolls for me.

TIA

The English are much less direct than the Scots. It took me a while to work out when people were actually criticising me, cos they would say it in such a roundabout way!

I think the countryside is softer and walks generally more interesting.

Where the hell have you gone walking in Scotland, people literally come here from all round the UK for the stunning walks up here!

OP I moved to England from Scotland and moved back. It was a long time ago now but there were a few things that really struck me:

• How much later shops open on Sundays (even in major towns and cities). I would go in to try get my shopping done early on my day off and everything would be shut and not open until about midday. Don't know if this is the case everywhere though but I was near to London so it really surprised me.
• You don't get the same chat from random strangers that you tend to get up here, it would happen occasionally but was pretty rare.
• I found a big difference in sense of humour, particularly down where I was. Not in a bad way but just when starting to make new friends we wouldn't always get each other's jokes in the same way.

If you go to church, like for a wedding/ funeral you realise that the church of England (Episcopal) is very different from the church of Scotland (Presbyterian).

Churches are a lot more involved in schools, you may not have access to a non church school.

I find most English people don't drink as much definitely less binge drinking. People seem healthier generally.

Politically a lot of English people feel 'homeless' due to the 2 party system. There isn't the choice of political affiliations.

Redheads are rare in England.

There is much more racial diversity.

Flights are cheaper.

There aren't as many take out shops.

Class is a bigger issue. There's loads of fawning over the monarchy.

@BobbinThreadbare123

I'd just like to point out that in Lancashire and Cumbria it is possible to get munchie boxes. Especially in Blackpool

And Newcastle

And the water is lush in my little corner of Yorkshire.

@MrsBungle you need a north of England chip shop. Way more variety to choose from and my home town one sells Irn Bru

@GirlAloud

I’m English, and I once went out with a really nice Glaswegian guy who had moved down for work. I will always remember him saying : “You know what’s the best thing about this country? Nobody gives a fuck about bloody religion.”

Thankfully that’s really just a central belt thing.

As several PPs have said, they don't skin fish in chip shops and I don't understand why: a really nice skin-on fillet, fried or baked, is delicious, but smother it with batter then fry it? Ugh.

Weird property-buying laws. Baffling.

Anywhere around Londonshire gets INCREDIBLY HOT in summer. And then dark. But not quite so dark in the winter, admittedly. Or cold.

They don't understand the word 'outwith'.

You can get Munchie boxes all over the place. I live in the midlands and my local does pizza crunch. No irn bru though (but you can get it in tesco)
Agree with square sausage - literally never seen it

I noticed someone upthread saying there is no Irn Bru in England. I can happily say that in London and East Anglia there is plenty of Irn Bru in all manner of shops (not just very large supermarkets, but even small local corner shops stock it!).

Morning Rolls can also be approximated very closely with Morrisons own in house bakery rolls (this might depend on the exact store - again London and East Anglia have happily provided me with a morning roll).

Aside from the food (I would add tablet as being non-existent in England; although a large amount of fudge down here is accidentally tablet) and the house buying; education; NHS prescriptions etc. and large parts of the legal system (!) I think my very Glaswegian grandad was correct in his views on English villages....

When my parents moved south he was adamant that it would take 20 years before you got to know your neighbours in an English village. He was correct. Almost to the year. This may depend on the village - but around where they moved it's very much a 'local place for local people'.

There is - very generally - a much more private sensibility here. This might be reduced by going further North in England (I have never lived there but have visited friends a lot). Humour is certainly less 'earthy'/caustic in England. But I'm used to the West Coast and I find Edinburgh similarly humourless from when I lived there (apologies to all who are from that fine city!).

I've gone back and forth a lot between the two kingdoms. I no longer sound especially Scottish and for that reason alone I would be reluctant to return to where I grew up. I would be viewed as being wholly English, from England, which is incorrect. Sadly some of my experiences being categorised as 'English' in Scotland were pretty horrendous - whereas being Scottish in England was much more pleasant for me. That is my personal experience.

What do I miss? My family; tap water; empire biscuits; the feeling of 'home', beautiful views for the most part. What do I not miss: a certain anti-English element which definitely exists (esp on West Coast); in general the domestic architecture is more varied and regional in England...

One interesting note - I went to Northern Ireland a few years ago and it was like time travel. A lot of my West Coast Scottish childhood was present with a different accent. It was uncanny. But weirdly comforting too.

Oh finally - if you are pregnant in England be prepared to justify your entitlement to NHS services (this was very poorly handled by a London NHS trust and at a very sensitive time post-birth).

And again, Sunday trading hours. As pp said it took years and years to get used to it.

How little Scottish politics/news is in the main/national news.

How different house bricks and styles are (this isn’t just England vs Scotland - it varies through England too but Scotland is very grey brick compared to red bricks where I am and I find it really noticeable when I go ‘home’).

I’ve only ever had skin on fish once at a chippy and I was horrified!

I’m going to google a morning roll now…

The supermarkets are only open for about 5 seconds on a Sunday, blink and you'll miss it. But on the other hand you can buy booze any time they want to sell it to you.

If you move to the right bit of England you'll get to try proper oatcakes, not the miserable dry biscuits we get here. Or if you're going further south than the oatcake belt you might get proper Chelsea buns. Mmmm.

I did the opposite move a few years back and haven't regretted it yet - for me 'outwith' outweighs the food disappointments.

I missed butteries/rowie/rolls

I would not miss Wee Nippy.

When I moved from Scotland to England it took me a while to work out that I needed to be much more effusive not to be considered rude.
Up in Scotland you could have a lovely evening at your friend’s house and say “thanks, that was a great night”at the end .. absolutely sufficient to express your appreciation.
In England I noticed people would be very admiring of the house, maybe also what someone was wearing, how much trouble they’d gone to and then at the end say how lovely it had all been, how much they’d enjoyed it .. all at considerable length.
DH and I found it quite gushing at first but I think we’ve adapted now!

In Scotland generally there's such a sense of space - so much near empty countryside, so little traffic. In much of England it feels very full of buildings and people, and there's a lot of congestion. I think this affects how people treat each other, and makes people more stressed.
Scotland is greener and wilder. Sheep and cows share the same fields, which I've never seen in England. There are more wild flowers and more birdlife.
England is much hotter during the summer.
Scottish people are generally friendlier, more likely to chat. Less in a hurry.
I think there may be more obesity in Scotland, though I haven't seen the figures. I wouldn't say that either the Scots or the English have great fashion sense on the whole - you certainly wouldn't say that the average Scot is stylish.
Parents in England are more competitive about their children. And obsessed with getting their child into the right schools and university. I suspect that one-upmanship is more prevalent in England.

@Notlostjustexploring I agree on the lack of random chat. And you can add winterdyke and drouth to your list! No Glesga rolls anywhere either.

One thing I found hard to get used to was the driving! You just have to pull out. Nobody stops to let you out! The traffic was horrendous too, especially on the main motorways. And whats with the road signs that say 'The North'? It's not fucking Game of Thrones pal, everything above this point is The North, this helps nobody!

it's not only when one is pregnant that some London hospitals in leafy areas demand proof of residency etc when attending A&E.
a bit awkward if you don't have those documents, esp when in need.
i dont think i even possessed them, but luckily i already had a hosp number there, and they accepted that.
although i guess they could have asked for proof that i was that alexdgr8....

do people think that generally, the English are more snobby ?

• it’s too bloody hot/humid in the summer, unless you are north or on the coast.
• people don’t just say things. Apparently being two faced or passive aggressive is more socially acceptable! I refuse to budge on that one, and get told off for being “too direct” at work. I argue I’m Scottish and I can’t help it!
• everything stops if there is the tiniest smudge of snow.
• less family violence I think? When I was a kid everyone got hit. Not so in England (definitely a good thing).
• social class is more of a thing. More privately educated types. Where we are we have grammar schools and it’s a bit of a class thing as so many parents pay for tutoring (£28 an hour!).
• English people don’t pronounce all the letters in their words, and there is less variety in the sounds they make, which is fine, but it can cause confusion. If you are teaching your child to read, you might find you are told you are doing it “wrong” even though to you, it’s right! Apparently the word “book” doesn’t have an “oo” in it. And r’s may as well not exist a lot of the time.
• that said, I do love England. I hope you have a great time down here!

I'm surprised noone has mentioned more people. I was amazed you could drive for ages without passing a car, house or person in Scotland.

Finding this thread interesting as I have both in my family.

Apart from Sunday opening hours and slight differences in Bank holidays, I don't recognise a lot of these differences, especially the negative ones about water and fish and chips, which leads me to the conclusion that you should move to Yorkshire as you won't find it too much of a culture shock.

On the matter of prescriptions, many people in England are entitled to free prescriptions due to being under 18, past retirement age, on a low income or having certain medical conditions and if you're one of the remaining people who do have to pay, you can get a prepay card that restricts the cost to about £10 a month, so the impact of having to pay is somewhat overstated.

Lots of the things people mention depend where you live. I'm in Devon, surrounded by fields on the edge of a village with friendly locals and nice water.

Things I noticed upon moving from Scotland

Definitely the Sunday opening hours.

Language difference but I've successfully introduced out with to my office.

Temperature. We moved from Edinburgh to Exeter in early September and I'd already been wearing my winter coat. I spent weeks wandering round in shorts and t-shirt as it was roasting.

We may not have religion down here but we've got the Cult of Tory Brexit. Dont mention it. I've rarely set foot in a Scots house without being offered some food, even just some biscuits whereas, generally, we're less hospitable and more suspicious of people down here. We don't fry pizza. And we don't have midges. I love Scotland. Dont leave it.

@Notlostjustexploring

Oh, and if you say you are going for a "can of juice" and come back with coca cola, your colleague gets very confused.

Yes, juice means pure fruit juice in England & Wales, not fizzy drinks / pop.

Also, diluting juice is squash.

Outwith isn't used.

And you're expected in work, bright eyed and bushy tailed, January 2nd. Brutal!