If you had a choice between Western Australia and North East England, which would you choose and why?

[Glitteryrosette]

NC for this as could be outing.

I have potentially got the opportunity to emigrate to Western Australia with DH and my two primary age DC. I have close family out there who would be relatively nearby (in Australian terms- a sibling less than an hour away and a parent 4 hours away).

I currently live in a lovely house (mortgaged but at least we are on property ladder) in a place I love, with lots of close family on the doorstep (including my other parent and in-laws). My two DC enjoy their school and are settled and happy.

I am finally in a position where I am progressing my career, making good connections with other professionals (crucial for my role), have paid off my student debt (it cost me £50k to qualify!), and all being well I will be promoted in the next year or two. I love my job and the people I work with. My commute is manageable.

About 12 years ago DH and I considered a move down under, but at the time I had only just qualified, had a lot of debt, and I would have had to do it all again to do the same role in Australia, which put me off and we decided to stay put. Then we had our first DC.

Following Brexit, the pandemic, the cost of living and the state of the UK generally, we are now considering whether we should make the move to Australia before it is too late in terms of both our ages (im late 30's, DH is early 40's) and before eldest DC starts high school. Whilst I would probably have to do some form of studying, I no longer would have to re qualify, but I would need to have my qualifications assessed by the equivalent Australian governing body, and would inevitably be in a slightly junior role and have to prove myself before any chance of promotion. So career wise, a move would set me back a good 3 years or so.

However, my family in Australia, who have just spent a month in the UK, cannot believe the state of things over here, and reiterated all the opportunities available in Australia, and how much better life would be for us and our DC.

I have visited Australia, and loved WA. Perth in particular. It is beautiful and a great city. So is the surrounding area. My DH lived in Australia for a year before we met and is desperate to make the move. He LOVED it.

But I love this little pocket of the UK. I am feeling torn. Would life really be better for my DC in Australia both now and in their future? I am happy to make sacrifices for my children but only if I am fairly confident they will pay off.

DH and I have both put feelers out with potential employers in WA, and (to our surprise!) there has been interest in both of us and we are waiting for an emigration consultant to get in touch.

I would be interested in hearing the opinions and thoughts of others, especially those with primary age DC who have made the move (either way)!

Perth would get my vote every time! In the last 7 years we’ve been to Perth twice both times for 4 weeks. We are kicking ourselves now that we never emigrated. Like you, our lives were/are in the UK our kids were happy in school, on our last trip our eldest was Yr8 in secondary school. I am positive that my kids will end up emigrating, they loved everything about Perth - amazing beaches, the weather, the space, the pool! Yes, it’s the other side of the world but there are direct flights that only take about 17 hours.

Depends if you like suburbia. Then definitely go to Perth. But it’s social suicide of sorts. I have many friends that kind of went depressed with the isolation. Great place to visit tough.

Their recent emergency laws resemble a dictatorship.

Higher interest rates than here.

If you are happy here I would not spoil it.

I would stay put. Think of elderly parents needing your support. You never know what is just around the corner. I can understand the pull factor. It's exciting, new, different from the chaos in this country.

You won't be popping back once or twice per year with primary age kids.

It depends on your cultural interests. Personally I wouldn't give up the UK and its proximity to Europe. WA sounds a bit cut off culturally.

I’d probably go for Australia. Yes there’s the risk of unpleasantness re global warming but equally Europe could erupt into war, etc etc.

But for me it would depend on the specifics. Like by North East England do you mean York, which is lovely, or somewhere more like Ilkeston?

And significantly fewer venomous bitey things. As long as you don't go clubbing, at any rate.

My perception is that there are also fewer lethally bitey things in NZ, though.

So many interesting comments, thank you everyone.

To try and answer some questions:

I am in Northumberland, not York or Ilkeston.

I have spent 6 weeks in WA, and 4 weeks in Queensland (near NSW border). Much preferred WA, despite my sister (who I am very close to) living in QLD with her DH and 3 DC. I haven't factored my sister bring in QLD in as it is so far from Perth it may as well be the other side of the world.

But my brother would be nearby and I am close to him. Less so with my Dad, but he would be there if I ever needed him.

My brother is a very high earner (he works in mining) and I am worried that skews his view of his wonderful life in WA is? Although he owns a 4 bed, huge house with a pool and land near Perth and based on the current exchange rate, paid £100k less than we paid for a modest new build. Sickening. He also works 2 weeks on, 2 weeks off.

Climate change is not something I had considered so that's a really good point. My dad said it was 45 degrees the other day. That's flippin hot. I was sick of the heat wave we had last summer but we only have a small fan for relief. But everywhere has air conditioning out there, and the houses are much better designed for a hot summer.

One of my big concerns is that I love the British culture. I live in an area with sooo many castles, Viking history, gorgeous beaches, rolling countryside etc. I really do love this area.

I am very close to my family who are here.

I guess the only reason I'm seriously considering a move is for a better future for my DC. But I had not thought about leaving them as adults in Australia if I came back later and again, that's a really good point. My sister has this issue. She is still homesick after 16 years but she married an Australian and her kids are Australian through and through. But she admits her kids have a wonderful life and she noticed the difference over the last month. None of her kids or their friends have a mobile phone, are bothered about fashion or designer brands etc. She does live rurally though. It could be completely different in a city.

The threat of war in Europe terrifies me.

The threat of fire and drought would terrify me.

I think I would get a bit bored with Bali type holiday destinations...

I suppose it comes down to: is Australia really going to provide a better life for my children?

@NeverDropYourMooncup

In a nutshell- yes

The eastern cities are very far away from my dad, brother and sister. So i would be more isolated from them if you see what I mean. My job means I am unlikely to find work initially outside one of the big cities, so Perth is really the only option.

If you go, I'd urge you to rent out your house here and move for a couple of years to make up your minds. Kids can move about during secondary school if necessary. That way you have a great family adventure and can come back to a life you also love, or decide - when there - that you really do want to stay more permanently.

Good luck.

None of her kids or their friends have a mobile phone, are bothered about fashion or designer brands etc. She does live rurally though. It could be completely different in a city.

I have teenage nieces in Perth and this does not reflect their life at all. But they have to get a lot from the UK.

I know of kids on their phones constantly in WA 24/7. Don’t be fooled. Here they might bump into each other if in a little market town there. Good luck. Isolation station.

@Glitteryrosette My DH and I lived and worked in Sydney for 3 years, and decided to come home before starting a family. It was a finely balanced decision, but things on the list of 'cons' for staying in Oz were:

• We missed European culture - beaches and bbqs are great, but get a bit samey after a while.
• We missed European seasons - Australia doesn't have a Spring or Autumn.
• Australians get much less annual leave - so it's difficult to get away for long breaks back to the uk unless you save it up.
• It was a few years ago, but at that time many young Australians were heading for Europe - we imagined a future where our kids grew up, came to Europe and stayed. We didn't like the idea of growing old in Oz without them, not being able to afford to move back here (though the house prices have evened up a bit since then!).
• We got a bit fed up of people telling us we were in "god's own country" and slagging off the uk. I think they expected us to agree with them, but it made us feel defensive.

There were more I can't remember, and an equally long list of good reasons to stay too. Either way, there will be benefits and disbenefits. We loved our time there but have never regretted moving back.

I love living in the NE and could not cope with the Australian weather, I'd also hate being so isolated. It's not like you can pop to Europe for a weekend break, or equivalent, from Australia.

@Glitteryrosette one more thing. Don't assume you will be immune from war in Australia. They are vulnerable to aggression from China. Google it.

Perth is very isolated. I’ve found those from there who have emigrated to the UK to be very insular. That’s understandable, given its location and connectivity. Personally, I wouldn’t want that for my DC. Don’t overlook how cosmopolitan and outward looking the UK has become.

I don’t think your reasons for going to WA are compelling enough. It’s not a “nothing” move. It’s a huge, huge culture gap and physical move. I wouldn’t do it, or even consider it (especially as you’ve only ever been there to visit). As ever, just because you can, doesn’t mean you should.

Hands down, Western Australia.

Perth is better than the East Coastvfor regular UK travel.

You sound very settled so it’s a big call.

It's on fire a lot and is full of spiders that can kill you, so no.

(I like UK spiders.)

See, the thing with wanting to do the right thing for your children's future is that you don't know what future they will choose. So, my uncle lives in Australia (east coast) and his job means he earns triple what he would here. However, my job is such that there would be no demand for my skills in Australia. The place to go for my particular sector is the Middle East. I do plan to look for a job there once my DC are in uni as I would earn enough to pay off my mortgage, but I don't want to raise my DC there.

I'm rambling, but my point (badly made) is that the path your children choose might be one that is underpaid in Australia, or maybe even non existent! Or it may be great, none of us know either way. It makes sense to make a move that pushes YOUR own earning potential forward. But we really can't see far ahead into the future to make such decisions on our children's behalf.

Just my tuppence.

Well I moved from Ireland to Perth in 2013, and my only regret is that I didn't do it sooner! We absolutely love it here and having visited Sydney and Melbourne are very happy we didn't move to the East coast. Our wages are much higher here, and we have managed to progress much faster than In Ireland (and before that London). We bought a beautiful 4 bedroomed house with a pool five mins from the beach, and our quality of life is much higher than in either Ireland or the UK, even before Brexit etc. Please just ignore people banging on about spiders etc, I hate spiders as much as they next person but seldom see them. The weather is amazing, it hasn't hit 45 this year in Perth, maybe up north where the FIFO work is? It does get hot though, but its usually only goes over 40 a handful of times a year, and we have low humidity so heat is bearable at much higher temps than you would be used to. But I wouldn't recommend it if you aren't a sun lover, as its pretty much blue skies for at least nine months a year (which means I no longer suffer from SAD).

Anyway, its horses for courses really, it sounds like you have a pretty nice life already (as did I). And its a decision only you can make, emigration isn't easy and it doesn't suit everyone. But for me it was the best move I ever made. Good luck with your decision.

Personally, my dream is to live on the Northumberland coast!

However, a move to Australia doesn't have to be forever. Maybe think about it in terms of staying 5 years or whatever, and then see how things are then.

Is it possible for you to keep your house in UK and rent it out, maybe even as a holiday home? Then you still have a home to come back to if you do decide to come back - or sell later if you decide to say in WA.

I’d miss the history and culture of Europe too much; we are incredibly lucky to have it all on our doorstep. I love Australia, for holidays, but I always remember flying over Oz and seeing nothing but barren earth, for hours and hours. In that flight time we could visit probably 50 different countries from the UK!