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)!

I moved to the east coast 12 years ago.
It cured my SAD. However, I am still conflicted if it was the right move. I miss a lot about the UK, and life is a bit stale/boring at times. Its also outrageously expensive here (Sydney) to buy property, but Perth is cheaper.
I think Australia is great if you like simple, outdoor, laid back family life. If thats not you and you crave variety, you may struggle.
And don't worry about the spiders and snakes. They're honestly a non issue for 99.9% of people here.

I'd choose Australia all day every day it's an easy choice.

I've lived in Australia for 15 years, never lived in the UK (from NZ originally). In your situation I'd be leery of moving, and I LOVE living in Australia. The fact that you are settled and happy somewhere that isn't Australia is the biggest reason not to move. Your kids will be alright, or they can emigrate (and you may choose to follow at that point), but you only have one life. As other posters have suggested, I would consider a sabbatical/exchange of some form if possible to see whether the life suits you before actively committing.

Dh very much misses the National Trust/English Heritage ease of having days out etc. He misses his family deeply.

But, he earns much more here than he would in the UK. We have a better house (no pool but). DD is getting a good education in the Catholic system which costs but Is subsidised to a certain extent. Depending on your visa, you may have to pay for education anyway but you will have choices.

Living in Perth is a two flight trip home. Yes, Qantas does a non stop flight but it only goes to Heathrow. Emirates via Dubai then flies to a number of other UK airports which is much more convenient. We fly to LGW and then it’s 20 minutes and done.

Housing here is extremely tight. Try very hard to have accommodation organised for you if you decide to come. If you buy, from what I read in Mumsnet vs our experience, it’s much easier to over pay. We paid a 30 year mortgage in 14 years.

Western Australia.

As an Australian I'd recommend you stay where you are.
WA is miles away from the rest of Australia. You'll feel it.
Definitely keep your house if you come.
Australia is really expensive and not as good as it used to be.

Clearly someone who came all the way to Aus a d never left Sydney 🙄

If course Australia has seasons ffs. We definitely get summer, autumn, winter and spring here in Melbourne.

Why would you start ANOTHER thread about Australia on MN?? Just another bash Aus thread. Stay in the UK. Please.

Impossible to advise as there are so many factors. I live on the East Coast of Australia. I personally wouldn’t want to live in Perth as I find it a bit boring. However I have friends who’ve moved from UK to Perth who just adore it for the weather, outdoor lifestyle and relaxed pace of life. It is completely different from the UK in almost every way. Whether that’s positive or negative will be down to your perception.

Another friend moved back to the UK because she missed it so much and was desperate for her kids to be ‘English’. As soon as they could they’ve each come back to Australia and complain that she deprived them of growing up on the beach so she could drag them around muddy fields and old castles.

Judging from MN I would say education seems a lot more ‘competitive’ in the UK. In WA it’s basically state/Catholic/private and really just down to how much you want to spend. No cramming for 11+ or any of that. There might be one grammar school in Perth I think? Everywhere else is comprehensive. I was quite shocked when we visited the UK recently and a friend’s 9yo child was doing hours of tutoring every week in prep for 11+. Age wise on the west coast you’ll find it similar to the UK if a little older, whereas in other parts of Australia kids start school at 5.5-6 and don’t go to secondary school until 12-13. There are no significant public exams until 17-18, which again I prefer to the UK system of GCSEs at a much younger age. Just a bit less pressure overall.

Hope this helps.

I wouldn't make the move, it's 6 of one and half a dozen of another.

But if you do, make the move before your oldest child turns 10. From 11 on it gets harder for kids to adjust. Even so, your kids will miss the UK.
I have emigrated with kids (to a different country with 9 months sunshine) and known many people who did. The kids never handle the transition as much as you think they will and as adults they all say it was hard.

My son was 11 when we moved, and he hasn't missed Ireland at all, so this isn't always the case.

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

We travelled round Oz 25 years ago and this happened to us everywhere we went, it got really tiresome.

While we're being all anecdotal, I've lived and worked in Australia for 16 years and have never heard any Australian criticise or make fun of the UK, nor had another Pom mention such a thing.

Well, you are lucky. It happened literally everywhere - I wrote about it in ny diary at the time. We were on campsites so often hanging out with Australians. They were friendly, but seemed utterly unaware that we might not enjoy slagging off the Uk. put me off Australia a bit, although Sydney was one of the nicest cities I've ever been to.

FHS Is this going to be another Australia bashing thread? I'm beginning to get the feeling that people from England are jealous. Give it a rest. It's not heaven on earth but it's pretty bloody wonderful. Can't you lot pick on somewhere else for a change? Try South Africa, India, Malaysia, Sri Lanka etc . Any other Commonwealth country.
You were the colonisers remember! You've got a lot of countries to pick from. Perhaps try one where you didn't decimate ( quite literally ) the population .
Sigh

It's really not that deep.

Oh ! AND STOP BANGING ON ABOUT THE SPIDERS.
Who even started that? NObody who lives in AUstralia knows anybody that has died from a spider.It doesn't happen!!! Gahhhh. It is so fecking annoying. It's like if there was a world wide rumour that hedgehogs kill you. You English folk would laugh at first and then be pissed off. Because it doesn't happen!

I wouldn't do it simply because I do not do heat well but I love Perth.

How old are your children? It's a different education system so easier to switch if they are young.

Australia is an amazing place to raise children, I wouldn't do it anywhere else. Free education which is easily accessed, or pay for private which is much cheaper than in the UK (it's why we moved here). The weather is fabulous, we spend so much time outdoors and even when money is tight we can still go for a walk, enjoy the park etc free of charge. Great healthcare system, I can get a GP appointment today if I want, took my child for a CT scan the day after I rang for an appointment and it was free. Perth is beautiful (and not 'isolated'!). It's only a 5 hour flight from eastern Australia, we have friends who come over a few times a year. Honestly, I would never move back to England, particularly not after all I read on here.

Yeah, it's not a thing in my experience either 🤷‍♀️

Did you really have to start another UK or Aus thread? There's one a week and they are all the same.

90% of people will say stay in UK because spiders, no culture, heat, global warming, no seasons, it gets dark at 7pm, racists, 'funny' houses etc all of which is compete bollocks and based on someone they know who went 'and couldn't wait to leave' or who went on holiday once.

Nothing is forever. Give it go. I think anyone who turns down opportunities is ridiculous.

Not Australia. Climate change!

I live in Perth. We are going through the worst housing crisis we have ever had. It’s even worse that the mining boom we had in about 2009-2010 where it was difficult to get a rental.

You can’t get housing here. Working people are living in their cars and the State govt is encouraging people from overseas to move here.

Stay away. Seriously. Stay away. The State government needs to do something about the housing crisis.

Also, we have deadly spiders, deadly snakes and mosquitoes can give you viruses that can absolutely destroy you for years.

If it's for being close to family then that's a pretty big tick.
However you are settled in the uk which most leaving aren't

I've lived in WA. Lovely for a visit, but a long term relocation should be considered very carefully.

• Very isolated and very Australian, despite the number of expats there. No disrespect intended here. I loved the Aussies (they are truly lovely) however, I'm not one and those cultural differences grew with time. I felt very British / European there and never quite settled in.

• No real, defined seasons (yes it gets very hot during their summer months, but the winter is just blah). I missed the blustery autumns and frosty winters. It was the lack of seasons to took another family member home to the UK.

• it's a long, long way to go have a sunnier lifestyle. If felt that I gave up a lot of culture, ability to visit another country within an hour (at its shortest) from the uk to live there. Your life tends to become insular. I love the fact that I have the option of Europe and the US my doorstep with relatively short flight times in comparison to anywhere from WA.

• family connections are important. Decades away can and do break ties. You'll eventually feel British in Australia and Australian in Britain. Long term, this can lead to feelings of displacement.

I loved my time there but instinctively new it wasn't a forever place for me. I much prefer the diversity of Britain and the options for broader travel in a relatively short space of time (and cost).