To want to move back to the uk

[Huldas]

Have been in New Zealand many years, husband is a kiwi and kids were born here. My DDs are 7 and 10 now and I don't think the education system here compares to the uk. Standards for educational achievement are just not as high. Plus I want DDs to have a sense of their UK heritage. And I am very homesick. Dh has lived in the UK before, we could both get good jobs in the UK assuming we can get dh a visa (not easy when in 40s)
But- logistically is giant hassle to move back, I have no family in the UK at the moment, and right now it is just me who wants this. DH and DDs are quite happy here.
Would it be unreasonable to pursue this? Do my concerns re education/heritage have any actual grounds?
Any advice appreciated (including areas to move to- am originally from Devon, want to avoid London if poss.)

Sydney has more rain than London, and that's a fact.

Yet something must be different, because NSW has been on the verge of official drought for several summers now, and London hasn't been.

You've clearly never been to Australia if you think the weather in the UK is comparable. It isn't.

Enjoy your "shine".

Yes, those four hours are wonderful. And then you only have to wait another year until the next time.

I was about to say that it's a fair point about the weather. When the sun comes out, I might as well treat into a coffin because of the effect it has on me. But DW, who is not from the UK would immediately remind me, as all Kiwis do, about how in London one can have day after day of overcast skies, and in winter, permanent greyness.

It does rain here, but it all falls at once, not constantly over a week.

I think if you are lucky enough to have a beautiful and safe place to live, lovely friends, a good job, good schools/family and a variety of social and cultural events and activities to enjoy then you are going to be very happy indeed in life. I have all this and more living in the UK.

What I have found though is that people who moan a lot often moan a lot wherever they live and they take their gripes with them even when they emigrate.

When I was in NZ I was shocked at how many racist ill educated Brits who had moved there because of the high rate of immigration in the UK; not realising how hypocritical they were being in becoming immigrants themselves!

When I was in Canada and the U.S I couldn't get over the reliance on the car/materialistic/fast food culture and billboards everywhere and the frightening normalcy of morbid obesity.

In Africa/Asia it was painfully clear that women just didn't have the same opportunities as women in the West and that marriage and children were pretty much the be all and end all and to that end only you were judged.

In the Middle East the fact that we have bright, lush green grass growing everywhere without achieving it by artificial, unsustainable means has given me an appreciation of just how lucky we are to have a mild climate and an abundance of fresh water, the world's most precious asset.

The fact that we would not die of an untreated broken leg; can choose who we marry; can walk around without an escort; can actually see hens and cows on pasture and not all locked away in factory farms and barns; makes me believe that so many people born here just take too much for granted.

There are many reasons why migration is so high to the UK . You won't really appreciate it though, until you leave.

There is a reason why there is such a shortage of eligible young men in NZ and domestic violence is shockingly high in NZ but you won't find those sorts of statistics unless you delve beyond the glossy Emigrate magazines.

New Zealand's climate is similar to the UK (slightly hotter, slightly less cold than our weather here but bloody windy and often wet). However, due to the South Pole Ozone Hole (not excessive sunshine as some on here seem to think), New Zealand now has the world's highest level of melanoma skin cancer. It has no comparable NHS, and medical care is expensive, six thousand NZ dollars for a hearing aid for example.

I witnessed the worst poverty in a developed country that I've ever seen in New Zealand. We have underprivileged kids here in the UK, but we don't have kids who don't own a pair of shoes (I've seen this more than once over there).

Earthquakes are common enough there to have drills in schools. Food in supermarkets is expensive, and the best quality stuff is exported. I really resented paying three times what I would in the UK for wind-blemished fruit. Considering the country specialises in beef and lamb, a joint of meat is eye wateringly expensive.

The grass may be green in New Zealand (that'd be the rain) but it ain't greener than here. Don't buy into the Marketing.

New Zealand now has the world's highest level of melanoma skin cancer.

Unfortunately, this title still belongs to Aus.

Was New Zealand in 2016 according to the Guardian www.theguardian.com/world/2016/mar/31/new-zealand-highest-rate-melanoma-skin-cancer

My NZ friends and family either have had bits cut off themselves, or else know someone with melanoma, it's tragically endemic.

www.nzherald.co.nz/family-violence/news/article.cfm?c_id=178&objectid=11634543

Oh, you're right Sleep We lost it to NZ in 2016.

I know a hell of a lot of people who've had skin cancers too, but we've had pervasive "slip, slop, slap" sunscreen etc. campaigns for a couple of decades now so perhaps they're finally having an impact.

menz.org.nz/2010/why-the-man-drought/

www.aimatmelanoma.org/about-melanoma/melanoma-stats-facts-and-figures/

menz.org.nz/2010/why-the-man-drought/

There's some serious whacko crap on that site.

I mean there isn’t much you can do if you’re the only one that wants to move. It’s a hard one. There will definitely be a heavy adjustment period and by the sounds of it, you may be starting over socially? The girls will lose all their friends and will be in for a complete lifestyle change. It will be tough. It just depends if you would be happy with your new life once the dust has settled - there’s a lot of variables in place

I think you should discuss this with your husband and at the very least, tell him that you’re homesick and want to visit the uk more often.

I haven't read everyone's responses but I am married to a kiwi. I lived there for three years. I never settled and we moved back ten years ago. I was so much happier and my DH luckily likes it here. I didn't have kids yet so that was easier but I do now. I don't regret it for one second..NZ is not that great in my opinion!

Yes it is a fact that Sydney has more precipitation than London. NSW may well be experiencing drought conditions, but it doesn't detract from this known fact. There is plenty of data available out there. Not only does Sydney have more precipitation, they have more wet days too!
"There are more rainy days in Miami (at 135) and Orlando, Florida (117) than there are in London. New York City clocks in at 122 days and 1,268mm of rain. Washington DC, Rio de Janeiro, Sydney, and Mexico City all have more rainy days on average in any given year than London"
I guess where our perception of weather is concerned, we Londoners are the glass half empties...and the Aussies must be glass half full

Sydney also has a shitload more warmth, though. It’s not all about precipitation. It rains in Sydney because it’s hot and humid.

I’ve lived in both Sydney and London, and the dark, cold, greyness of the latter drove me to depression.

Well I guess we must be just naturally happy people then!

Anyone who would move from New Zealand to the UK for a higher standard of educational achievement is completely delusional.

Either that, or have the money to spend on school fees for two children.

£50,000+ per year for two children in a good independent school would probably buy a higher standard of educational achievement than in an average NZ school.

£50,000+ per year for two children in a good independent school would probably buy a higher standard of educational achievements than in an average NZ school.

You can pay a lot less than that and go private in NZ.

SleepOhHowIMissYou

New Zealand's climate is similar to the UK (slightly hotter, slightly less cold than our weather here but bloody windy and often wet). However, due to the South Pole Ozone Hole (not excessive sunshine as some on here seem to think),

There are far more clear days in NZ. An overcast day is rare.

New Zealand now has the world's highest level of melanoma skin cancer.

Probably because it's a much more outdoor culture than the UK. People are out in the sun, playing sport.

It has no comparable NHS, and medical care is expensive, six thousand NZ dollars for a hearing aid for example.

It has a health service run on precisely the same lines as the NHS, although like the NHS not everything is funded. So, what you say isn't true. It may not be the best in the world, but neither is the NHS.

I witnessed the worst poverty in a developed country that I've ever seen in New Zealand. We have underprivileged kids here in the UK, but we don't have kids who don't own a pair of shoes (I've seen this more than once over there).

It's normal for NZ kids to be barefoot and it doesn't imply poverty. They don't have dodge turds, sick, broken glass like they do in the UK.

My kids often go out without shoes. We earn far more than the UK average.

Earthquakes are common enough there to have drills in schools.

But we don't have to worry about terrorists.

Food in supermarkets is expensive, and the best quality stuff is exported. I really resented paying three times what I would in the UK for wind-blemished fruit. Considering the country specialises in beef and lamb, a joint of meat is eye wateringly expensive.

Tell me where you were shopping so I can avoid it. I'd say the quality of raw produce is better here: local and seasonal.

The grass may be green in New Zealand (that'd be the rain)

Which falls all at one, not in a steady drizzle over a week.

but it ain't greener than here. Don't buy into the Marketing.

You think the UK doesn't market itself?

The high rate of skin cancer in NZ is not just do to an outdoor lifestyle, it’s a problem with the ozone layer there. That’s what we were told by my Dh’s colleagues in the hospital he was working in.

And yes we found our weekly shop in NZ was much more expensive than in the UK, with less choice of produce too. Household goods, furniture, soft furnishings etc all more expensive too. Not a problem if you love it there obviously, then it’s worthwhile. For me it was just more reasons to be fed up there.

It depends on what you want. If you want fresh, seasonal produce over something that has been grown in a greenhouse, transported across the world, and sold in plastic packet, NZ is best. Otherwise, the UK.

I do accept that there is a better range and better value of processed goods in the UK. For me, that was a benefit as by moving here I cooked from scratch more and improved my diet no end. I also learned to make a lot of stuff that I couldn't buy.

And while I do accept the existenc of the ozone hole, there really is no denying that part of the reason is that people are simply outdoors enjoying themselves. I spent most of yesterday evening out playing cricket. It's very normal for people to play a couple of sports.

While I love returning to the UK to visit family, I do start climbing the walls after a couple of weeks because the weather forces you to spend all your time inside because it's mizzling or drizzling or something like that, and there's a permanent chill in the wind. At least in the south east, the only time it's not like that from memory is high summer, and then the weather can be absolutely stifling because of the comparatively extremely high levels of pollution.

As for furniture, soft furnishings etc: just buy cheaper and shop around for the sales that NZ stores seem to have every other week.

Nope, not the UK I know, not even the south east. And people do get outdoors, there are a lot of phone starers and spectator sport fans but many actually do stuff.

The lack of seasonal food in the supermarkets ( except aldi) is true though . partly driven by stupid demand, e..g people on foolish diets that demand fresh berries year round and so on. We need to learn that some stuff is not available year round.