Moving to the U.K. for a year? What do I need to know?

[hummmuna]

Posting here for traffic.
My job has asked me to move to the U.K. for the year. We were hoping for a September move to coincide with a new school year. My dh is ok with this and he has had permission from his job (in Ireland) to work from home, from the U.K.

So we have started to look for somewhere to rent and near schools so dh can collect dc. And then we won't need childcare. What do I need to know about bills in the U.K.? Our only bill is here electricity and mortgage. We don't have water bills. What is the average water bill for a 3 bed house? What else do I need to know?

We have 2 dc and one will be in what I can see as year2 as she is in her 2nd year of schooling here now so if she starts there in September it will be year2. The youngest will go straight to reception. Eldest is just turned 7 now and the youngest is 5 in July.

What else do I need to do/be aware of? Thank you

Scotland has proper catchments I believe. You mean moving to England? Our school admissions are strange..

When I say bills I mean utilities 🙈

Yes it's England...sorry I don't know why I put U.K. it's a specific place in the U.K. where my work is based

Why are school admissions strange @OneEpisode? 🙈

If your eldest is 7 now, they will be in year 3 in September. Likewise, your youngest will be in year 1 if they are 5 in July.

Water bills can sometimes be rates, on an older property, which are a fixed amount payable however much you use; or on new properties or those which have had one added subsequently, it's on a water meter where how much you pay will depend on how much you use.

If the water is on a meter then youll pay for what you use. Youll also have to pay for gas, council tax, possible tv and internet packages (sky, bt, netflicks, wifi), house insurance (contents only if youre renting).
These are the ones that immediately come to mind!

Another bill we have to pay is council tax. This varies, according to the local council and the rating of whichever property you live in.

@Kittytheteapot but how can she skip a year?? Surely she would be out of her depth? She is in a creche/Montessori now. Same with eldest!! 😬

Some areas have a separate sewage bill to a different company.

Gas, electric, water
Council tax
Home insurance
Tv license, internet, tv
Rent, mortgage

Money Savings Expert has a table of the regions, water (usually water and sewerage) varies. Maybe £400 year combined.
Council rates have been replaced with council tax, which is higher for more valuable homes.

@Ilikewinter thank you! my work are paying my wifi and phone bills. So that's not included.

So is it easy enough to look up council tax rates if I go to the particular council of where we will be living??**@Ilikewinter* @Kittytheteapot*

Yes you're out on your school years, your eldest will be in year 3 and your youngest in year 1.

Do you not have council tax in Ireland? That varies depending on area/house, we pay £280 a month. Water (we pay £80 a month), gas, electric, phone/broadband/TV (depending on what you want), contents insurance (if renting).

@supadupapupascupa

Gas, electric, water Council tax Home insurance Tv license, internet, tv Rent, mortgage

All of the above plus-

Mobile phone with a UK provider.

If you're in Ireland just now, it might be worthwhile getting a dual sim mobile handset.

We won't be getting a mortgage as we will be returning to Ireland. This position is only for a year to gain experience in a certain area of the company. They have mentioned paying some/all of the rent. I just need clarification on that

[quote hummmuna]@Kittytheteapot but how can she skip a year?? Surely she would be out of her depth? She is in a creche/Montessori now. Same with eldest!! 😬[/quote]
If you are only here for a year, the local education authority might be prepared to make an exception for your children, but generally speaking, the school year runs from Sept to Aug, and a child who is 7 by 31st Aug in any given year would start year 3 in Sept.

Yes year 3 and year 1 in September. Both would be In Year admissions (unless the area has stand alone junior schools with year 3 entry) and the younger particularly may only be admitted if the year group is not full under Infant Class Size rules. It may not be possible for both to attend the same school,

You will need to register to pay council tax and you can often do this online

If you move in September then you’ll have 7 months to pay, as the tax year goes from April to March. It may take the council a couple of months to send the bill, so it’s worth putting a couple of hundred pounds a month away to budget for this tax

If you watch live tv or bbc on catch up you need a tv licence

@heathergem I will be getting a work phone. I will keep my Irish one too! @Thislittlefinger123 no council tax here no.

Whereabouts are you moving to as costs will vary , I would also check out the schools and what yr your children will be going into before making any decisions . It seems like quite a lot of hassle just for a year to me ,especially as Ireland to the UK won’t be a great benefit to your dc from a culture POV IYSWIM .

Although technically it may seem odd to jump a year, the curriculum may be similar to what they would have in Ireland rather than more advanced.

Your big issue is finding a school with space. We always get people moving to our area and posting on the Facebook community 'what's the best school, we've been to look at 4...' and getting the response 'um, you get the school you're within 100m of, you don't actually choose it'

Children start reception from age4 in England, so if your child is age5 in July, they will be slotted into Year1 in September, so they are in a class of their peers.

I'm worried about the school years now. I can't really have them moving up a year they will be out of their depth completely!! Dd5 doesn't know letter sounds at all yet as she hasn't started so how can they put her in year1? 😫