to be looking forward to moving back to the UK but to have no clue where to move to?

[BellaAnna]

Hi all!

We are a British family, with two kids, we have lived abroad in Asia for almost ten years, and it looks like we’ll be moving back home to the UK next summer (2022). After having not been home for 2 years thanks to COVID, we’re looking forward to it so much!

But.

I’m from the Home Counties originally, and we lived in the Midlands for almost ten years before moving abroad. I don’t feel any strong pull to go back to either of those areas, and I’m so lost as to where to focus my search for a new home! It’s likely that we’ll be able to work remotely, so we could live literally anywhere in the UK, which is great in terms of property prices, but having that much choice is absolutely paralyzing to me. We don’t have any family ties to any particular area, and our friends are spread over the southern half of the UK... where do I start?!

I’ve never been a parent in the UK, and although I have a 9 and a 6 year old now, it’s been 30 years since I was at school. I’ve no idea where to start with choosing schools, and access to good quality education would be a real priority for us ... my kids are currently at an academically rigorous international school where they’re pushed harder than they would be back home (I think), and they’re performing 1-2 years ahead of age expectations. We’d hate to lose that advantage...

I’m looking for a city or area in England from the Midlands to the south coast where there are great schools (grammar schools if possible), good public transport for my future teenagers to be able to get out and about easily without me having to drive them everywhere, access to nature and green space/countryside walks for dogs (we’re living in a huge city right now and I hate it so much... oh for the green fields of home), and property prices that aren’t so crazy that we’d have to live in a shoebox.

Does such a place exist?

I have to rule out the Home Counties / Surrey / anywhere commutable for London because of house prices I think. Right? What about Bristol or surrounding areas? Exeter? Somerset?

Anyone made a similar move home after a long time abroad and has any tips?

Yeah, good points. Thanks
I feel like remote or at least flexible working could be here to stay for a long while, but really, who knows? 2 years ago we would not have guessed we would be where we are today

@ragged

What is your budget for buying property, OP, and how big a property do you want -- would a 3 bed semi be plenty big enough?

Yeah, I guess not having a defined budget makes it harder. 3 beds would be enough, semi also ok - I’d rather have a smaller house in a nicer area than a huge place in the middle of nowhere! Budget is super flexible at this stage - we own a house already that we’d sell to buy a new one, my dad might move in with us (he has some health issues and being away due to covid is hard) and sell his own place to put something towards a bigger place for all of us ... really it’s like putting a finger in the air right now

@katscamel

Can't really recommend anywhere....parts of Kent are still affordable though and have grammar schools (that aren't highly competitive and where parents dont pay for extra tuition). As someone who recently moved back, good luck. It can actually be far more difficult to get used to UK life than you'd think.

I know... reverse culture shock is real. I’ve loved abroad before, and coming home is always a double edged sword. This time I’m looking forward to it as I hope the move will be mostly on our terms

Great! I’ll definitely look into Salisbury, that all sounds appealing

@ShanghaiDiva

I moved back to the uk last year after 25 years overseas and faced a similar dilemma. Feel free to message me.

Will do! Thanks 😘

@Adreinnesarmy

We lived in the Middle East for four years and found it easier to “sell” the idea of leaving the lifestyle and their friends to our young children with the promise of a coastal move and regular holidays. We looked all over the South Coast and eventually chose Folkestone as it was really vibrant with loads for families to do, great links to family and work opportunities / social life in London (less than an hour), beautiful period housing stock (at affordable prices compared to London / Brighton) and the icing on the cake was the ease of access to the Channel Tunnel which meant that pre covid we could have regular weekends / mini breaks in all over Europe. Been here three years now and can honestly say it is the best move we have ever made and we are so thrilled we stuck our pin in this part of the map.

That also sounds fabulous!

@MyOtherProfile

Might be worth joining local FB groups of places with grammar schools to look at parent experience. Not all grammar schools are good schools.

Yes, thanks! Hopefully I can now narrow down our search area a bit, and join a few groups rather than every group for everywhere 🤣

@zlk02

Hi OP. You don’t say what your housing budget would be?

If you are specifically looking for grammar schools, then it’s Buckinghamshire or Kent, basically. Do be aware though, that although grammars are selective, they’re not all what you might call “super-selective” and you may find a lot of them quite laid back in comparison to what I imagine you’re used to of your are coming from HK or similar. The London grammars are much harder to get into - eg the odds of getting in somewhere like Tiffin Girls in Kingston, or Latymer School in north London might be 1 in about 15; whereas the Bucks Grammar my friend’s DD goes to was more like 1 in 3. Buckinghamshire has some lovely towns on the river, like Marlowe and Henley. I’ve never lived that way, but have visited and it’s a beautiful area.

If you are also considering independent schools, look at the results rankings for GCSE / IB / A-level on the “Best Schools” website. You’ll see most of the best day schools are in London, but there are a few such as The Perse in Cambridge (have you considered Cambridge - a few excellent schools, I think, and one of the top sixth firms called Hills Road)? Oxford might well have similar. The is the King Edward something-or-other school in south Birmingham?

Berkshire and that area is basically boarding school land because it’s where all the Londoners who want flexi or full boarding go. So you have the academic boarding schools such as Wycombe Abbey, St Mary’s, Wellington, Eton etc. What this means is that many of the independent primaries in the area are geared towards these schools and prepare them for Common Entrance exams at 13+, rather than 11+. My friend who lives that way found this - she has no intention of her DC flexi-boarding, but kind of got sucked into it because if the prep school system in that area.

There is Brighton College (obvs near Brighton).

Devon is beautiful and I think there are grammars that way, though much more laid back (probably a good thing).

If you want a southern city with stunning architecture everywhere, then probably - Cambridge, Bath, Oxford. Also fast links into London from those cities which you DC will thank you for later

I don’t know Bristol too well, but people seem to love it.

Thanks for all the info! I didn’t realize that about Berkshire, I’m not up for boarding. I grew up in Buckinghamshire and went to grammar school there, but the house prices are just horrifying. As someone else said earlier, with the flexibility to go anywhere, I’d rather not jump straight back to one of the most expensive property areas

@catndogslife

Very difficult to help without a (rough) idea of your housing budget. There are no state grammar schools in Bristol (Bristol grammar is a private fee paying school) and the best state schools are in the most expensive areas for housing. I know that area fairly well and don't think any of the state schools would have the same vibe as the type of school your dcs have now.

Thanks so much, that’s really helpful

Other grammar areas to add to your list Gloucestershire and the outer southern London boroughs Sutton and Kingston. These are mainly single sex schools though I think so that could narrow your area even more plus the London ones are vicious to get into - dc1 consistently top cohort in his year all through his allegedly high achieving primary school only just did it.

oxford fits all your criteria but sadly probably not budget although some neighbourhoods may be cheaper or outlying towns that are a quick bus ride in. I would forget grammar schools and focus on good local schools to give you more flexibility. and re school - kids work v v hard here for gcse and a levels.

@redgirl1

Oxfordshire but not Oxford (very expensive) , somewhere around Abingdon and they could go to the europa school. Tunbridge Wells in Kent, grammar schools connected to London. It’s really hard to say without knowing your budget.

i thought the europa school closed or was closing. i would 2nd abingdon as I think oxford area is lovely - local state schools are usually fine - it can be about your childrens motivation, home environment and their friends. No shortage of tutors in the area if they get stuck on any subject. Kidlington also a quick bus ride into town. oxford i mean. I think budget ballpark is helpful and the neighbourhood you are ok to live in.

so if you lived outside of oxford (again budget?) the v academic schools are MCS (boys until 6th form) and Oxford High (girls) . Selective to get into - Abingdon independent also selective but not as hard. V V V pushy and if you will have to leave if your marks are not high enough - ie if you get mostly As rather than A*s at GCSE you are out. MCS is very competitive to get into. and high pressure.