Help for EU GP friend

[singlelayer]

Hello all,

My first post here.

I'm posting to get information for a friend I've been helping. She's a married 30-something Eastern European with 3 children and well-educated. She is due to sign a contract for her first job as a GP in London, following a tough 3-day interview process. She is currently living in the north of England in a very cheap area of the country, so London will be a big change for her.

To make matters worse, she is in a somewhat abusive relationship and is quite fearful of her husband who has moved his own parents into their rented home (I explained this may affect her current benefits situation). They are all unskilled and do not approve of her career, nor any career in fact as her place is 'in the home'. Hmm...

She attempted divorce in her home country recently during a visit to her ex-Professor who had to complete some references for the GMC/NHS, but both parties must remain in the country whilst this takes place (and the children were at, and are settled in, school here...with husband staying in the UK to take care of them whilst she dealt with said references).

I'm doing my best to help her out of the current predicament, with a more longer-term and viable solution, as her current plan is to commute to London for five days, returning on weekends because she cannot afford to live permanently in London on her starting salary of £36k. I'm trying to find a way she can leave her husband and take the children with her, setting up in London more permanently. She has no idea about childcare options here (and to be honest, neither do I as I don't have children) and is content to spend much of her money on simple housing and surviving for the time being as pay rises will come in time. If she cannot make this work, I'm worried that she will end up wasting a potential (and noble) career, get a job in the local factories and remain in an abusive and controlling relationship.

That's a lot to take in, but does anyone have any advice on any part of this? Is she likely to be able to live in London as a single professional with three children and just £36k?

Thank you lovely people in advance.

London is a big place with hugely varying fees for everything so an area maybe helpful. As many live on way less than this I guess yes it is possible.
The ages of the children also makes a difference as varying options are available.

Thanks jannier.

I believe it's Hounslow and the children are 10 (almost 11), 5 and 4.

Hounslow is one of the cheaper London boroughs for property/accommodation although some parts (eg. Chiswick) are more pricy than others.

Suggest she searches online or 'phones a number of estate/letting agents to do some research.

Likewise, call lots of different childcare providers to find out about fees, availability, terms, etc. The borough's Family Services Directory listing is at fsd.hounslow.gov.uk .

She absolutely must get good legal advice if she is planning to separate against her partner's wishes. Assuming he has legal parental responsibility, she will struggle to get proper registered childcare without him co-signing all the forms and consents required by nurseries/childminders. Similarly, a childcare setting would be legally obliged to hand the children over to him if he turned up and said he was collecting them.

If she's earning £36k she'll be doing 2 days a week as a GP, going rate is about £9k per half day per year. So why would she need to be in London for five days?

£36k? Why so low? The GPs i know are on way way more than that

@wizzywig it may be a scheme where you only do two days a week, I am aware of some and that would be about the right salary.

I thought it seemed low, but this is her first job since qualifying (she was undertaking specialty training in Romania whilst figuring out her next step and decided to make the move to the UK and abandon the specialty training).

From what I can understand she was registered with a UK recruitment agency for GPs and she was given a choice of Norfolk, London or somewhere else I can't recall at the moment. £36k is the start pay and she's expecting to work up to six days per week. They will loan some money to get her started, but that's about it.

She had a three-day interview and dinner with the GMC the other week and passed, so is due to sign her contract shortly.

I do hope this is not a case of the the GMC/NHS/recruitment agency taking advantage of Eastern Europeans with regards salary...

OK, so she isn't a qualified GP, shes a few years out of med school with no specialist qualification?

That would make the salary more realistic.

If shes working in Hounslow she could look at living in South Hillingdon- south Hayes rates are around £4 to £5 an hour there is a bus route to Hounslow or go to Hatton Cross Tube. Rent is around £1000 for a small flat Or along into Harmondsworth, Colnbrooke or slough.

Thank you, jannier.