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3 under 3 in Hong Kong? Schools, accom, HELP!

8 replies

TwoandahalfGirls · 16/05/2011 12:56

I am new to this, my husband has an eye on a position in HK end 2012, beginning 2013. We are at a fairly solid stage now where monies, visa, etc. has been agreed. He'd move within the company.

We have moved before but only with one child, now there are 3 under 3 and I'm quite intimidated by a move to somewhere like Hong Kong (currently in Europe).

I know the city from my student years but not much beyond LKF and various places on Mid Levels. If this has been done so many times I apologise for the repetition but I am fairly intimidated yet cannot see him moving on his own.

What schools should I look at? What areas are great for families but close to commute to Central where my husband will work? What nurseries are available for my middle child (would like Mandarin immersion) but if it's too rigorous an approach (like in Singapore, very school like, then I'd balk). European staff is important to us.

I basically have no idea where to look apart from expatsabroad and geoexpat but couldn't really get any candid views and honest advice.

Please mumsnetters in HK, help me.

OP posts:
TwoandahalfGirls · 16/05/2011 12:57

PS: will nip out now but back in a few hours. I will avidly follow all advice. Thank you.

OP posts:
beijingaling · 16/05/2011 13:57

I don't actually live in HK but I have friends who do and I'm in the area.

The first thing you need to remember is that rent is high and you don't get a lot of space for your money. IMO the very best place for families is Discovery Bay (DB) as there is a direct ferry 20min to central, schools, lots of families, lots of space to play outside, a community atmosphere, cars are banned (there are buses or it's small enough to walk), the pollution is lower and... well it's just fantastic. If you're looking for a "local" experience it won't be for you but I would move there in a heartbeat

Wish I could help more with HK but I don't know it much better than that for all of the shopping I've done there over the years.

I really would say go for it.

TheBride · 16/05/2011 14:40

Hi there

I live in HK. Don't panic. It's actually a very easy and friendly city to live in, once you get past the eye watering rents, and you have ages to plan.

To stop me just rambling on about the different areas for ages, can I ask

  • what is your housing budget?
  • how long are you planning to stay?
  • do you like city living or would you prefer rural?
  • are you going to have a car?

re housing, the issue is that I have no idea where rents will be once you arrive, as it's still 18 mths away, and 18 mths ago, rents were 40% lower than they are now so things change fast. However, I can give you an idea based on current prices.

The overriding thing is that however much you have, you'll probably be disappointed by what it can buy you. HK prices are 2 x Central London. You really do have to adjust expectations. Children usually share bedrooms and houses are few and far between. My advice would be to embrace that avocado 1970's bathroom suite Grin and move here anyway!

On schools, Kellett is the British International school and it's in Pok Fu Lam on HK Island. You need to get all your children's names down asap and then it's possibly too late for the older one without a debenture. However, fear not. There is another option- the ESF schools, which operate on a catchment system and which only start taking applications a year before the child starts. HK Academy also operates this system (and has a really nice vibe IMO). There are also a bunch of other international schools which are either English speaking (Canadian/Australian), or have English speaking streams (e.g. German-Swiss).

The Explorer Series' "Residents Guide to HK" is a useful place to start planning.

ColletteC · 17/05/2011 12:50

TheBride,

I totally agree with the avocado bathroom suite theme. In our first apartment in Repulse Bay we had the daily pleasure of viewing a royal blue and gold accented accessoried bathroom. Great landlady, but shocking decor.

We live on Southside, and when I first arrived 4 years ago I was amazed at the overall lack of storage space in apartments/houses. Now I have a 3 year old son and have found that even when you move into a larger place, the toys etc just expands to fit the space, rather like Polyfilla.

TwoandahalfGirls

There are plenty of pre-schools here. My son attends an American style bilingual school every morning (total immersion 90 mins Mandarin and 90 mins English) and he adores the teachers, lessons and mixing with the other children. The only thing I would say is that it can be easy to be caught up in the one-upmanship of children's education. I've tried not to be drawn into the whole "my child is a genius isn't yours" or "you've left it too late to apply to xyz school" culture. As long as my son is happy and progressing, I do not really mind which school he attends next.

You could try looking at AsiaXpat website for other viewpoints. We adore HK, yes there are times that we miss the UK, but the positives far outweigh the negatives.

TwoandahalfGirls · 23/05/2011 08:12

Thank you for your answers. Just got back to reading them.

Well our housing budget would be around 150-180k USD. We are planning to stay about 3 years, optional 2 years extra if we really enjoy it. We will have a car, my husband is thinking about getting a driver.

I have a good group of friends in Soho, Mid-Levels but all of them are single and basically spending their weekends at the RHKYC and Dragon I, etc. So I really have no idea what to expect and who to ask in terms of childcare, schools, nurseries, etc.

While I'd prefer a rural lifestyle with space for the kids and green areas, nice families around, etc. I have to bear my husband's commute in mind and the occasional night out so do not want to be far away or inconveniently located from Central. I think I'm not keen on the 'local experience' Blush

BG, I have visited Beijing a few times...hats off to you for living there! [admiring emoticon]

TheBride: I had to laugh at th 1970's avocado bathroom...my parents have one!! I'm not sure about my kids sharing bedrooms as I'd fear for them and what they may do to each other. They are simply too small. I think I'll never get a full night's sleep again if I do that... Thank you for the recommendations re schools. I will look into this straightaway.

What is Aberdeen like to live in? Or Repulse Bay?

Collette, the school your son goes to sounds lovely. I agree, as long as he's happy there who cares about that old game "My child attends xyz and yours...??" It's only primary school we're looking at anyway. How do I find a nice pre-school, nursery though? My searches have come up with nothing so far.

Thank you for all your advice!

OP posts:
ComradeJing · 23/05/2011 14:12

(This is Beijingaling btw)

Yes, there are days I feel I should be given a small medal for living here. What makes it worse is this July I will have lived here for SIX years. Shock

It really depends if you are happy living in a flat or if you want a house. HK island = flat unless you have really silly money.

You're not going to have any kind of "rural" lifestyle (ie a house with garden) unless you're willing to go out to NT somewhere where you'll need a car and driver. Your husband will have a pain in the arse commute every day and a night out is the same.

I honestly would look at DB again. With that size budget you would be able to get at least a semi-d with garden. I know a ferry commute sounds like a pain but if he is working in central then he will step off the ferry into central and then a car could always meet him there. Ferry runs 24 hour and you'll find it easy to meet people too.

Do you need your DC to go to a pre-school for childcare/socializing/or just to get started on education? What about just a helper and maybe a tutor?

Best of luck.

LadyPenelope · 23/05/2011 15:10

Twoandahalfgirls. Sounds like you know a bit about HK, so apologies if any of this is teaching you to suck eggs!

The housing budget you mention is good and you'd have a good range of places to choose from including most expat friendly areas in HK island, Sai Kung/ClearWater Bay, New Territories and also Discovery Bay. You'd probably get a house in Sai Kung and DB and NT. For HK island, a decent sized flat, probably with 4 beds.

I've lived in a few places on HK island and also on DB - all good depending on what you like. Only way will be for you to look yourself and make the trade off for your family - because they do all need some kind of trade off.

For DB your husband, and possibly your kids (depending on schools you choose) would need to commute - it's not too bad - a very pleasant 30 min ferry ride, but it very much depends on where they need to get to after that. So can be a 1 hour commute each way once at office/school. I never minded it - read heaps of novels - but in my experience it can put you off doing stuff on the island at weekends. On DB, currently 2 primary school options, and only 1 secondary school option. And it is a bit sterile (but still very nice as long as you like it!).

But you might prefer island - you probably wouldn't get house, but nice flats and also older buildings but large flats would be in your price range, including places like Pokfulam (15 mins to central), Repulse Bay and Stanley. (Plus mid levels of course, but think you may find that a bit urban based on your comments.)

Schools are extremely difficult to get places right now. Your husband should immediately start discussing this with his employer - this is likely to be your biggest headache, so it's not too early to look into this. And if possible you should come visit and get names down, find out if company have debentures etc. For English System - ESF (primary and secondary on catchment basis but still waiting lists for most schools and years), Kellett (primary from reception and secondary up to Y 8 or 9 I think). Kellett very unlikely to get place in primary unless you have debenture. Secondary may be poss as they have just set it up. Lots of other good schools but waiting lists the norm. If you fancy mandarin education for your kids - Candadian International, Chinese International and International Schools Foundation all have reputation for very good mandarin programmes or bi-lingual programmes. Kellett class sizes in primary are approx 20+ I think, ESF 30 kids a class, and some of other schools have smaller class sizes (HK Academy less than 20). ESF are IB schools using british cirriculum adapted for HK, but think Kellett is using same as UK

One thing to adjust for in HK is the school environment - even the good schools have an inner city feel to them - crowded class rooms, playgrounds on roof, etc. The education is good though - UK, Aus, NZ, US, American teachers.. Just mention this as for me that was harder to adjust to than a smaller flat.

Pre schools - take a look at Woodlands and Sunshine House. Both based on UK pre schools and with daily mandarin (definitely in SH and also WL I think.) Schools all over HK.

The other small consideration for your husband is whether you will get club membership. In the budget that you mention this would be normal and if you do, then you may wish to consider living close to the club, if you won't be working. If you live further away you probably won't use so much (and how much you use it may depend on what facilities you have at home.) If you have a club you could always choose older (which tend to be bigger) flats but don't always have facilities.

Bit long but I'm a fast typer!

LadyPenelope · 23/05/2011 15:22

And don't know what I was thinking re. secondary schools, not going to be an issue for you unless like me you love it so much you're still here more than a decade later ... ;)

Meant to say, that you probably won't have problem getting preschool place. And for your eldest child, they would need to get name down for either reception or Y1 place depending on school.

One final thought - Playtimes magazine P3 publishers, publish an annual school guide. Link here.ppp.com.hk They list loads of schools and preschools. You can't get the whole thing on web, but if you call them they will post you a copy.

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