Moving to Northern Ireland

[AngelaKim]

Hi. We are thinking about moving to Northern Ireland in next year or so. My husband visits NI and ROI
often for work and has opportunity to work from NI.
We have tagged along with him
on a few of his business trips over the years and really love the place, the people and laid back lifestyle is such a big pull. We have 17,18 and 9 year old boys. Currently living in the South West of England.
Definitely feel its time to make the move and start looking at schools etc!
Does anyone have experience on Prep schools and Independent Secondary Schools Please around the Ballycastle area or further on towards Belfast - happy to travel for schools! Son has a rare physical condition , but attends a mainstream independent school here.
Thank you

Hi, we just moved here in the summer from England. We looked at a few different areas but just fell in love with Ballycastle. Unfortunately, there are no prep schools so if this is a dealbreaker for you then you would need to consider being closer to Belfast. However, the state schools and secondary grammar options here are so good that we felt it was worth the compromise for the lifestyle is has given us! It’s the best thing we ever did!

You could try posting in the Craicnet section, which is the board for everything Ireland and Northern Ireland. You'll get more traffic there.

Thank you, I loved reading your message !! That's brilliant, so happy you've taken the plunge and relocated to Ballycastle. We have friends in Castlerock and love the area and being close to catching the ferry across Lough Foyle into Donegal. Sounds like you made the best decision - congratulations to you all! Now i'm on the Property Pal looking at houses!

Thank you that's really useful to know!

@AngelaKim i spent most of last year refreshing property pal 😂
We love Castlerock too, the whole coast is just so beautiful though, it is amazing to wake up knowing you can just pop to the beach. The community here in Ballycastle is incredible and we’ve been made to feel so welcome. I hope everything goes well for you with your move and you find the perfect place for your family!

No prep schools just regular primarys and secondaries or grammars (the last prep in the area at Dalriada closed about 10 years ago). Ballycastle secondary schools are more all ability than the schools in Coleraine/Ballymoney/Portstewart - still have grammars here and the 11+ is still used. The only schools that have "prep" sections would be some of the big Belfast Schools - Methodist College(Downey House and Fullerton House), Belfast Royal Academy (Ben Madigan), RBAI (Inchmarlo) Campbell College. There is also Rockport an independent school outside Holywood.

Hi again,
thanks so much for your help. We had a break from thinking about the move due to family events and now picking up again.

Hope everything going well for you in Ballycastle. We are planning on a visit over soon to look at schools etc. I heard good things about the school in Ballymoney (youngest currently yr 5 primary) waiting to speak with the Principal to gain more information. Are the 11+ tests the same as the English ones ? It seems Grammar schools in NI more common than England.

Also, My 17 yrs old son is studying A Levels with a view to studying his chosen subject at degree level , he likes the idea of staying home and maybe taking 2 yr diploma at college and finishing third year with Uni.

Also, re hospitals, would the main hospital be Belfast?

Thanks again, sorry so many questions, i'm giving myself headache , and you by now - sorry!

I think the 11+ tests are easier just based on example papers I saw in shops but just my view and having lived through the Slough Consortium 11+!
While biggest and specialist hospitals are in Belfast (Royal and City), there are others. Antrim Area outside Antrim town and Causeway in Coleraine would be two closest to BC.
I’d pick BC over Ballymoney. The Convent in BC and the High School are merging at some point. I’m a local but haven’t lived there for 20+ years.