Moving school - how bad is it??

[skewputt]

Dh and I both have a ridiculously long commute (70-90 mile round trip) in the same direction. I only work part-time but still, the time and expense involved is a bit mind-numbing. Dc's are in P1 and P3 (in Scotland, they're 6 and 8). They're both really happy at school - friends, great teachers etc. It's a small primary and very friendly. If we moved, we would have to downsize due to expense of new area so I'm not all that keen. I would miss my friends here too! But dh has had it with 3 hrs in the car every day and I don't blame him really.

The school in the new area is also small and is meant to be a good enough school. Is the upheaval worth it? Should we stay for the sake of dc's as they're happy where they are? Not much chance of jobs changing any time soon.

We moved DS to a new school for P2, and worried endlessly about it all. However, it has been fine, and DS coped much better with it than we did. The new school will hopefully be set up to deal with children moving in so that should help. I've also worked hard to get to know the other mums and hosted lots of 'play dates' etc. to help DS settle which has been quite a lot of effort for me!

However, I do think you need to look at everything before you move. Are there options for working from home, compressed hours? I know my job and DH's job don't allow those, but some do. Also, you need to think about whether you will be happy in a smaller house, away from your support network.

Overall I think the DCs will cope with the move, but you need to make sure it is the right decision for everyone.

Moving schools is normally fine, especially at the age your children are.

Thanks for that. I think part of the problem is that I feel pretty ambivalent about the whole thing! But probably the right move in the long run. On the positive side, we'll be a lot closer to family.

It just seems like a huge wrench moving dc's from somewhere they're happy. I'm finding it hard not to imagine all sorts of scenarios where they can't make friends and are miserable. Possibly projecting a bit there...

it sounds like a huge commute - what a lot of time wasted out of your day. Console yourself with the extra time you can spend with the dc!