Moving to London from US and I am clueless!

[UKNewbie]

This is my first post and I know it's a novel so please bear with me. My head is spinning! I am American currently living in Washington, DC, and I just learned that we will be relocating to London for my husband's job in early 2016. I have a 5-year-old DS who is in kindergarten here and a 3-year-old DD who is in preschool.

We are considering international or English independent schools for DS. Obviously we are limited because we need a spot mid-year, but we are told we should have some decent options. Fortunately, my son is an adaptable child who would do well in a variety of environments. He is working above grade level here so I think he would fit in with his peers in Year 1 over there. He is a very social kid and I know he's going to miss his friends here, so I'd like to find a school that will enable him to make new friends quickly. To be honest I also hope to meet some friends for myself through his school. My husband will be working a lot and I basically know NOBODY in the UK.

On the one hand, I am so excited about the opportunity to immerse ourselves in the experience of living somewhere else, and the last thing I want to do is spend all of our time with only other expats. At the same time, we've never done anything like this before and I expect we will be pretty homesick, at least at first. I like that the international schools are geared toward integrating new families quickly into the community, and I worry that everyone at the English schools (both kids and parents) will have already have their network of friends and won't be interested in meeting a new family.

In terms of location, my husband's office is in Slough, but we'd like to live as close to central London as we can without making his commute awful and living in a tiny shoebox :) The educational consultant we are working with tells us there are some schools in the Chiswick/Hammersmith/Kew/Fulham areas that might have openings. Does that sounds like a realistic commute with traffic? He will be driving to work most likely.

The housing will definitely be an adjustment from what we are used to, but that's all part of the experience, right? :) Our budget is up to 5,000 pounds per month, preferably closer to 4,500. We need at least 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms, and we'd like some small amount of outside space.

So the biggest question now is do we focus on international/American or English schools? But also were should we live? What else are we not thinking of? I don't know but I don't even know what I don't know, if you know what I mean, so I would be grateful for any information you would be kind enough to provide. Thank you so much!

Ie this property. Walking distance into town, £3500 a month

m.zoopla.co.uk/to-rent/property/windsor-and-maidenhead/?beds_min=3&include_retirement_homes=true&price_frequency=per_month&price_max=4250&q=windsor&results_sort=newest_listings&search_source=home#/to-rent/details/27075901?search_identifier=3981b451460da0c8ea0dbd5824db684a

Minty's suggestion of relocation agent is very good. They will know your budget, where your h's office is, traffic flow, house prices, rents, schools etc.......

make use of a relocation agent!

If you want to be part of the Jewish community you'd be better off looking in North West London or Hertfordshire where most of the community is based. I agree that the journey from central London to Slough every day would be awful. Would you consider a traditional English village instead? There is a gorgeous village called Radlett just outside the London boundary which has excellent links into London - 30 minutes by fast train - and has excellent private schools (try Radlett Prep or Manor Lodge). The drive to Slough would be 45 mins to 1 hour.

I lived in Ealing for a few years and it's not the most exciting of places. The schools are great and it's family-oriented, but it's quite dull and can be a bit of a trek to places. With your budget, I'd definitely consider somewhere like Kew, Richmond, Chiswick, Maida Vale or Hammersmith.

Depending on your husband's commute, North London is a great place to live. We lived in Highgate and there were lots of American ex-pats there (though they worked in the City, rather than Slough). More Jewish areas in North London too.

Mosaic is a lovely Jewish preschool near Wimbledon, their primary school is on Roehampton Lane. It is not a fee paying school... www.mjps.org.uk/

The community spirit surrounding the preschool and school is great. Not everyone is really observant, but they do lots of stuff together. You will find many friends among the preschool and primary mums.

I dont know about the commute to Slough, but Putney, Wimbledon is a great place to live!

What I mean to say is that they do many cultural jewish things together, not just religious ones. Like baking cholla together, plenty of parties and bring a dish for hanukka and other festivities.

I would add that the journey from Kew /Richmond to Slough isn't a nightmare drive at all. I did a similar commute for 12 years and it was very reasonable - going against the traffic mostly. Kew and the Kew side of Richmond (north of the railway line) has very easy access to the M4.

Kew is full of expat families and I think you would quickly feel at home there.

Hi OP. Your hubby doesn't by any chance work for a well known chocolate and pet food manufacturer does he? If so, snap! I don't know about London but I know lots about relocating with that company. PM me if you like. It's just that the DC and Slough locations are very familiar in terms of company locations! If I'm right, I know someone who could be of help.

I commute daily from near Heathrow, out past Slough on the M4. On good days it's easy, in bad days it's horrendous, gridlock on all routes. I would establish where your DH office is, whether it's walkable from the station or the company run a shuttle bus from the station. If train is an option, this opens up the fast line Great Western line into Paddington, and tube connections to your preferred 'village'. Also makes Windsor an option, as there is a train that shuttles between Windsor Central station and Slough every 15 minutes or so - it's about a 5 minute journey. Or an easy drive (but also prone to being busy, see my earlier comment).
If driving is preferred, avoid peak times 7.45-9am and 5-6pm, and try and avoid using the M25. Straight out along the M4 is probably ok, as you are against the traffic, but be aware that Slough is very busy.

Hi OP

I used to live in Washington DC as a child (well actually Arlington) and know what you mean about American suburbs. I agree that London suburbs aren't the same and should really be considered as a series of villages (for instance Kew actually has a village green).

I think considering an international school may be wise - they are more set up for people to come and go and going into a foreign school system can be rather bewildering (I speak from experience) although perhaps not such a big deal for kids as young as yours.

A couple of books you may find useful - the Good Schools Guide for London (South and possibly North) and London for Londoners.

It would be much easier for you if you could hire a relocation agent.

I'll PM you. I live in Islington which would probably be completely useless for your husband's commute but it might still be nice if you had someone's mobile number in London.

I dunno about comparison with DC specifically but supermarket grocery delivery is really easy to arrange in UK, so you may find you can live quite well without a car. Other public transport works well in London area, you could get by just renting a car at weekends for some trips.