Thinking of moving from Kent to Northern Ireland, Help?!

[steviehounsell]

My mother in law and her 17 year old daughter are considering moving to Northern Ireland along with me, my partner and our 15 month old but have a few concerns if people could answer would be much appreciated!
Firstly we are wondering about healthcare, is there free NHS like England or do we need to take out health insurance ect, also what is schooling like is it any good? And do we need to consider paying for this? Also where are the best places to live (only in the north as mother in law refuses to live in ROI) also is the cost of living about the same or dramatically changing (I.e. Where I pay £1 for 4 pints of milk here will I then have to pay £2 odd or?) and do we have to use euro or is pounds accepted too? Sorry if any of these are misconceptions but I have seen some things online and felt the need to check for myself!

Northern Ireland is British. It's just like here. The grammar system is still pretty common in belfast at least.

You know Northern Ireland is part of the UK, don't you?

As for where to live it depends on where you can get work. A lot of NI is rural.

In the nicest possible way, it would be best if you went and visited Northern Ireland before youc considered moving there. You seem not to know anything about it and, while I have always found people in the region incredibly welcoming, you may find you end up annoying local people unless you get a feel for the country and educate yourself a little first .

OP can I ask your reason for wanting to move? You don't seem to know much about NI.

I am an English person with an Irish husband living in NI and have been here about 8 years. NI is part of the U.K. And has the NHS, the pound, state education, public sector etc.

Cost of living is a bit lower, in general, than in many parts of England but wages are also lower. A lot of areas are very rural and jobs can be hard to come by.

Schools are generally good, there's still pretty much a grammar school set up here. Lots of primary schools are church schools, at least where I live. Private school isn't as common here as on the mainland.

As others have said I really would suggest you visit and get a feel for it here, it is an absolutely beautiful place, the people are friendly and welcoming. Obviously society has its problems but crime is in the main lower than many other parts of the U.K. It's really impossible to recommend places to live etc when you don't really know what your needs are, where you might work etc

Why are you moving there?

Thanks for your replies, I also know that it is part of the UK however when I have googled about it there are many conflicting answers so we wanted to check to make sure. So healthcare and schooling is exactly the same as well as cost of living? This is very helpful so thank you. We wanted to live somewhere rural but with easy transport links such as Enniskillen or St Johnston ect mainly south I expect :)

The main reason for wanting to move is that we are selling our home and wanting to move to a bigger house, the house prices here are quite high and the property value for money seems a lot better there. My mother in laws husband also passed a few years back and she doesn't want to live in the area anymore due to constant reminders ect and her parents are from NI where she lived as a child :)

Bit of a silly question asking why they're moving there, don't you think?
Im from NI and have only moved over here a few years ago. As you stated you know its part of the UK although many things may vary, but then so does things in London compared to Liverpool, right? Some things may be more benefitting, depending on what yyou as an individual prefers. There are many rural areas of NI but also many built up areas. The schooling system is pretty much the same, as with NHS system, however, pay isn't much crack but then it outweighs itself really because everything is primarily cheaper over there. Overall, I think its a lovely place to settle down, I had a great upbringing there and do miss it. I moved to explore more of the UK however wouldn't think twice about moving back!!

Moving to NI just because it's cheap is a bit bonkers IMO.

Have you looked at other options/ places

I was born and brought up in NI but have lived in SE England since I left university. I'd have moved back in a shot if I'd thought dh and I could get decent jobs. We and the DC love visiting but travel there can be very expensive, another thing to bear in mind if you'll still need to visit family and friends in England.