Moving from England to Inverness with Year 12 & 11 this August 2025

[CrazyWisdom]

Hello lovely people all over the Great Scottish Lands

I got a job in Inverness, which will be starting this April. We have 3 kids currently 16,15 & 7 (Yr 11,10 & 3 in England respectively). The eldest is aiming for Medical School, next is between Medical & Engineering. Both are doing well in schools (Grammar Schools both)

We are getting insane about the best option for our kids and when the best time is to move them and get the family together. We are seeking your kind brainstorming and advice.

Options are: taking into consideration their age will fit with the Scottish system, as they are already one year older than their Scottish peers

1. Move them this July/August 2025: Eldest will have to start Highers, and next will go to S4.
2. Concerns:
3. Slightly a shock to DD in the most important year in her aspiration to compete for Medical school entry. Additionally, her peers would have already started their Highers after they finished S4, and it may be difficult for her to catch up and achieve the required A.s.
4. DS will have finished 1st year of GCSE (but didn't complete it), and he has to catch up with S4 subjects, especially if his peers in Scotland have started the subjects during S3.
5. Wait for a year, and move them in July/August 2026. Eldest has done the first year of A-level and got her Mock exam results, which theoretically can apply to Universities with these grades to get a conditional offer, awaiting final results for A-level. DS will complete his GCSE and start his Highers in Scotland.
6. Concerns:
7. DD either to go down a year to restart her Highers in Scotland or completes her A-level from home with online courses (with huge financial impact), which might not be the most helpful to achieve her aspiration to complete the high grades required.
8. DS will have missed the few weeks of Highers subjects that are being taught to his peers the last few weeks in S4 before they break for the school holidays.
9. Wait 2 years: The worst option for the family psychologically and financially. It would also affect their eligibility for SAAS fund application.

.
We are struggling to decide, as each option has its drawbacks that we have to accept. We need some help with picking the option that would cause the least harm to the kids.

Thank you in advance and waiting eagerly for your kind opinions

Edinburgh uni is pretty clear it needs to be end of S5 for the grades. It is incredibly competitive to get into medicine even with the right grades. How set on this is your dc?
I don't think you are putting them first tbh.

I don’t see how that would work. Are you suggesting that she goes into S5, does the higher curriculum for the subjects she wants, does the course work but donest sit the exam. Then does the same thing in S6 but sits the exams? Then when will she do her Advanced Highers, which she needs for medicine ?

I love Inverness. Wouldn't have a problem with the situation if just younger dc.

I support families moving overeas, and therefore often to a new education system.

The advice I would give a family in this context is don't move.

That sounds really hard, but you are moving to another system at really key moments in your kids education. This is huge, I cannot overstate what an enormous thing you are asking of your kids.
It may be the make or break with results and especially for medical applications.

I understand that Dad has to take this job, so the best way to mitigate the move would be one of these:
The one taking GCSE this summer, they move this summer. Very important point someone up thread says about starting next syllabus in June/July so you need to check out if they need to go into school after exmas in June. That in itself is pretty tough, to finish exams and not get a break. Scottish school year begins in August too.

For the next one down, this is pretty awful. I think I would be looking really hard for a way for them to stay in current school until end of next year.
If they do move to scotland, you need to look more closely at the system. They would probably do better to repeat this year in the scottish system, so they start the curriculum again. Is that possible? So many curriculum differences may be there, that they will not be able to jump in half way through.
If it is not possible to wait the 2 years, and it is not possible to repeat the year, then the sooner ds moves the better.

If you wait until July 2026, after ds has done GCSE, then I would seriously consider leaving the oldest to finish their last year of A levels in their current school. Is there someone who would consider taking her in as a term time 'lodger' for that year?
If they were living with a friend or relative, then they oculd finish their A levels there.

As a teen, my familiy lived apart, Dad worked in Scotland, Liverpool and Birmingham over a period of about 6 years. Mum stayed put and I went to school where she was. It was hard. We did long distance weekends and half terms/holidays, but they knew that he would not be in one place long, and the school stability was more important at that age.
It sounds hard, but moving to another system is harder for your kids.

Probably I would opt for:
Dad starts job.
family stays put until July 2026. Then most of family moves and oldest stays put for last year of A level.
I think you need to plan to travel to Inverness over Feb half term and visit the school and talk through the differences and the timings. And ask how much they can accommodate/ help etc.

I'm sorry to be negative as well but I think your eldest will have too many obstacles for a successful medicine application transferring to the Scottish education system.

I would also contact SAAS directly to see whether they can confirm your potential fee status situation as it may not be three years residency, but ordinarily resident which counts as long as you can prove you haven't moved to Scotland solely to receive free tuition.

I would imagine your middle child should be fine.

Good luck!

This - and can mum get a job.

two kids at that age in grammar with the options they have cant be moved

put this way the damage to your children by moving clearly defined and long term

exactly what damage will be if Dad (you?) moves away for the short term of 3 years that you are so worried about

because you seem to put more into the dangers and harm of this than the real concrete ones of moving a year 10 and year 11 to a completely new education system

How about boarding school for eldest? There are excellent state boarding schools (my daughter is boarding got 6th form and loves the boarding aspect) - they are much cheaper than private schools as only pay the boarding component

The last GCSEs this year are week beginning 16th June. There will only be another week or so of term left in Scotland. That's a big chunk of the start of Highers learning to have missed for your DD and will be pretty relentless going from a full GCSE exam diet straight into a huge move and new school for a couple of weeks. (When all her friends will celebrating).

Kindly, OP it cannot be overstated what a difficult move this is for the oldest two. I know both education systems well and they are very different. You seem to have a handle on some of the specifics but not the severity of the impact this will have on transition.

Is there really no comparable job for you in England? Given all that you've said and in that their mum isn't working - perhaps you coming home at weekends for the first few years would be better on everyone. Then move wife and youngest up to join you.

Depending on finances some state grammars have boarding places. They may not have filled them yet for next year. That might be worth considering.

As it’s state boarding you only pay for the board, not tuition, so cheaper than private/independent boarding.

If mum doesn’t work , why doesn’t she move to Inverness as soon as oldest DD has sat her GCSEs ? then she can start S5 on ( or around ) 1st June.

You would want to liaise with the school so she can be put in the right classes in the right columns. She will need to do H English, H maths, H Chemisty , H Biology or Human Biology and one other higher. That should be whatever she enjoys and is most likely to get an A in with the least work.

In her case, that might be a subject where the higher curriculum doesn’t depend much on the Nat 5 curriculum , so one that is relatively easy to “ crash “. Or one that’s similar to what she covered in GCSE. Choose it carefully as its the only one she has a choice in.

She doesn’t need to worry about UCAT or uni application or work experience (as some people might tell you ) as she will be doing these at the end of S5 and the start of S6. she will apply by the October of S6 to start uni at the end of S6.

Regarding uni fees - by the time she goes she will have been resident in Scotland for 2 years so so has a chance of being considered a home student for fee purposes. SAAS look at it on a case by case basis. It will help that you have all moved, your kids are all at school in Scotland and one of you is working here. It’s obv your long term home.

having read some of the posts about the scottish system from more knowledgable posters, I just want to reiterate

please don't do this to your kids, don't move.

Dad gets cheap digs in Inverness for 3 years.

Your 2 oldest finish GCSE and A levels in the English system.
Then move.

Have you talked to your kids about this?

I would wait until the eldest 2 have finished A levels and then move. Dad could move in the meantime into very cheap accommodation and visit as often as possible.

Have a close look at which school year they could go into in Scotland.

With those dates of birth they’re almost certainly in the position of being able to choose which year they go into.

That might give scope to line up the move with what year they go into and courses starting.

(another thing that might give more options is to look at remote study / tutoring / self teach options for starting the Scottish syllabus stuff before you move. Eg. Do some Nat 5 alongside GCSEs this year).

OP is dad, or am I reading something wrong? Obviously the family don't want to be separated, but this will have long term consequences for the older dc's plans

I can't see this as a help. DD's "correct" school year next year would actually be S6 - yes highers can be done in s6 alone but she would still miss most of the first month of the course whilst still sitting her GCSEs. Also even if she was able to maintain her grades she would run into issues with medicine at many unis. She can't go back to s4 as would end up finishing school at 19.5.

Please don't fuck up your kids' educations, potentially their chance to ourselves the degrees they want to.

I would suggest your DH negotiated WFH for some days if possible and does a deal with a guest house/air bnb or rents a small flat until the older 2 are through school.

@OliveThe0therReindeer This is perfectly concise what I am thinking about.

It might not be fair on her because of the lost 4 weeks of Highers teaching, and not having time off, but hopefully, she can pick up and just start steaming into the system.

She is already picking Chemistry and Biology for her A-level if she stays in England. 3rd could be flexible.

What exactly are your concerns about living separately

OP - I have 3 kids, aged 22, 20 and 17.
So for the last few years we have been through GCSE and A levels several times and we are now doing our last batch of A levels.

GCSEs are hard work and there is a lot of pressure, especially as grammar school kids, and especially as on track for medics.

Some people on this thread are suggesting things like working on Scottish curriculum alongside GCSE or heading to Inverness after the last exam and launching straight into Higher syllabus.
neither of those are realistic and are pretty harsh on your kids.

It is also a completely different mindset to do 3 A levels compared to 5 highers. Two of mine would have really struggled with that shift, as they had 3 much stronger subjects that they wanted to follow.
You need your kids onside and ready to make that mindset shift to a new system.

@Tiswa

Some of my major concerns are:

• we don't have family here to support us, as we are 1st generation, and I feel bad for my wife to take all this toll alone for another 2/3 years.

• This is a difficult age either for a growing teenage girl or boy. A lot of disagreements with their mum, and I feel my role is to be around until they pass this stage.

• There is an element of personality building that takes place daily when we are all together with daily discussions and passing experiences through daily encounters. This will be not done the best way if we are apart, especially since there is a high chance that they will move away for Uni.s with all the new life challenges they may face.

The problem is all of those are going to exist if you move only magnified

it is a difficult age - I have a year 11 of my own. But moving them from their world is going to make it more so - and they may well move and not come back and blame you for taking them away and potentially disrupting plans

Have you talked to them all - properly
discussed it and allowed them agency to put their views forward.

this has to be a family decision becuase it effects all of you - and you moving by yourself has to be an option discussed.

because to me there isn’t an easy answer or quick fix solution other than you not going and looking for another job (which you deem impossible) and whatever you do will involve sacrifice and potential harm and damage.

just because you can clearly articulate the disadvantages of just you going doesn’t make it the worst option - it is the option you understand the harms of that is all.

talk as a family and listen - everyone needs to be onboard and understand why it has to be this way and the potential disadvantages of ALL options.

that said don’t be surprised if your Year 11 doesn’t still decide to stay and live with friends - that too is an option and one you have to allow

good luck

Goodness. You need to be around to build your teenage dd's personality?
The answer seems to be to turn down the job then I'm afraid.

You're not moving in the hope of free tuition are you? Why Inverness specifically? Could you get a similar job somewhere in England, with the same education system?

I wouldn’t move the older two until they’ve finished their education, think you’ll really be throwing them under the bus, too much change at a critical educational point. Please rethink, either don’t take the job or, just you and/or the youngest one go for now.

Another issue you may be unaware of is that free tuition places are strictly limited by the Scottish government, so competition for popular courses is often higher than in RUK.