°µÍø½ûÇø

Start with crime figures, especially drug related crime

@Fred Unfortunately drugs and crime are everywhere. We live in a country town where 6 cars were stolen in one night by one person. Fireworks/fire crackers are set off to let people know that a new shipment of drugs are in. Break and enter, beating of in people on walks. We live in Forbes NSW in the central west. It’s horrible.

@Fred Unfortunately drugs and crime are everywhere. We live in a country town where 6 cars were stolen in one night by one person. Fireworks/fire crackers are set off to let people know that a new shipment of drugs are in. Break and enter, beating of in people on walks. We live in Forbes NSW in the central west. It’s horrible. - @lukeandalethea86

I know this is a wild idea, but why not move to a country that has far fewer of these problems than a craphole like Scotland?

Been there, seen it, wouldn't live there for any reason. It's a drug crime infested cesspit that I would recommend to anyone that is looking to score illegal drugs.

And you can't understand a ruddy word they say whilst they are mugging you for drug money.

PS - You wanted honest answers

I moved out of the UK to get away from mindless cretin drug idiots and all the crime they commit. My old place was bad, but not even close to the mess we know as Scotland.

@Fred Where would you suggest, I am open for options? I want somewhere safe and affordable.

My name is Ally, I’m a mother of 4 (3 school aged children) 1 over 18 and the husband. This is the year we are moving to Scotland, it’s been our dream for years but 18 months ago we actually set a timeframe for end of 2025.We are very excited but also nervous. I’ve been hearing alot of negative things (I’m trying to look at both) and I want to know your opinion please. Is it financially better than Australia, safer, education better?I should mention that I have duel citizenship and hold my British passport as my mother and all her family were born over there.Was it hard to find doctors, a place to live, schools? I don’t care about the weather, I’m happier in cool and wet climates. I hate the heat. I have 2 children with ADHD and I’m autoimmune so Drs are of great importance because we, (especially me because I will be violently ill without my meds where as the boys just won’t be able to concentrate or settle in class) are in need of doctors/specialists fast. Were Visas hard to acquire? How did you go about getting them? Any information will help greatly. - @lukeandalethea86

Hi and welcome to the Forum.

Assuming you registered your kid's birth with the British Government at the time, and they all have their British passports then they won't need visas, so shouldn't be a problem, you would all have the right to live in the UK.  Details of how you should do this are all on the UK Gov website; this will take you straight to it.  I should emphasise that you don't have to do this, but it would make life a lot easier when you try to move to the UK to live.

To answer your specific questions:

1. Doctors - once you are legally resident in the UK, you would be entitled to use the NHS, you go to the doctor of your choice and assuming he/she has capacity, they will add you to their list, and you would use them to access NHS facilities.
2. Place to live.  My advice would be to use something like an Airbnb for the first few months that it takes you to find a place of your own.  There is very little social housing available anywhere in the UK and what there is, is being used for Asylum seekers.  Google will help you find what is available.
3. Mental health.  ADHD - my advice would be for you to bring a letter of introduction from your Australian doctors and assuming you or your kids use prescribed medication, sufficient medication to last you a few months.
4. Autoimmune - you'll know there is no cure for it, they can only treat the symptoms, my daughter has it, after we moved here she went to university and is now a mum and an NHS nurse herself; it's something she has had to learn to live with, she doesn't let it interfere with her life.
5. In general, if your medical conditions are part of what is driving you back to the UK and yours is so bad that it affects your life and what you can do, then perhaps you need to consider this when making your decisions; for example, do you have family here who can help you?  If you have the support you are describing there in Australia, then you really need to reconsider whether the UK is for you, as the NHS is really struggling to provide adequate primary and emergency care and the present Government are forecasting that it will take them years to resolve.  I've just shown my wife your comment regarding medical care and in need of doctors/specialists fast; she's also an °µÍø½ûÇø and a primary care NHS nurse here in the UK, her advice is to be very careful and make sure that what you think you need is provided here as many first instances are dealt with by nurses, not doctors and not all emergency rooms have mental health cover.
6. Visas - UK citizens can apply for UK passports, non UK citizens will need residence permits; this will take you to the relevant part of the UK Gov website with the details.  When our daughter recently returned to the UK, her nusband needed to apply for a visa, the whole process took him 12 weeks from when he applied.

I hope this helps.

Cynic

°µÍø½ûÇø Team

Make a spreadsheet with every country in the world listed.

Red out the UK and US

Red out every country that you don't fancy (That takes pretty much everywhere in Africa and South America off my list)

Red out every politically unstable country, but be careful not to listen to propaganda as believing lies isn't going to help you choose.

Change the boxes of countries you fancy to green, and those you know little about to yellow.

Starting with the green, look at visa possibilities, schooling options, the cost of living, and crime. Change green to red for high crime countries like the UK.

Forget any country with massive drug problems - Misery awaits you there.

Watch out for rape - India has attrocious rape numbers, especially in the Hindi speaking North. Israel is pretty bad as well. Rape is a crime that tells you a lot about a society's attitude to women, not just how nasty rapists are.

Now it's time to look at the weather.

Add cost of living to the pot - can you afford life there?

As you red them out, note the reson you did so in the next column, but also note the positives you find.

For my personal tastes, that leaves Indonesia, China, Malaysia, and a few more countries in the region. (I'm too poor for Singapore)

I have a young daughter and a 10 year old son so I want to be nowhere near the rubbish I left the UK to get away from - I'm fussy.

@Fred Where did you move if you don’t mind me asking?

I moved from the North of England to Indonesia. I've lived in about 10 places, and visited hundreds all over the country.

Bali, at least the south, is off my list for the same reasons I left the UK. Drunks, druggies, and idiots.

Thailand isn't my cup of tea except the amazing far south, but that has little to offer by way of education for my kids.

@Fred thank you

@lukeandalethea86

Hi

Thanks for dropping this message. I dwell in Scotland for last 7 years. I will try to address your questions as much I can.

1 VISA - for Scotland you will have to apply standard UK visa, therefore, with that visa you would be eligible to reside in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. As a British citizen I married a non EU woman. For bringing them here I had to prove I earn more than £18,600 per year in UK.for 3 kids I think one has to prove £25000 per annum in income. This is when the sponsored is based in UK and dependents are applying from abroad. There is something called as health surcharge which a foreign national has to pay when applying for a visa for UK. This means the Health Facilities are free for British Nationals but foreigners has to pay a fix health surcharge at the time of visa application. As you are Australian I am not sure how this visa process would work. I recommend you to speak to an immigration solicitor for this. I can recommend you an email and phone number of a local solicitor who charges £150 for consultation. I am pretty sure that anyone over 18 years of age need to apply for an independent visa. Any Young person over 18 can apply for a 2 years Working Holiday Maker Visa I think.

For your knowledge health surcharge for one person on a 3 year visa application is £2800. One can use doctors or Accident and Emergency hospitals as many times they want.

2. Schools - getting admission in public schools and college is fairly easy and straightforward irrespective of your nationality or background. You must get a school leaving certificate for your kids  from Australia in order to get admission here. I would also suggest you to bring the medical records or school records stating ADHD in your kids.

3. National Health Service - Getting a GP appointment can be challenging sometimes and it also depends upon the area you live in. I live in a village so if your health is really bad they will give you appointment right away, however for minor illnesses it is very difficult to get an appointment. If you have a chronic conditions they issue a repeat perception therefore you don't need to see a doctor every time and instead you can use the same prescription for many years. In Scotland prescriptions are free whereas in England one has to pay £10 for prescriptions. So Scotland is better.

4. Housing - in Edinburgh you could rent a 4 bed flat for £1500 per month. On the other hand in areas around 35 miles away from Edinburgh you could rent a 3 bed flat for £800 per month. It it depends where you would prefer to stay. City life is better because there are far more jobs and people could be very friendly. In small areas there is scarcity of jobs.

5 . Economy - British economy is not doing that great for last 5-6 years. One can't get financially rich in Scotland because the taxes are high and savings are difficult. Most of people live ha d to mouth. If you would open your own business perhaps you could save tax and earn more. Many British doctors and engineers have moved to Australia because the income in Australia is far better than that of the UK.

So, if you love British culture and you have strong affinity for Scotland than you must come here otherwise if you think you can get better financially in Scotland then that's highly unlikely. I wish you good Luck

Abhey

The question showing up here is quality of life.

Considering the high level of drug abuse, crime, and cost of living against wages, it's likely to be poor.

Also, Considering the OP mentioned young children, the quality of education along with the environment kids grow up in are important.

Scotland's schools are generally pretty rubbish. Limited discipline has been a problem for years, so kids do what they want much of the time.

Now look at smoking amongst under 16s.

Essentially, if you want your kids to grow up as poorly educated smokers with a high likelihood of alcohol dependency, Scotland is a highly recommended destination. It's even better if you want them exposed to an open drug culture and easy availability of dogging sites.

Read the piece then consider the sad fact local press reflects local IQs.

I wouldn't move to Scotland for a gold pig.