[Stuart]

Hello There :-)

Why is this forum so quiet ?.

I know there are a lot of people emmigrating to Canada, hence the activity on the SACanada site, but surely there are just as many people looking to emmigrate to the UK ?.

I have been an active member on the SACanada site for quite some time now and unfortunately I am in the position whereby I cannot apply for a Canadian PR visa just yet. I have all the work experience whilst my wife has the qualifications but has 6 months to go on the experience side :-(.
After 6 months we shall definetely apply for for PR visas (having honeymooned in Canada last December - British Columbia is amazing), pending no changes to the current emmigration points system, but have decided to head to the UK in the interim.
Aus and New Zealand, without job offers, are also not viable options due to points requirements.

Luckily we are both British passport holders so do not have any emmigration steps to take to go to the UK apart from organizing a job and a place to stay.

I am in the Business Analysis field, with more than 7 years experience, and my wife is in the hospitality industry in a managerial position, so from what we have heard we should not have a problem in securing good jobs in the UK.

We have decided, quite some time ago that it is time to leave South Africa because; it no longer feels like the country we know as home, it has become a place where we are discriminated against daily, treated like immigrants even though we were born here, cannot bear to watch further destruction of the country by the incompetent corrupt government and most definetely do not want to bring our children up here.

It is extremely sad to think that we will be leaving all our family in SA but we have to make hard decisions now for the future of our children. In any case, if SA continues like it is, it won't be long before the whole family is forced to move out of SA anyway.

I would like to hear from everyone, whether living in the UK already or those looking to leave, what investigations etc have found re : the grass being greener on the other side :-).

For example :

- What salary is considered a good one ?
- Is it feasible to only have one person working whilst the other stays at home ?.
- What is schooling etc like in the UK ?. (This is our one concern about staying in the UK to raise children)
- How stable are race relations etc in the UK ?.
- What is the job market like ?.
- What are nice areas to live in ?. (We definetely prefer countryside to big city)
- What is the transport system like ?.
- Is it possible to travel a lot from the UK and really enjoy the strength of the pound ?. (We are avid scuba divers and have just caught the skiing bug :-), so what possibilities exist there ?)

If we could we would emmigrate directly to Canada but are definetely thinking that living and working in the UK, with the option of extensive overseas travel, is much better than sitting and hoping SA does not turn quickly into Zim 2 and our hard earned rands become worth nothing :-( .... Rather have pounds.
We are looking at emmigrating to the UK next year in June.

I would like to hear everyone's opinion and would appreciate any advice that they have to offer.

Thanks ;

Stu.

[Caroline]

Stuart, on May 15 2008, 10:12 AM, said:

Hello There :-)

For example :

- What salary is considered a good one ?
- Is it feasible to only have one person working whilst the other stays at home ?.
- What is schooling etc like in the UK ?. (This is our one concern about staying in the UK to raise children)
- How stable are race relations etc in the UK ?.
- What is the job market like ?.
- What are nice areas to live in ?. (We definetely prefer countryside to big city)
- What is the transport system like ?.
- Is it possible to travel a lot from the UK and really enjoy the strength of the pound ?. (We are avid scuba divers and have just caught the skiing bug :-), so what possibilities exist there ?)

Hi Stuart

This forum is still very new but I am sure that it will pick up in no time.

We have been in the UK for two years now and absolutely love it. The answers to your questions very much depend on what lifestyle expectations you have (and how many children)?
- I think/feel that a salary of £35 000 p.a pr person is considered a good one. Keep in mind the National Insurance will have to be deducted.
-schooling depends on where you live. I will stick with personal experience :Ringwood schools are excellent and have good Ofsted reports.
We chose to live in Ringwood because of the schools and knowing other Saffers in the area.
-Depends were you live. In our corner of the world they seem pretty balanced. But maybe I shouldn't talk since I'm white/European and have no personal experience
-I don't know - but I don't know many/any people who are struggling to find work. How flexible are you?
-Love the South: Bournemouth/Dorset/Hampshire. Parents used to live in Bath - that was pretty cool. Had friends who lived in Kent, Chislehurst - that was lovely.
-Great in this part of the country. Airport bus stops in Ringwood and trains and ferries are all over the place
-Uhum - well that might be changing with the current global financial crisis. However,It is possible to travel extensively around Europe from the UK

I'm sure you will get lots of varied and interesting opinions. Enjoy

Caroline

[Marli]

Hello

I don't live in the UK, and I have also been quite active on SACanada while I was living in Canada.

i think the SA people in Europe are distributed over so many different countries and somehow seem to be here only temporarily. I guess also that in Europe we still feel a bit more connected to SA and the homesickness is perhaps a bit less?

Anyway,
Hope you have a great stay.

[Stuart]

Hi Marli ;

Why did you decide to leave Canada for Germany ?.

We would obviously love to be able to go directly to Canada but who knows maybe we love the UK and what Europe has to offer and we decide to stay.
All we know for sure is that there is no future in SA and we need to get out A.S.A.P.

Any feedback from other users, either already in the UK or planning to move to the UK, would be greatly appreciated ...

Cheers ;

Stuart.

[Marli]

Hi Stuart

The two things that really got to me in Canada were 1) the amount of leave I got as a professional person. This was only 10 days per year, with the possibility of eventually going up to a meager 15 days per year. The second thing was the 9 or sometimes 10 hour time difference between Vancouver and SA, which made communication with people in SA very difficult, since there were only short windows of opportunities where we could actually make contact.

Since all my family is still in SA, and I like to go to SA at least once a year, this lifestyle was unacceptable to me.

We were fortunate in that my husband's company transferred him to Germany and my company has their headoffice here as well. So, we both had jobs and arranged visas and his company paid our relocation costs. Without them we would not have been able to do the move.

Also, as an engineer with very specialized skills, I found it extremely hard to get a job in Canada. In Europe, this is no problem at all.

Although I have no other complaints about Canada, I do like living in Europe much more than I enjoyed living in Canada, although this could just be a function of the fact that I now know what I want and what is important to me and Germany can offer me these things.

We had some really amazing friends in Canada and if I did not yearn so much to be closer to SA, we probably would have stayed, because it is a country that is very kind to its people.

[Dedré]

Hey Stuart,

Got out of my recent examCave, and just found your post.

Glad to see another member making it to the UK. I think you should honestly consider it, and I don't want to confuse you with this post. I have not been to Canada yet, but found the down side to living in the UK (London) compared to Canada, is firstly space and secondly schooling. The up side though is your hobbies and the ability to practise it whenever you want to, as it would not be far via car, bus, train or plane. Yes the pound is strong, and many single moms in the UK is supported by the government and can make a (crappy-decent) living from that support. I am sure you will be able to support your family.

My husband is in IT as well. After some research we found that he would have been able to support us whilst I was studying through Unisa. Living further out of London adds to your travelling time but is cheaper in the end. One does not really need a car in the UK. The public transport is used by all and reliable.

What I would like to mention is that you also sit and ask yourself "What do I really want?" If it is Canda, then look here, if it is the UK, then go for the UK.

Also, look at THIS post made earlier. I think you might find it worth it.

Swerwer is trying to get a Gauteng Coffee Club going. One just need two members to get going for some support. Go and look HERE. Maybe you guys can join in and tell us how it went?

Good luck with your decisions.

[UrsulaS]

Hi

Perhaps those already in the UK could give us a little more information with regards to what would be a good salary in the UK.
What would be a good/comfortable monthly salary for a couple without kids, and for an average family with kids? Caroline suggested 35 000 per person per annum was a good salary, but would this be sufficient to support a household, of more than 1 person? I'm sure it varies across the uk - but where would be the most expensive (probably London) and the cheapest? I've heard Scotland has a slightly cheaper cost of living, is this true? How does Ireland compare to these figures, good salary etc?

Thanks for your help

[Dedré]

Ursula, I know this is not what you asked, but I thought giving you a link to this page, would help you to draw conclusions.
Salary Averages in UK

But we also have this link HERE on the cost of living in the UK.

Hope it helps somewhat.

[UrsulaS]

Thanks Dedre,

I'll definitely take a look at these links. Can't believe I only saw your post now

[Minette]

Hi Stuart,

We have now lived in the UK for a year, waiting for Canadian PR, and have loved it so far. We are moving from Bristol to Hampshire in a couple of weeks, so most of my experience relates to the Bristol area (which is lovely, by the way ).

- A good salary outside of London is around 35K and you could survive as a couple on this salary.
- If you start earning above this, it is possible to have only one person working (obviously depending on the lifestyle you prefer). Everyday living is reasonable in this part of the UK.
- In my opinion, race relations are relatively stable once you are outside London. I have had no negative experiences.
- Even in the recession the job market is still good. I work in the banking industry, which has been hard hit and have decided to look for something else - and found a great job within a month.
- Nice places to live - I would say anything outside London really. The South West is really lovely, and so is areas such as Devon, Dorset, Hampshire, Kent and Surrey. Wales is also nice - cost of living is much lower, and the countryside in the Wye Valley area is breathtaking!
- Transport systems are good across the UK - but very expensive. For us it was much for cost effective to buy a car.
- Pound has been quite weak against the Euro and Dollar, but still better travelling with the Rand

We have really enjoyed our experience in the UK so far, and have made great friends. Everyone has been so kind to us. Any other questions, just let me know.

Good luck with everything
Minette