Moving from Australia to UK - SERIOUS answers ONLY?

Question

I currently live in Australia, and I am willing to move to UK in the future because I have a career that's more highly paid in Britain.

Please don't say Australia is cheaper, b/c things have now changed. I found out that income tax is higher in Australia, and a lot of Australian cities these days have comparable cost of living to UK cities.

What cities/places are ideal for one to raise a family in UK? I

know it's definitely NOT london, and also nottingham, glasgow, manchester, leeds, edinburgh, sheffield are NOT on my list due to high costs and crime.

These are the places I am interested in:

Swindon

Cardiff

Liverpool

Kingston Upon Hull

York

->which of the three cities meet the above criteria?(the best?)

I am NOT interested in clubs/bars at all, but need good place with shopping, ideal convenience in facilities, good schools, affordable cost of living, low crime, etc.

And are there any more places you could recommend? I don't want to live where it's too rural

Answer 1

hi i think you should take another look @ edinburgh it not really much more of a high cost place than anywere alse.Also for its crime,you not going to get any place that dosent have crime,Edinburgh you should think about or even somewere in Scotland.Because if you live in Englind you have got a bigger chance of flooding (Really Badly look @ last year )anyway what ever you decide to do.Have a good life mate and good luck ;)

Answer 2

In simple terms-

The more south the city, the higher the cost of living.

Edinburgh is the cheapest city you mentioned but WAGES are less the further north you are.

All British cities are virtually the same crime wise - there isn't generally a lot of it. Except your odd drunk teenager etc.

I would recommend Cardiff - but not HULL!

Not Liverpool

Not Swindon

But York is a clean place with high ish wages and little crime wise

Answer 3

No where is ideal for raising a family in the UK my darling.

But that is not what you want to hear.

Try Southampton on the south coast. Good shopping, big enough for your liking, nice schools and uni.

Bit west from there is Bournemouth , also on the south coast, considered the safest city in the UK. Lots of foreign parents support their children to go study in Bournemouth. Next to Bournemouth is a place called Poole, also very nice, or Christchurch, on the other side of Bournemouth, nice too. Most importantly, Southampton and Bournemouth have good motorway and train links to London (for work or the odd trip).

Another favorite of mine is Brighton, east of Southampton. A big , bubbly and bright town popular with alternative oriented people, lots of vegetarian little restaurants and markets.

Another big favo of mine is Bristol, in the South East of the UK. Great uni city, also lots of markets, alternative shops and 'normal' big shopping streets/precincts (also more aussie style 'malls' with all the good big lovely shops you might need. But some GREAT properties for sale there, big majestic 3 story town houses, very nice indeed. Parking is a nightmare though. But there you go. Nowhere near the space you have in Australia so mustn't complain about space, traffic, parking, public transport and more of these essential things in life! It is just : 'One of these things' is the most famous of the English stiff upper lip expressions and you have to accept it.

Swindon and Cardiff are Wales, am not a big fan of Wales myself. People are nice though (very curious, bit like aussies in the stand offish English kind of opinion!). Country side is pretty in Wales but it is all a bit far away from 'things' whatever this might be (?London I think).

Liverpool is not a nice place to bring up kids I think but there you go. Is cheaper as it is Northern. People also a LOT more approachable than the peeps in the South, there is a distinct difference in stand offishness, almost clique like behaviour.

York seems to be your best choice. Lovely, approacheable community spirited people and nice quaint villages around.

Kingston something or other is north west, I gather this is a bit more upmarket but not sure of the 'feel' of the area. I think beautiful countryside, there but I cannot remember it very well.

Oh, Canterbury is nice too, in Kent. The whole of Kent is great.

Anyway. Big drug probs in UK schools (yes, primary!) so watch your kids.

Good luck emigrating!

Answer 4

If you are thinking of Liverpool I would recommend Warrington which is inbetween Liverpool and Manchester. There are some bad areas of Warrington and there is a lot of crime on those estates but if you go to the nicer estates it is a lovely ton to live loads of good shops, plenty of big parks around the town, close to Liverpool Manchest and driving distance of Blackpool - My daughter lives there.

York is a lovely historic town but is always full of tourists.

I'm not too keen on cardiff though it is close to the coast.  Would agree with the previous answerer that Bristol would be a better bet and not too far away.

Swindon will be expensive and is not the most interesting place to live, but it is close to London.

Canterbury though not on your list is a lovely historic and rural town in Kent.