kellyjs

Hi everyone
After an agonising 8 month wait, I have just got my letter from Adelaide requesting that we take our medicals! My problem is that I'm migrating with my two daughters aged 12 and 13 (almost 14) and the eldest has just picked her options so she'll be starting her gcses in September. I first tried to migrate back in 2001 when they were much younger but my skills assessment was refused. Now they are getting older, this poses so many more problems! Part of me has decided that I need to go before the year is out or wait for two years until shes finished her gcses. If we wait though, I can't help but think the older they get the harder it will become for them to move to the other side of the world?!! Has\is anyone else having to make this decision? I'm also looking at moving to Brisbane, quite like the look of Brighton and surrounding areas but i've never been. I'm pretty open to anywhere in that area so if anyones got any advice about good schools it would be much appreciated!

mand8002

If you waited 2 years till she had done here GCSEs the younger one might want to do the same. If it were me I would just come, in fact when we came one of my daughters was more than half way through her BTEC but she just went to college here and has just about completed her Diploma in Multimedia. If we had waited there would always have been something else to hang on for.

chris and farideh

Hi Kelly,

We are moving to Adelaide with our 3 children, my eldest is
about to do he's GCSE.
If we did applied for the visa 2 years earlier, then I wouldnt have bother for my son to do he's GCSE, I dont think it makes any different, once you are in Australia the children have to do the Australia education system, unless there are English schools out there, that you want them to go.
when we lived in Germany they had English school, my son went there, and that was because we were coming back to UK.

hilary6

Hi

We're in the same position. My sons are 12 & 14 eldest just taken his options.

We're also looking to move to Brisbane.
I was wondering, when they start the new school year in January, if they would start to do their options then?

Hilary

kellyjs

Hi Mand...I know your right about there always being something...I've thhought about that and its true that the older they get the more likely they won't want to leave their friends etc...
Hilary, I'm not quite sure how they will start school in January? I know they often put them back a year in the Oz system? Its also more vocational based I think.Thats the next step, finding good schools and contacting them!
Thing is, while you are waiting to get a visa you don't want to plan too much in case you get disappointed! But youo obviously have to look into things, now I've got my med request I feel a little more confident that we will get in!

mand8002

The school year they go into depends when their birthday is. For instance my daughter will be 12 in October and she is in year 7 here, whereas in UK she would have been in year 6. She has gone from one of the oldest in the class to one of the younger ones. If she is turning 14 soon then she would be in year 9 here I think.

kellyjs

Whens the cut off date because here it would be 1st September? So if one of my daughters will be 12 next week, the other 14 in august. In september they will be in year 8 and 10. But if they were to start in Oz in January would it be the same?? O my heard hurts

Wendy

You should be able to figure it out from this site

diors

HI KELLY
WE LIVED IN ADELAIDE FOR SOME TIME (IN GLENELG) IT IS NICE AND THE BEACH,S ARE SO CLEAN!!!!!! yes CLEAN!!!!! not like our beach,s errrrrrrr.
I hope thing go well for you and your family if you need some info please e.mail me
from the diors family

kellyjs

Thanks for your help everyone..I had a look at the education site and it looks like they would be in the same grade as they are here...one less battle...I've now got to start looking for schools. Like I said before its so hard to plan so much just in case we don't get our visa..but if we are going to leave by the end of the year I haven't got much choice! It must be so much easier to do this without kids! I've even made the decision not to take my 3 cats...they peed themselves when we moved 20 minutes down the road so I wouldn't fancy their chances to the other side of the world Still, although heartbreaking theres so many other things to worry about!

stutess

good luck with everything Im sure the girls will be fine and settle in the new school well, apparently classes are a lot smaller than here in the uk which is good

kellyjs

I think I've let visa fever take over...spent the entire afternoon looking at schools in the northern suburbs
The education system is so different there and dare I say it? looks much better. I've even found a vocational course that may sway my 14 year old into coming round and forgetting about gcse's
Your right about class sizes too, one school had a total intake of 550 in 2004!

stutess

yeah you dare say it, schools are a lot better out there

Angela Marie

[QUOTE=kellyjs]
Hi - we put of moving due to options and then GCSE's which came on us very quickly and now my Son is 16 in two weeks and guess what we have another dilema, as He has a nice job to go to when He leaves school, I am now bothered about him starting the job and then moving him - it does not get any easier.

I think as long as the kids embrace what is happening they will adapt - and enjoy the process.
Best of luck anyway.
Angela

Scotty123

Im 17 and moving with my family TOMORROW!!!!!!!!!!!!!11!!1