chris955

No.

BadgeIsBack

Thanks mate -
I've seen 2 in 10 years. I don't worry about my kids much outside - they are so noisy most snakes would run a mile...

Eddie_W

I think in response to the original post and trying to get this back on track, this is an important bit of context to weigh up any advice or opinion. As I said with mine, alot of it is very subjective (no way to avoid that really) and I DO have a bias toward Australia.

BUT, I have not yet lived in Australia while raising a family and that is an important bit of context to the OP, just as yours about your reasons for being there. I am currently looking at it first and foremost for the pro's and con's of family life, the job is just a means to an end of getting us there.

I think the subjective points about how friendly people are etc can be heavily clouded depending on your desire or reasons to be in a certain place. You will look for faults because you want to justify your view of a place (I don't mean You specifically verystormy, just people in general). I know this because I think I did this with the UK for at least my first 5 years here, I was very much set in my "Australian" view of things that couldn't possibly be any good anywhere else. I definitely don't feel that way now and if circumstance dictated it (no job to go to, financial constraints) I would happily live here(in the UK) of the rest of my life. All things being equal though and with the same opportunity, I would pick Australia for my family every time.

Anyway, I think this (for the most part) is a good debate and is important to have as its not about one place "winning" over the other its about trying to help inform people in a way that may help them balance the decision and manage any perceived risks, especially with family and kids involved. Once you have kids you are never 100% about any decision anymore IMHO, there is always some doubt.

Eddie_W

Agreed good advice, we are also renting our house out and think we will be glad we have gone the extra mile of getting in good shape before we leave to demand more of tenants and spending a bit extra on management for piece of mind on the other side of the world.

The better your house is when you rent it the less likely tenants will have any wiggle room in treating it poorly.

Almo

Context is important, yes, and I think anyone who comes to these forums has to take everything they read with a pinch of salt. Not necessarily because people are deliberately bending the truth or anything (although there are undoubtedly some stirrers on here) but because their view of Australia and their view of the UK will clearly be coloured by their personal circumstances and no one can ever understand every influence on a poster.

It does worry me when I see posters here on the Australia board who are planning their move and ignore every negative posted about Australia [not on this thread, I hasten to add]. It worries me just as much on the Back to the UK board to see posters who build the UK up to be some kind of utopia.

Pollyana

If you read enough though you realise that you are just getting a whole spectrum of viewpoints - the lovers, haters and those who just tolerate. The UK forum is the same. There are some posters in there who are vehemently anti-UK at times - just needs anyone reading the forums to realise that we are all different, so everyone while have an individual opinion of a place -jJust like any gathering of random people in real life I guess!