Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
Mar 27th 2019, 4:58 pm
#16
BE Enthusiast
Joined: Sep 2017
Location: Halifax, NS
Posts: 345
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
Mar 27th 2019, 8:25 pm
#17
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Feb 2013
Location: BC, Canada
Posts: 3,874
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
Maritimers can be welcoming or not .......... the "come from away" attitude is prevalent.
My grandson is in elementary school in NS and is receiving a good education.
But do be aware that if your child has got any problems, then help appears to be much better in the UK than in the majority of places in Canada ............. whether that is behavioural, physical, being on the autism spectrum, dyslexic, etc. Special needs teachers and aides are in short supply all over the country, and NS is no exception.
Some school boards are better than others, and some schools within a school board district will be better than others, but even those may not give the best help.
Many people who live in Dartmouth use the "ferry 'cross the harbour" .................. a lot of them use transit at either end or walk to the ferry terminals. Cheap, easy, convenient, hassle-free ............... and a great trip. We've taken the ferry numerous times over the last 20 years. You do have to watch your timing.
You need to visit both in the summer and in the winter to see if it is for you ........ winters can be brutal with nor'easters, weeks of icy conditions (as in this winter). Summers can be hot or not.
My grandson is in elementary school in NS and is receiving a good education.
But do be aware that if your child has got any problems, then help appears to be much better in the UK than in the majority of places in Canada ............. whether that is behavioural, physical, being on the autism spectrum, dyslexic, etc. Special needs teachers and aides are in short supply all over the country, and NS is no exception.
Some school boards are better than others, and some schools within a school board district will be better than others, but even those may not give the best help.
glb19 posted
Bedford is where I lived and I hope to live there when I move back, though it is being built up quite a bit at the moment and the traffic to get into Halifax in the mornings is getting worse. I guess it's just one of those inevitable things with city growth.
Bedford is where I lived and I hope to live there when I move back, though it is being built up quite a bit at the moment and the traffic to get into Halifax in the mornings is getting worse. I guess it's just one of those inevitable things with city growth.
You need to visit both in the summer and in the winter to see if it is for you ........ winters can be brutal with nor'easters, weeks of icy conditions (as in this winter). Summers can be hot or not.
Mar 27th 2019, 11:38 pm
#18
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 6
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
Thank you everyone!
your comments have all been very helpful. Planning a visit shortly before we make the final move.
Will keep following the thread for different views as well!🙂
your comments have all been very helpful. Planning a visit shortly before we make the final move.
Will keep following the thread for different views as well!🙂
Mar 28th 2019, 1:53 am
#19
Citizenship Nov 10 2016!!
Joined: Feb 2008
Location: Stewiacke Nova Scotia
Posts: 6,659
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
Mar 28th 2019, 2:01 am
#20
Citizenship Nov 10 2016!!
Joined: Feb 2008
Location: Stewiacke Nova Scotia
Posts: 6,659
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
Maritimers can be welcoming or not .......... the "come from away" attitude is prevalent.
My grandson is in elementary school in NS and is receiving a good education.
But do be aware that if your child has got any problems, then help appears to be much better in the UK than in the majority of places in Canada ............. whether that is behavioural, physical, being on the autism spectrum, dyslexic, etc. Special needs teachers and aides are in short supply all over the country, and NS is no exception.
Some school boards are better than others, and some schools within a school board district will be better than others, but even those may not give the best help.
Many people who live in Dartmouth use the "ferry 'cross the harbour" .................. a lot of them use transit at either end or walk to the ferry terminals. Cheap, easy, convenient, hassle-free ............... and a great trip. We've taken the ferry numerous times over the last 20 years. You do have to watch your timing.
You need to visit both in the summer and in the winter to see if it is for you ........ winters can be brutal with nor'easters, weeks of icy conditions (as in this winter). Summers can be hot or not.
My grandson is in elementary school in NS and is receiving a good education.
But do be aware that if your child has got any problems, then help appears to be much better in the UK than in the majority of places in Canada ............. whether that is behavioural, physical, being on the autism spectrum, dyslexic, etc. Special needs teachers and aides are in short supply all over the country, and NS is no exception.
Some school boards are better than others, and some schools within a school board district will be better than others, but even those may not give the best help.
Many people who live in Dartmouth use the "ferry 'cross the harbour" .................. a lot of them use transit at either end or walk to the ferry terminals. Cheap, easy, convenient, hassle-free ............... and a great trip. We've taken the ferry numerous times over the last 20 years. You do have to watch your timing.
You need to visit both in the summer and in the winter to see if it is for you ........ winters can be brutal with nor'easters, weeks of icy conditions (as in this winter). Summers can be hot or not.
Mar 28th 2019, 2:55 am
#21
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Feb 2013
Location: BC, Canada
Posts: 3,874
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
From my personal experience of raising a child with a disability in NS for the last 10 years I disagree with your comments regarding the challenges , I believe my daughter got superior support here than she would have ever received in the UK, turning into adulthood however may well present more challenges
Nikki .............
I am also speaking from personal experience!!!
My grandson requires special help. He is getting great help from his school. He would not be getting that help in BC, and from what other posters have said in the past, he probably would be lucky to get that help in the UK.
If we are very lucky, he will get all the help he needs and will be a fully functioning person by the time he leaves school, and without having to attend specialist schools (of which there are 2 or 3 in NS).
But I also know that his parents have been advocating for him since pre-school, and I also know that he has school mates who are not getting all the help they need.
Help can also be very different in elementary vs middle school vs high school. A family member knows all too well the problems at those higher levels having to deal with the students who are not receiving help.
Last edited by scilly; Mar 28th 2019 at 2:57 am.
Mar 28th 2019, 10:56 am
#22
Forum Regular
Joined: May 2016
Location: Munich, Germany
Posts: 189
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
We moved to Nova Scotia in January this year with children aged 4 and 1. We used this forum for about 3 years prior to our move (mainly for immigration advice which was very helpful) and I would say that the balance of opinion on NS was probably on the negative side but after two recce trips here and having a job lined up, we made the move. For reference, my wife works here in law and I am a stay at home Dad for the time being.
Our first 2 months here have really shown that whilst forums have their place, the experiences of some on this forum have been very different to ours (so far anyway). Our situation is a little different to most as we moved here after living in Bavaria for 5 years. We therefore have fewer issues with missing the UK food/pubs/climate than others. We also approached the move with a positive outlook and planned to settle down as quickly as possible (buy rather than rent etc), taking the view that taking the cautious approach to see if we like it wasn't conducive to feeling settled and establishing a life here.
We put an offer in on a house in Wellington (30 mins to Halifax) four days after arriving, after viewing several properties. We met a few locals before the house purchase went through and were told it was a great street and neighbourhood. So far it has exceeded our expectations considerably - several neighbors turning up with baked goods and hampers to welcome us, neighbors looking after our eldest daughter whilst our belongings were delivered, having a couple of neighbors around for a beer ended up finishing at 2am, two neighbors helping plough/snow blow the drive after two storms. The friendliness of the people here has been incredible and we feel very settled already. To top it off, our 4 year old already has some lovely friends 4 houses away and with all of the space to play, is the happiest she has ever been.
I read a few people mentioning this 'Come from away' mentality here. In 9 weeks we have not had any experience of this whatsoever. My opinion is that a lot of people who seem to notice this behaviour are mainly living in other parts of Nova Scotia which seem very different to Halifax. Having met a lot of people so far, the overwhelming majority are either not originally from NS or have parents from another province/country. If you are coming to the Halifax region and can hold a conversation, you shouldn't have any issues on this front. If you move to Bridgewater, different story...
Our experience has been massively positive so far but there is no substitute for personal experience. Everyone handles situations differently and will tread their own path, so take everything on this forum with an open mind. A lot will depend on where you want to live - come over here and spend a few days driving around the different areas, eat out a lot and talk to locals and see what might work for you.
Send me a private message if you have any specific questions - happy to help if I can.
Our first 2 months here have really shown that whilst forums have their place, the experiences of some on this forum have been very different to ours (so far anyway). Our situation is a little different to most as we moved here after living in Bavaria for 5 years. We therefore have fewer issues with missing the UK food/pubs/climate than others. We also approached the move with a positive outlook and planned to settle down as quickly as possible (buy rather than rent etc), taking the view that taking the cautious approach to see if we like it wasn't conducive to feeling settled and establishing a life here.
We put an offer in on a house in Wellington (30 mins to Halifax) four days after arriving, after viewing several properties. We met a few locals before the house purchase went through and were told it was a great street and neighbourhood. So far it has exceeded our expectations considerably - several neighbors turning up with baked goods and hampers to welcome us, neighbors looking after our eldest daughter whilst our belongings were delivered, having a couple of neighbors around for a beer ended up finishing at 2am, two neighbors helping plough/snow blow the drive after two storms. The friendliness of the people here has been incredible and we feel very settled already. To top it off, our 4 year old already has some lovely friends 4 houses away and with all of the space to play, is the happiest she has ever been.
I read a few people mentioning this 'Come from away' mentality here. In 9 weeks we have not had any experience of this whatsoever. My opinion is that a lot of people who seem to notice this behaviour are mainly living in other parts of Nova Scotia which seem very different to Halifax. Having met a lot of people so far, the overwhelming majority are either not originally from NS or have parents from another province/country. If you are coming to the Halifax region and can hold a conversation, you shouldn't have any issues on this front. If you move to Bridgewater, different story...
Our experience has been massively positive so far but there is no substitute for personal experience. Everyone handles situations differently and will tread their own path, so take everything on this forum with an open mind. A lot will depend on where you want to live - come over here and spend a few days driving around the different areas, eat out a lot and talk to locals and see what might work for you.
Send me a private message if you have any specific questions - happy to help if I can.
Mar 28th 2019, 11:40 am
#23
BE Forum Addict
Joined: May 2004
Location: Amherst Nova Scotia
Posts: 2,935
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
I haven’t had any issues from people because I have come from away. I live in a small rural community about 1/2 way between Amherst and Pugwash and always felt welcomed. There are a few English families living in the area but to be honest haven’t met them and haven’t gone out of our way to meet them. The most I get is why we left the UK and how did we compare living here to there. I probably travel down to Halifax twice a year but that is more to treat myself rather than a necessity
Mar 28th 2019, 12:34 pm
#24
Forum Regular
Joined: Mar 2018
Posts: 62
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
Hello Dayo and welcome to BE.
We landed in Canada 2009 but in New Brunswick. We have lived in Nova Scotia for 3 years now and love it. I have been thinking how to describe it and have come up with the UK 40 year ago.
We live in rural Nova Scotia, in a community of less than 200 and they are a mixed bunch. We have senior professionals in IT, finance and the head of a hospital laboratory, living next to duck dynasty. Farm workers, forestry, welding, mechanics, labourers and the great unwashed but it all seems to work. They all grew up together and many have returned home after living away. Everyone is very helpful and community events abound, chase the ace (do not ask) wings night, Saturday breakfast at the Canadian legion to dances and dime auctions to raise money for the fire hall. Having moved from the South of England it is the quiet life we wanted. However, the airport is 30 minutes away as is the town of Truro and Dartmouth Crossing 50 minutes.
There is very little "come from away" although it can seem like that as they all grew up together but if you have kids fitting in will be easy. We do not have kids but schools are still local (we have a junior school in our village and a secondary in the next village ten minutes away) School bus collects and drops off the kids without issue. We attend sporting events, after school events etc etc with our friends kids and house parties are the norm. Our local garage does coffee and cake from 10-11 ish Tue-Sat inclusive, where we all sit round and tell lies. If I need a plumber, electrician etc they are all at coffee. It sounds bad but if you are English they do not seem to view you as an immigrant. I am a brash Yorkshire man, who is not the most tactful person and they have accepted me. My wife is from Surrey and is lovely, they love her to bits.
There is little crime round here, kids all play out as they want and other than the wildlife such as cougars (no not women of a certain age), skunks, eagles and coyotes there is nothing dangerous. We have two dogs and as long as you are aware they could be there, have had no problems, well except the beagle getting porcupine quills in her nose.
My wife works at Dartmouth Crossing which is a big out of town shopping area. We go to Dartmouth and Halifax quite a bit for nights out etc and love it. As with any city there are areas you have to be careful in but overall it is one of the safest places on a night out, I have seen. There are a wide variety of facilities for sports and recreation as well as out by us a great outdoor life, snow mobiles in the winter, ATV in the summer as well as some stunning scenery. We live in a 4000 Sq foot century home on the cobequid bay, next to burnt coat head park and it cost probably the price of a garden shed in Sussex.
As someone mentioned, the only fly in our ointment is a lack of doctors. We had four at our rural surgery when we moved here, we now have one and so hundreds of us are without a doctor again. I can get a vet for the dogs no problem but doctors seem in short supply.
We had real issues with Fredericton and New Brunswick but can highly recommend Nova Scotia. If you want to know anything or want anything done please just message us and we will get it done for you.
Good Luck
We landed in Canada 2009 but in New Brunswick. We have lived in Nova Scotia for 3 years now and love it. I have been thinking how to describe it and have come up with the UK 40 year ago.
We live in rural Nova Scotia, in a community of less than 200 and they are a mixed bunch. We have senior professionals in IT, finance and the head of a hospital laboratory, living next to duck dynasty. Farm workers, forestry, welding, mechanics, labourers and the great unwashed but it all seems to work. They all grew up together and many have returned home after living away. Everyone is very helpful and community events abound, chase the ace (do not ask) wings night, Saturday breakfast at the Canadian legion to dances and dime auctions to raise money for the fire hall. Having moved from the South of England it is the quiet life we wanted. However, the airport is 30 minutes away as is the town of Truro and Dartmouth Crossing 50 minutes.
There is very little "come from away" although it can seem like that as they all grew up together but if you have kids fitting in will be easy. We do not have kids but schools are still local (we have a junior school in our village and a secondary in the next village ten minutes away) School bus collects and drops off the kids without issue. We attend sporting events, after school events etc etc with our friends kids and house parties are the norm. Our local garage does coffee and cake from 10-11 ish Tue-Sat inclusive, where we all sit round and tell lies. If I need a plumber, electrician etc they are all at coffee. It sounds bad but if you are English they do not seem to view you as an immigrant. I am a brash Yorkshire man, who is not the most tactful person and they have accepted me. My wife is from Surrey and is lovely, they love her to bits.
There is little crime round here, kids all play out as they want and other than the wildlife such as cougars (no not women of a certain age), skunks, eagles and coyotes there is nothing dangerous. We have two dogs and as long as you are aware they could be there, have had no problems, well except the beagle getting porcupine quills in her nose.
My wife works at Dartmouth Crossing which is a big out of town shopping area. We go to Dartmouth and Halifax quite a bit for nights out etc and love it. As with any city there are areas you have to be careful in but overall it is one of the safest places on a night out, I have seen. There are a wide variety of facilities for sports and recreation as well as out by us a great outdoor life, snow mobiles in the winter, ATV in the summer as well as some stunning scenery. We live in a 4000 Sq foot century home on the cobequid bay, next to burnt coat head park and it cost probably the price of a garden shed in Sussex.
As someone mentioned, the only fly in our ointment is a lack of doctors. We had four at our rural surgery when we moved here, we now have one and so hundreds of us are without a doctor again. I can get a vet for the dogs no problem but doctors seem in short supply.
We had real issues with Fredericton and New Brunswick but can highly recommend Nova Scotia. If you want to know anything or want anything done please just message us and we will get it done for you.
Good Luck
Mar 29th 2019, 1:22 pm
#25
BE Forum Addict
Joined: Nov 2009
Location: Somewhere in Hamilton, ON
Posts: 4,307
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
We lived in Yarmouth NS from 2011 to 2014. We loved so many aspects of it. People were extremely friendly on the surface. We had plenty of people to chat with but we made very few friends.
We had to travel 300km to do “fun” shopping or to see some specialists. We were lucky we always had s doctor because I was friends with the practice manager.
We moved to Ontario in 2014 so we’ve lived here longer now than we did in NS. Still miss our Uk friends we made in the Halifax area as well as some “locals” from Yarmouth but I feel Ontario has given us the balance we needed and we’re very happy living in Hamilton - despite the negative view some have on this old dirty city.
We had to travel 300km to do “fun” shopping or to see some specialists. We were lucky we always had s doctor because I was friends with the practice manager.
We moved to Ontario in 2014 so we’ve lived here longer now than we did in NS. Still miss our Uk friends we made in the Halifax area as well as some “locals” from Yarmouth but I feel Ontario has given us the balance we needed and we’re very happy living in Hamilton - despite the negative view some have on this old dirty city.
Apr 3rd 2019, 3:14 pm
#26
Just Joined
Joined: Apr 2019
Posts: 1
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
I moved to Halifax about 12 years ago. We now have a 11 year old son and 8 year old daughter. We live on the outskirts of the city itself, called Beechville. I would recommend the French Immersion classes, where subjects as predominantly English but they learn French too. This is more challenging for the kids, so the kids are smarter and generally well-rounded. Great outdoor activites: hikes galore, free ice-skating, beaches, swimming in lakes (on those hot days), kayaking, sailing, speedboats, walking and cycling trails and an online club called Meetup.com is a great way to join a club and find like minded people. There is an amazingly high number of restaurants to choose from for this size of city (but still no Indian!). Reliability and schedule between buses depends on the routes. I notice the University routes are better. In terms of the Arts culture, it's not the same as a large city but University hosted events, Shakespeare in the Park and increasing number of international fairs are popping up (great for introducing and educating kids) and more audience-with based events, concerts and bands; John Cleese was here recently. I have seen Halifax change a lot in the last 12 years. I can't imagine what will happen in the next 12. Oh and houses are affordable; so far!
Apr 10th 2019, 6:22 am
#27
Just Joined
Thread Starter
Joined: Mar 2019
Posts: 6
Re: Migrated to Nova Scotia from the UK? Please share your experience
Thank you all soo much for responding, I’m definately getting a feel of what living in Nova Scotia entails. You’ve definately helped simplify decision making for us.
