BtotheR

Hi all. We are considering moving back too the UK and want to be up north in the Lake District near where I am from. My other half is from here in NZ and we have a baby due soon so we would have a load of paperwork etc to do if its even to be considered. I've been here for over 13 years now but just get the calling of home and its especially bad now with baby on the way and all the family is over there.

But I just wanted to know has anyone done the same and moved to the Lakes? Just want to know if the bad weather or lifestyle in anyway has made anyone regret making the move back to this part of the country?

We have a great lifestyle here in Auckland - a lot to give up if we did it - just wanted to know anyone else experience that may be close to this.

Thanks!
B

Sparkleydiva

we returned 12 months ago because of the pull of home and it has been a huge huge mistake. We were in the North West for 6 months and now in Devon. Apart from my job, which is great experience, this for us has been a disaster.

We gave up a great lifestyle and income which we regret, we lived in Red Beach, for a UK that is so different, with different values and the most awful weather. I can count on one hand, how many sunny bbq days in 12 months. It rains and is so grey. Currently we are getting 14c and its mid may.

It isnt just weather for us, it is the entire lifestyle we miss. My adult daughters are the same, despite them being based in London which is what they wanted. So my suggestion is visit for a lengthy period to check it out first. That said i loved it for the first couple of months, but as reality set in....i so wish we hadnt moved permanently.

It is no longer home...with the realisation that home is no longer a specific country for me...which has come at a huge personal and financial cost.

Good luck

barnsleymat

We've recently moved back to the UK and one of the big factors was us having a baby and all our family being in the UK.

Best thing we ever did.

We were in Dunedin and the weather in Yorkshire has been much much better than what we left behind.

Moses2013

Great lifestyle is different for everyone and just depends what you mean with it. For Sparkleydiva it might be the bbq's, for others it might be the shopping etc. We moved to Ireland from UK and lived in the sunnier parts before where you have similar amounts of sun like Auckland, but we've had far more bbq's here.


Why? Work shorter hours, have a plot that actually get's sun compared to the small flat we had before. Built a nice decking that is protected from the wind and rain, so even when it's 14 and sunny like yesterday, underneath the polycarbonate roof it was 25 and I was sitting out in shorts LOL. As you can see, we're all different, some can adapt and little things can make a huge difference. I can't comment on lake district but if other things are right, it's not that hard to make adjustments.

Snap Shot

We've been back in Britain for six months after nearly six years in NZ.

We now live in Droitwich, Worcestershire. We didn't return to Surrey where we used to live. Property to either rent or buy is better value in Worcestershire. We would move to another part of the UK if my husband got an attractive job offer which meant we had to relocate.

We've both got temporary jobs whilst looking for permanent jobs. We've yet to be unemployed for months on end like we were in NZ. My, 'personal best' for being unemployed so far stands at 18months. (Thanks NZ, I couldn't have achieved that milestone without you. Yes, I was being sarcastic.) OK, I did voluntary work as an interim measure so my cv didn't look like a total write off.

My kiwi husband says returning to Britain was the right thing to do. We're happy here.

I feel sure of myself again.

(A couple of weeks ago I imagined what it would be like returning to where we used to live in NZ. I could feel myself starting to hyperventilate, like a panic attack was coming on.)

Spacecake799

We were in NZ for six years with 3 children. We ended up leaving one there. We were on the North Shore.
We moved back to North Yorkshire having never been here before. NZ was boring to me, lovely scenery but i felt retired. I wanted a life still, Europe, shops. Thats just me.
I have never ever wished i was back in NZ. I love where i am. I agree the weathers not great but hey we had crap summers in NZ sometimes.
Everyones different. It definitely depends what you want. For now were happy here, who knows we may go back one day.

BtotheR

Thanks Moses - where abouts in Ireland gets more sun than Auckland out of interest??

Thanks to everyone so far sharing their experiences

B

BtotheR

Hey Sparkely - how long were you here in NZ and away from the Uk to feel such a difference?

Thanks,

B

Woodlea

Well it ain't Dublin

https://weather-and-climate.com/aver...Dublin,Ireland

or Dingle

https://weather-and-climate.com/aver...dingle,Ireland


here's Auckland

https://weather-and-climate.com/aver...nd,New-Zealand

Moses is on the potcheen again!

Sparkleydiva

We moved to NZ in 2006 and will have been back a year next week.

Moses2013

I said: We moved to Ireland from UK and lived in the sunnier parts before where you have similar amounts of sun like Auckland.


Meant UK, for example Jersey & Kent. Weather here would be like lake district. As said, if everything else is right you can always make adjustments. Here I enjoy longer evenings in summer compared to Kent + shorter working hours etc. so that meakes up for it.

BtotheR

Hey Sparkleydiva - just found some of your posts from about this time last year talking about feeling like you don't belong here in NZ and didn't want to die here etc.

Just wanted to know what you would have done differently when you were obviously feeling quite lost here even after so long? Are you going to try and get back here or try another part of the UK?

Do you think its just a midget wherever you are?

Sparkleydiva

It's a really interesting and, as yet, unanswered dilemma. To give a little perspective my father died in the UK while in NZ, now 5 years ago and my job over there was in community palliative care, which was certainly very influential in my feelings at that time; as I cared for so many people who weren't kiwi.

I would say I wasn't in a great space. Now coming back here I work in higher education, teaching research methods etc and love this; a. Because it's my field of interest and b. Because I no longer face death and all of its stressors every day. This has been a massive change for me. I am still passionate about good end of life care BUT being removed from it has allowed me to reflect more.

The one positive of being here is my job opportunity which, if we do decide to move on, stands me in really good stead for career progression and this step from clinical to academia would have been much more difficult in NZ - as I had tried a few times over the years.

I do think that belonging is an interesting concept and one I havent yet answered either but have come to accept that as long as family are nearby I'm ok with life. We are unlikely to try somewhere else in the UK as some of my issues are fundamental to UK culture as a whole. I thought I missed shopping and theatre and so on, but actually we did quite a lot in NZ and regularly went to Aussie for some events too and I rarely visit the shops.

With the benefit of hindsight we should have put our belongings in storage for 6 months and given it a try...things would now be easier to change...

Will we stay here, very unlikely in the long term. In the immediate short term (this year) we will stay, if for nothing else than my work experience.

Snap Shot

I'm curious as to what these are, in your view.

BtotheR

Was supposed to say mindset not midget - damn autocorrect!

Thanks SparkelyDiva for taking the time to respond - I feel with your personal and professional experience you are well placed to give a good balanced perspective.

I did move back to the Uk about 10 years ago now after being here for 3 years previous - it was great to be back especially for the first 6 months and then I started to wonder what I had done. 18 months later I was fortunate my old job wanted me back and I was able to return. I guess that what makes me so hesitant now as I don't want to make the same mistake but with a baby on the way its awful not being close to my family (other half isn't close to her fam here).

I miss the Lake District being close, the right to roam (NZ isa too privately owned everywhere!) I miss cheap good beer in nice pubs, I miss not being able to pop and see my family. I don't miss the chavs, the pound land town centres or the constant media frenzy about getting nuked or blown up by terrorists.

Whats the answer I don't know. Maybe it is mindset and definitely not the midget.