Joannamather

Hi
I moved over with my family about 6 weeks ago and we are waiting for our visa to be approved. We moved to Birkenhead as my husband will be working in the CBD and I am a Physiotherapist and will be working at Middlemore Hospital.
I have 2 children, 2 and 4 years old. My eldest will be starting at Birkenhead Primary in October.
I wondered if anyone lived in this area and had any advise re: childcare and any groups appropriate for my boys. I will be working part-time so will be nice to get out and about with them on my days off.
Thank you
Jo

lisamct

Hey, I dont have kids or have any advice about groups etc but just wanted to say Hi.
I live in Birkdale and also work for Middlemore, although I work in community so based outwith the hospital itself.

bearskin

How is the commute from to the CBD from Birkenhead? Can't say it would be the first suburb I think of to live in, if I was planning a commute into town? I've heard that Physio is a good job to be in at the moment - a good growth industry? Again, if you are living in Birkenhead - why not look for work on the North Shore?

Good luck with the kids - try and get your little ones into the local Kindergarten - we found our local ones to be excellent.

Joannamather

Hi,
I haven't started work yet so not sure how I'm going to find the commute. I specialise in ICU respiratory work so it had to be a hospital and North Shore and Auckland do not have anything suitable at the moment. Waitakere would be a similar commute from my house as middlemore.
We have tried to contact a few nurseries but are booked up, we may have to go down the childminder route initially.
Lisa - how do you find the commute? My work hours are 730 to 330 so am hoping to miss the worst of it. Do you work in physio?
Thanks
Jo

lisamct

Hi Jo,

I'm not in physio, I'm a community midwife so a wee bit different!

I'm based out at Lambie Drive which is about the same distance from the motorway as Middlemore is. I leave at around 6.45 and I'm at work around 7.30 (sometimes a bit earlier) Your commute home at 3.30 should take about the same time, I leave the office at 4.30 and it takes me about an hour most days.
Only issue you'll also need to factor in is parking at Middlemore as the staff parking is a bit of a walk from the hospital itself.

bearskin

Really? I would've thought if can find a route down to what I always call 'the Greenhithe Motorway' then Waitakere Hospital isn't that far a drive from there?

Not a nursery, a kindergarten. There is a reasonable difference. We tried both types, and the kindergarten was 500% better.

A Rush And A Push

Kindergarten not really an option if you and your husband both working. Your hours are 7.30-3.30 - kindies generally open around 8.30-2.30 and close for school holidays. More for people with one parent at home or working part-time. Nurseries (usually called daycares here) usually have the longer opening hours e.g. 7.30-5.30/6. They vary a lot, many are great. Look for good staff-child ratio numbers, low staff turnover, staff engaged with kids - the same sort of stuff you would look for in the UK really.

Daycares (and kindies) all have ERO reports (like OFSTED) you can read online at www.ero,co.nz. Though I think the reports are much of a muchness tbh.

Childminders are also an option, they usually work through organisations like Porse (www.porse.co.nz). Once aged 3 kids get 20 hours a week free at daycare/kindy/childminders (usually a small top up fee so not actually free, more heavily-subsidised).

lisamct

The hospital also has its own staff childcare facility, a few of the girls in my office use it.
I'd imagine it has a waiting list but might be worth investigating as its open during regular shift hours which start at 7am.

Joannamather

Thank you for the info, food for thought. I haven't had my shifts confirmed yet so it is going to be a bit of a push to get it all sorted. Prices seem much more reasonable that at home but the local nurseries we have contacted are fully booked (many until next year!). I will have a look at the middlemore option.
Kindergartens are definitely not an option for us.
Thanks again, I can't wait to feel settled! :fingerscrossed

Hillcrest Jane

Hi Joanna, Welcome to the Shore, My family moved to New Zealand from Manchester in Nov 2014. We stayed in the CBD for a couple of months before moving to the Shore in January. My daughter is 12 so I dont really have any info that can help re groups and childcare for your boys but my daughters teacher who is from the uk has been very helpful to my family. He lives in Birkenhead and has a young family and I would be happy to ask his advise for you when the children return to school after the holidays. I hope you and your family are settled in your new home, im still finding it difficult but my daughter loves it and is much happier at school than she was in the UK.

Joannamather

Hi Jane
Thanks for your message, I would be happy for you to pass on my details, I'll send you a personal message. If you ever want to catch up and grab a coffee I would be happy to. I start work Monday but my husband is still looking for work, it is much harder for him and the interview process is brutal in his field. We only got our visa approved Friday so we can start to settle a bit more and we love our home . It is in a beautiful spot and slowly getting to know the area.
Do you have residency? Are you missing home? I feel happy but we have been so manic since we arrived sorting stuff and making sure the boys are ok I haven't had the time to dwell too much on home.
Hope your daughter enjoys her holiday and thanks again for your message.
Jo

Hillcrest Jane

Hi Jo,
As I am new to this site and do not have a minimum of 3 posts I am unable to read private messages at this time. Your message titled contact is in my inbox but I can not access it at this time.
Yes my family have residency, I refused to move without securing this as I was worried if we came over on work visas and the criteria for residency changed we would have to uproot out daughter again which wouldn't have been fair to her. She was very upset to be leaving her friends and family when we first discussed the move with her.
I am very homesick at the moment, it is not the UK I miss but my family and friends. I have older children who are still in the UK so I am finding it very hard to settle.
I can also sympathise with your husband as I left a good job in the UK and have not been able to find anything similar since arriving in NZ. My husband had secured work 12 months prior to us arriving so we were very lucky his employer was patient while we applied for our residency. What field is your husband in?
I would be happy to meet up for a coffee some time, let me know when you are free.
I hope all goes well with your first day in work on Monday.
Jane

BEVS

I always thought that you would be able to read the content of the PM from your email.

It should look like this

Anyway, you can send a message via BE email.

Simply click on the person's username and a drop down menu appears . Select "Email User" . A new box opens which allows you to send your message over .

Hillcrest Jane

Hi Bevs,
Tried clicking on name but drop down only gives me option to PM and when I try I see a message saying PMs are restricted to members with 3 or more posts. It also tells me this when trying to access the message I have recieved. I did not recieve an email message like the one you discribe. Thanks Jane