Skani

Not in my world. My late husband was very sociable and had many friends from his school days until the end, even though most had moved elsewhere at some stage. I'm not very sociable but still meet a couple of times a year with a group of girls from my high school class - and we are all turning 77 this year. We also all lived interstate or overseas at times before returning to Tasmania.

Most British people don't. But there was a discussion on PIO some time ago with a census result showing that most of the 10 Australian suburbs with the highest concentration of British born people were all in Perth. IIRC the top 5 or 6 were all suburbs in Perth's north. That was the reference to the "Benidorm" effect. That may now be diluting with other nationalities migrating in greater numbers.

Yes, agree with the suburbs to avoid given by Toots. Ravenswood and Rocherlea in particular regularly feature at the top of the social problem hierarchy. Some low lying areas of Launceston are prone to flooding: these are detailed on overlay maps here - Launceston Draft LPS - C12.0 Flood-Prone Hazard Areas Overlay 11k and 55k - Exhibited Version (planning.tas.gov.au) There are also some pleasant villages within commuting distance of Launceston eg. Evandale, Perth, Longford, Carrick.

School education in Australia is administered by the various state governments so it is not exactly the same throughout the country. However schemes for starting apprenticeships/traineeships in senior school are common. This is the information for Victoria: School-Based Apprenticeships and Traineeships | vic.gov.au (www.vic.gov.au)

Yes, the probability of encountering spiders and snakes is higher in more rural areas. But, no, parents don't go out and check for spiders first. You - and that includes children - learn to keep alert and take precautions ie. where not to put hands and feet without checking first, not leaving shoes/boots outside the door without checking before putting them on, keeping areas clear of habitat which might be attractive to unwanted beasties..

Tappers2oz it was! Her post is here:

There is someone else who moved as a single parent recently but I'm having trouble remembering the name at the moment. I think the original intention was to move with her husband but they separated before the move, she has come alone and recently posted on here about her experiences. Will post the name as soon as I can extract it from the depths (of my memory).

You mention the "pull" of Sydney over Perth or Brisbane is having your support network there. Do you have a support network in the UK?

I'm not sure where you are getting your Australian information and I don't know the situation in Ireland but I have the distinct impression that Oz is not as obsessed about the subject as the UK - although I've been reading The Telegraph so maybe my impression is skewed.

$200,000 is very high end - medical specialist or similar territory. Compare with these figures for Melbourne, last updated about a week ago: Melbourne, Victoria Salary | PayScale This is a cost of living estimate for Melbourne based on figures submitted by local residents: Cost of Living in Melbourne. Apr 2024. Prices in Melbourne (numbeo.com)

Quoll, I can see the solution is for you to move to the arctic part of the country: almost never too hot to walk, plenty of mizzling rain - not that stair rod tropical stuff - and barely see a fly (maybe on a sheep station?)

First of all, how old are you and what is your employment history? That will determine whether a visa to move is even possible.

Perfectly possible to live a hillbilly-free life in Hobart. Incat would be a very interesting company to work for, especially at the moment: INCAT - Leading The World In The Transition To Zero Emission Ro-Pax Ferries

To be fair, how common would that be? I've lived in Australia for most of 70+ years and never had a bottle thrown at me or anywhere near me or even witnessed it happening. It would be similar to my family worrying about me going to Glasgow because someone had been stabbed there. If hooning is a problem in a certain area/time of day you would learn to avoid it just as you would learn to avoid areas in the UK where chavs/gangs hang around and cause trouble in certain places/times.

That's OK for you but you mention that your grandparents are British born. Did they acquire Australian citizenship when they were living here?