Hi Vicky and welcome to Poms in Oz!
It's all very daunting isn't it but honestly this site is a wealth of info and everyone is here to help.
You first need to work out what type of visa you will be eligible for. Have a look on
Department of Immigration and Citizenship website or speak to a reputable migration Agent. This can be done over the phone and is free with a good agent. Go Matilda, Ian Harrop and Visa Bureau all get great feedback on here. If you go with an Agent you would be looking at paying at least an extra £1200 - £1500 pounds for their fees as well as the actual visa fees, medical checks etc (about another £2,300 for a family of 5 I should think). You also need to factor in the cost of flights for a family of 5 - once you get your visa the whole family will need to go to Oz within 12 months to 'validate' it.
I think an average timescale would be to start the application at least 12 - 18 months before you actually want to move (factoring in selling your house if you own one).
Lots of people on this site are off to Queensland (including us), obviously there's always going to be good and bad things about everywhere but on the whole the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast seem really popular.
There's an excellent thread somewhere on this site (it might even be a Sticky) called something like 'The official nurses thread' - have a read of that and you should find out loads about what type of visa you need/sponsorship chances etc.
Best of luck with it all,
