Ellie 2

Umina is very family orientated. Beach is on Brisbane Water ,so no surf. If you want a surf beach you would go farther up to places like Wameral, Forresters, Bateau Bay, Blue Bay, Toowoon Bay etc. How ever, you would have to consider where your partner would be working.

43.2 here just now. Been that since just after midday.

There are rentals in the Baulkham Hills. Northmead, Winston Hills area that have rentals around your budget. These are older, but very good, suburbs which have excellent schools, sporting facilities, restaurants and shops.They are close to Parramatta and not far from Pennant Hills. Westmead, Norwest and Baulkham Hills rehab hospitals are nearby. The rehab is for people who have undergone major surgery . Hope this helps. There isn't really a bad suburb in the Hills District, it's simply where a person feels best.

This makes me so angry. I have brought up four sons and had six grandchildren in my house with a pool in the yard with no fence and never the hint of an accident. Why? It's simple adult supervision and rules. My home has key locks on all windows and door so small children cannot get outside on their own and when they are there has always been an adult there to supervise them. All pool fences have done is make many adults complacent. If a toddler wants to do something they will find a way as has been so dreadfully shown this summer . PLEASE never allow your toddler to get anywhere near water without supervision. Legislation is not helpful.

Shudder to think what the electricity bill is going to be like. So many days, in the last fortnight, aircon has been on 24 hours a day.

10.18 am and 38.4C

Didn't it occur to you that as you were going to live in a different country that the food available could well be different also. You could make your own fruit juice if you can't find any to your liking, there is plenty of fresh fruit available. However, if you intend to stay, it might be a good idea if you try to get used to Australian food,

I've had a quick flick though this thread and I was wondering if the "little green eye" was at work as the posters who dislike Sydney don't live there. I've lived here for over 50 years and I have never heard a Sydney sider say that it is the best city in the World - best in Australia yes, Australia is the best country in the World - yes, but most people think that the country they were born in is the best, even if they don't live there. The only thing that is really expensive in Sydney is real estate. Food is more expensive that it used to be, wages/salaries have risen dramatically but if you shop smart you can still eat very well on comparatively little. I have seen many changes, not all good, but Sydney is not as bad as is being made out, as I said in the beginning, maybe the little green eye is showing itself.

The EU have just signed a trade deal with New Zealand.

I very much doubt it.

Funny I haven't noticed that in 45 years of frequenting Parramatta.

There is a tremendous amount of redevelopment going on in Parra at the minute, which is good for your boyfriend. Apart from the transport aspect,which has been already mentioned, there are plenty of top class restaurants etc that would suit a couple with no children. Parramatta is definitely on the up. I would agree that if you had children it would not be the best place to live. Some of the best schools in the Sydney area are to be found north of Parramatta.

You don't have to go as far as Coffs for nice affordable beaches. Have a look at the Central Coast and up as far as Newcastle. Not that far from Richmond or Sydney.

An independent Scotland could join the EU. That has already been stated by the EU and Spain has said that they would not oppose it.

The area around Umina and Ettalong could suit you. A fair bit of development has gone on and there is quite a reasonable number of things to get involved in. I have a son who has a business in the area and his in-laws moved up there from Sydney. It is only about 10 minutes to the station in WoyWoy. The population in the area covers the whole range of ages - children to retirees.

Not necessarily. I image the new word could be classified as a synonym.

Parramatta is undergoing a complete redevelopment.

And the UK debt is how much? If that is the true figure the SNP have put it to good use - not squandered it. Scotland provides Westminster with billions more each year than it receives back. Why do you think Cameron et al were up in Scotland promising the earth just before the 2014 referendum? If Scotland the basket case they make it out to be they would be happy to get rid of the country. The English government is not known for its philanthropy. Oil is not the be all and end all of the Scots economy, I believe the difference the drop in price made was -0.09%.

Why don't you look at Newcastle? Work is available, plenty of nice places near the beach to live and you have friends there. More affordable and not far from Sydney. Why not keep your home and then if things don't work out you will have somewhere to go back to and you will have scratched your itch.

Surely being required to go overseas for your Australian employer would be treated differently to someone just going because they felt like it. I would certainly talk to the appropriate department about it.

Doesn't matter how long you've lived in Australia Centrelink will insist that you apply to UK overseas branch to find out if you are eligible for a UK pension and if you don't they say they will withhold any Australian pension that you are entitled to.

As has been said Parramatta has a good cafe/restaurant etc culture. More importantly there is more scope for getting casual teaching jobs. The Eastern ,Beach and Northshore suburbs have enormous lists of casual teachers to chose from, whereas the suburbs west of Parramatta very often have great difficulty in finding casuals. The trip into the City from there isn't bad at all. You would have the choice of bus, train or river cat.

I have just read your last post and it occurred to me that you might want to look at Meadowbank. It is on the Parramatta river. The east end of the suburb, closest to West Ryde, is mainly flats and as you head along towards Parramatta there are mainly houses. I should add that it is a good few years since I have visited the area so there could be more flats now. There isn't much in Meadowbank but it is very close to West Ryde and not far from Parramatta and it also has a river cat terminal.

Oh dear me. We do have a lot of touchy people on this thread. Where did I say it was only Scots who could handle their money? I did assume that adults were posting on this thread but I am not so sure now.

I am talking about the government monetary help for families in Australia not the UK, so why reference a UK Act? I am so sorry that the tongue in cheek reference to money went over your head. Let me explain.Mostly the English love to label the Scots as being mean with their money, so I pointed out that if money was tight a Scot would be able to cope. I hope that calms your indignation