Quoll

10 hours ago, kikice said:

They are in Victoria. Which state offers free schooling? Thank you

 

It offers free schooling to those permanent and temporary residents.  Tourists dont get free schooling and on a bridging visa she would have the same conditions as her visa of entry - those on tourist visas usually get 12 weeks but according to this from the application form, those conditions are extended if the student is on a bridging visa.  As the processing time for carers visa now extends into years, there will be a period on a  bridging visa I would have thought.  I think they are charged international fees.

Temporary students on Bridging Visa enrolments are automatically extended and invoiced beyond the initial enrolment end date outlined above, as the vast
majority of students study beyond the initial enrolment period. Please advise IED at international.school.support@education.vic.gov.au towards the end of the
enrolment period if the student is not extending their stay in school.

2 hours ago, BrettyM said:

I want to be with my remaining direct family. Sister, partner and my niece and nephew. 

They have just returned home after visiting, they missed their connecting flight so they’re stuck in Singapore ATM. 

Last remaining relative visas are taking up to 50 years to process according to the website so I wouldn’t be holding my breath for that one.  Sadly, what you want and what you may be able to achieve are two entirely different things. Lots of people have no family where they are, you get used to it.

You’re married so your Australian relative isn’t your last remaining relative. Rather than leaving highly detailed personal information on a public forum you’d be better talking to one of the registered MARA agents who advise on here and get professional advice about your options. You’re getting to the end of the age range so you’d better get your skates on. You might want to ask a moderator to edit out a lot of that detail though - this is a public forum of random people. 

On 22/05/2024 at 23:18, Pommiecate said:

Thankyou all for your kind words. I have been back every year for the last 3 for a month visit to see if that was enough. The crying over leaving again was a torment. 
 

I know there will be some that say I am mad, but they are usually the ones that have never left home! 
 

I’ll keep u all posted! Xxx

I hear you about the crying.  Yesterday I was on the train from London up to Peterborough and I looked out of the window at the countryside of Hertfordshire/Cambridgeshire flashing by and I nearly cried tbh - it was just the familiarity and beauty of being in the right place!  I always cry when I leave Heathrow - quite disconcerting for neighbouring passengers sometimes.

Good luck! If it works you win, and if it doesn’t, you cut your losses. I will say that being there for my elderly parents was the best move I ever made. Australia isn’t going anywhere if you decide that you don’t belong in U.K. any more.  I’m just back for a holiday and I’ve already encountered some really lovely people - I miss that in Australia.

Number 1 son was 6 months when we moved. Grew up and educated in Australia. Went on holiday for a year to U.K. in 2002 - hasn’t returned yet and won’t ever return to live. Is finding UK offers far more opportunities. 
Moving a girl at 14 could be fraught. Putting a girl into the year 9 lions den with all the Queen bees and wannabes could be very difficult for them. Girls do seem to become reasonable human beings by the end of year 12 though for the most part but year 9 is particularly tricky.

The website says it’s taking around 7 years for carer visa approval so one would assume that she and her dependent would be on a bridging visa with the same conditions as the visa they arrived on in which case education would not be free. However if the carer visa is approved then education would cost the same as it costs any other Australian child.  Proving that someone needs a carer and there are no other services available is going to be a difficult task.

3 hours ago, Britinozz said:

Many thanks for the info , can I apply for my Uk passport in Aus , or have to get to Uk first ?

Apply in Aus - my DH has just done his - he didn't realise it was out of date until recently. It's been very straightforward and his new PP is on its way to him. It cost a bit more than renewing in UK but it makes life much easier if you do it in Australia and have it in hand when you return. 

7 hours ago, Blue Manna said:

When you get free accommodation, car hire and meals provided? I would have thought it was pretty close actually.

Not everyone gets that and not everyone wants to stay in one place in the suburbs if they do go on holiday.  If you're not used to it like we are, that flight is a killer especially for the elderly and for a young family it can be a nightmare. I still don't see why anyone should be expected to fly over just to make someone else feel better or less guilty about the ramifications of their life decisions.

10 hours ago, Blue Manna said:

None of my mum's siblings or their kids have visited her in the 55 years since she's lived in Australia. I find it hard to believe as they would have had a really cheap holiday that would have been far superior to anything they have ever had. They would only have needed to pay for the flights. It's a long flight I know, but even so. 

Why would you expect someone to give up their whole holiday and, at great expense, fly to the other side of the world? It’s financially beyond many, physically beyond many and temporally beyond many. I don’t see why anyone would be expected to fly half way round the world unless they really want to. You could get half a dozen at home or European holidays for the price of one Aussie trip. 

When we arrived it was in the days of  aerogrammes and £1 a minute phone calls so it was very much a case of out of sight, out of mind. I've pretty much continued that - maybe an email every 6 months nowadays but that hasn't changed the fact that when we meet it's like there hasn't been years since we last chatted, we just slot tight back into the same chat. I occasionally text exchange with my son but we can go weeks/months with nothing and I do try and  ft call my grandson every Sunday but 9 times out of 10 he is busy doing something important like playing on his Switch or watching cartoons.  I don't expect to live in anyone's pocket. I email if I have something to say, facetime if it's important and get on with my life as they get on with theirs. Doesn't stop the love or friendship though - I certainly don't expect their lives to revolve around me when I visit, just because I've made the effort to be there. The fact that they are all very welcoming is certainly a bonus but just shows how strong friendships can be - if they weren't welcoming or accommodating, no skin off my nose. 

No siblings but I've always found that people bend over backwards to try and get together. I'm planning a visit in a couple of weeks and I've been invited to stay by most of my friends. Those I can't get to are willing to come and see me or meet half way. I tend to go and visit them because I want to get about the country and see /do as much as I can.

If you're not including bonds, insurances, vehicles and out of work living expenses that'll be OK if you're living with family in the short term. However all depending on where you go, you might need more than a month to find accommodation. Schools are going to cost you little in comparison, just uniforms, stationery, "voluntary" contributions but if you decide to go private then that's obviously going to be a while lot more. 

11 hours ago, Amber Snowball said:

That’s what I thought. Yes NHS number from birth and it stays with you. Thank you kindly! 

You’re right! Thanks!

You would have been given a NI number at birth - you don't need to apply for a new one, just ask them for the old one. You were born in Britain so you just apply for your passport and use your birth certificate for that. If you are in UK on a foreign passport that might well be your problem, hindsight is perfect vision but if you had entered as a citizen you wouldn't be having some of these issues. Passport applications are straightforward and done largely on line these days.

Remember that Australia is a foreign country, you haven't paid a single UK tax for the NHS!!!!

She could look at doing years 11 and 12 at TAFE (the cohort there may not be the most academic/enthusiastic though) but, honestly, I'd be leaving her to board with family or friends and finish her A levels in UK then she's left the door wide open to do Uni in either UK or Australia. As long as she pops over to validate her visa she loses nothing.   

I think you'll find that Aus Unis are incredibly woke, just like UK ones which is lovely if you're into CRT, radical feminism, climate change etc and drugs and alcohol are still at the core of most social interactions.  There is also a lot of group grading - if you happen to get into a group with a load of students who don't speak English or who are so stoned they can't be bothered to go to lectures and you want a good grade then you either have to do all the work yourself for group assignments or just accept lower grades. Remember too that honours degrees are going to take you 4 years as opposed to 3 in UK so the road to honours is a longer journey. 

On 15/04/2024 at 04:22, jessi said:

Brilliant! Thanks so much. 

 

If you are on a temporary visa though, apprenticeships aren't available - you didn't say if your visa is temporary or permanent. 

ADHD doesn’t qualify as a disability in most states and doesn’t attract any additional funding so it’s probably not going to be an issue but you do need to honestly answer questions about any concerns. It’d be worth running it past one of the agents who specialise in medical issues along with all assessments (which they will probably ask for) of cognitive ability, skill levels, adaptive behaviour etc.

3 hours ago, jessi said:

Thank you all so much for your suggestions and for taking the time to reply.

I will have a look at those places and the websites too, very helpful.

In regards to our lifestyle we don't live lavishly, we get a take out maybe once a month. I would cook every night and we budget our weekly shop as much as possible. Other than that the kids would have some activities on and then just a 3 to 4 bed house with a garden would be nice, and a car with insurance. 

My husband would get the 200.000 aud a year for the first year plus a car and fuel card. He would probably leave early around 5am and travel back early too.

I just don't want to commit and then realise we haven't got enough money for all of us to live a decent life. 

The children are 16 this month, 12 and 5. 

I realise drugs are everywhere, but just wanted to see if the rumours are true of drugs being a very normal part of life and whether or not there are many drug users hanging around the streets of geelong for example.

People can do what they like in regards of wokeness, I don't mind. I just don't think it's something that should be taught in schools. Its something we would discuss as a family. But that's my opinion. 

I wouldn't have a clue on how much food would cost each week or car insurance, fuel, kids activities and schools, electricity bills, bins etc. 

Again thanks a mill so far. 

Are you coming on a temporary visa? If so you might want to consider what your older teen might do - 16 this month would make them the very youngest in year 11 this year and year 11 is already part way through so they'd be better waiting and enrolling in year 10 this year then have the full 2 years leading to VCE. However if there's a chance you'll be returning to UK, let them stay with family or friends to get through GCSE and A levels by which time the rest of you will have decided whether to stay or go and they can consider where their best Uni options would be.

Does the 200k include superannuation? That would reduce it a bit if it does.  As for leaving early to get to work and leaving early to get home - it'd probably be leaving home early and leaving work late and hopefully parking is included in that deal too.  Which side of the city is he going to be working in? That'd be something of a deciding factor as to which side to look. $200k is around twice the national average wage at the moment so if you're living on twice the average wage or more in UK you should be good - most families these days are two income to make ends meet but 2 average salaries would be the family income. On the plus side rural rentals tend to be cheaper than urban ones but if you want a job, there may be fewer local options in tiny places. 

Just now, BendigoBoy said:

Although maybe give it a miss if you enjoy going for walks or jogging.

Yup, getting a bit of a bad rap at the moment LOL

With teenagers - how old are the teenagers? I only ask because of the VCE - you wouldnt want to be moving a kid who is 16+ because it would be hard to get into a senior school program which would give them a good Uni entrance score.  Just as an aside - you'd really have to think about educational implications

You could do much worse than Ballarat.  I believe the train service is now pretty good - no longer the old bone shakers they used to have and I think if you were commuting into Melbourne you would really want to look at the train.  Driving in would be a nightmare and though it would be an hour to the Tullamarine turn off it could be another hour into the centre.  There are some excellent private schools in Ballarat as well (no idea how many genders are de rigeur at the moment though).  You could look at stops on that rail route to see what else looks OK.  

My in-laws live in Lara which is a town just outside Geelong and they are very happy there - our nephew commuted into Melbourne by train every day to Carlton and thought that was fine. He went to school in Geelong before that.

9 hours ago, Marisawright said:

Do op shops (charity shops) in Canberra do furniture?   Most of the ones in Sydney didn't when I lived there and there's only a couple in Melbourne that I know of.   They can't afford the rental so their shops are generally too small.  Second-hand furniture shops are unknown in both cities, unless they're high-priced retro.

Some of them out at Fyshwick do. But there's a lot on the local buy nothing pages

2 hours ago, Island said:

HI All, thanks for your messages. My son is just about to do his Alevels and yes still planning on returning to Oz for University.  He's going in July after his exams, to look at JCU and UQ to do Marine Bio/ Zoology degree.  He will spend a few months in Oz alone to see how he feels about living on the other side of the world to us... we are staying another three years now as waiting for younger son to finish school and then one extra year after that to tie up house sales, finances etc.  My husband and I are still so happy to be in the UK and enjoy all the Euro travel (& all our family too) but at the end of the day want to live in the same country as our kids in the long term.  

Thank you so much for the info about residency and qualifying for CSP at Uni.  That's very helpful.  His course is a CSP course luckily.  Are you aware of any stipulations around qualifying for HECS help loan to pay his student contribution?  Does he have to be resident for a certain amount of time prior?

Thank you Jess

After Uni your kids could go anywhere - what would you do if one chose Canada and the other preferred Spain? There's no guarantee they'll stay in Australia. 

HECS Help https://www.studyassist.gov.au/help-loans/hecs-help

7 hours ago, RubyMonday said:

It's been about 6 years since I've rented so I'll probably just be lucky to get any rental at all. It's a small town but has a couple furniture shops and looks like it has a few op shops as well. At least I'll have the three months to decide if I like it enough to stay at least a year then I'll know it's worth getting better quality stuff to last longer. 

And check out FB for a Buy Nothing group for the town too.