We were very much in the same situation. We moved back for similar reasons and then our kids, who are now both young adults, decided to come back to Australia a couple of years ago and we moved back nearly a year ago. I agree as to the financial impact - it has definitely set us back quite a lot in mortgage terms, however we were the ones who brought them here, and I can see why they wanted to be back. We have settled back in pretty well. Our kids are doing so well here, with opportunities they would never have had in the UK. Always going to be a difficult balancing act with aging parents in the UK though.