jo123

Renting in Mount Gambier is fairly easy as long as you have references from past landlords , bank statements etc. i would say average rental price is $250 p/w. There are places to avoid but if you're willing to pay more than $200 p/w then this should be okay Not sure about holiday homes that are going to be a reaonable price but we have lots of caravan parks with cabins lol

Emirates are quite cheap for feb! Look on skyscanner and see what you can see.

Hi Cailin, My family and I moved to gateshead (5 mins from charlestown centre) in January from the uk Loving life in oz and would love to meet up for a coffee when you get over here. We aren't too far from cardiff so if you want to meet up just pm me. Josie xx

Good evening Guy, Rammy is still lovely and pretty and I miss going out for a drink and having many many pubs to choose from that are all within walking distance and then getting a kebab from zaidys on the way home. lol Have you got PR? if you have then its easy for you to come back ina few years if you wanted to but I cant see myself ever going back but i dont have any family in the uk that I want to see...so its much easier for me and my OH has his family out here in SA so another reason not to go back....and I love the beaches lol Yeah I was at the shoulder when dave was there but left before j&c went to the pack horse. Trust me, you would knwo me if you saw me....I was full time and even 13 years after i left i still had people saying hiya that recognised me. lol. Are you the Guy that was friends with...i want to say mark... I also want to say kevin...but dont know if thats right....you had a flat in rammy nearish to the church...you shaved your head....hmmmmmm hmmmmmmm.:unsure: Josie x

Fall guy.....yh i worked in the shoulder when jackie and conrad had it...for 5 years. you probably know me....it is a very small world. lol Im in Newcastle, NSW now, been here 7 months and love it, especially now that its warming up and i can spend my days gardening and skimming the pool. lol How about yourself? what you been upto? josie x

Thanks rammy girl, I want to print those pictures out and have them on my walls!!!! Half the pubs closed aswell last year but we still had a great time on the mile on good friday I read an article from the guardian about rammyfest last week...they insisted on calling it rammy in the article, like the locals do, and just was wrong! I dont think you should be able to call it rammy until you've done some very rammy things...the mile, winberry picking, drinking on pot green as a teenager are just a few examples. lol Keeping my fingers crossed that you dont get floods again with all the lovely weather you are having. he he he Josie xx

Rammygirl and fallguy.......its a rammy convention on here today!!!! I Used to work in the shoulder of mutton and the masons...ahhhh good times. was very sad on good friday this year because i was one of those drunken people doing the mile every year Hows Holcombe hill lookiing? Have the winberries been good this year? I love australia but i miss rammy ((( Josie xx

Hi lauren, We are currently renting in oz so will try to help with questions you have...know nothing about the area you want to go to , just general house renting stuff you and each person who is renting with you will need bank statements to show how much money you have and any money going in...I cheated a bit and took my last uk bank statement that showed my child benefit and tax credits but they accepted that. Also if you have an aussie account with money going in..take that. We had to have testimonials from ex landlord and current landlord, We cheated there too and used my friends mum as she did rent out properties and the uk and knew how to sound good...you know what i mean. For our current landlord, that was harder as we were in staff accommodation but my hubbies boss wrote a nice letter for us. When we started looking for acc out here we were shocked how many people go and apply for the houses, even the bad ones, luckily for us I started talking to the estate agent and she asked us questions about how we were liking oz etc and so when i handed the application in she remembered us and put our app at the top of the pile...this worked twice for us...so be nice, be friendly, smile and talk to the agent. lol Hope we have helped xxx

You could ring natwest and see if you can use your card in oz free of charge anywhere or opena uk bank account with someone who does do free banking in oz. I know barclays do, we can use westpac FOC over here for our uk account, just let them know you are coming over and they will sort it out for you

Who do you bank with in the uk?

Hi Jim, We did a 20 hour stopover in singapore and you check yr baggage at the uk airport and dont have to worry about it again till you hit australia also you can leave your handluggage in a left luggage place for a small fee and there is quite a bit to see and do in the airport including free tour of singapore, which was a bit naff but we had a good 2 hour kip on the tour bus. lol. joxx

Hi knight 2931, we applied for it in oz because the school has to sign some things I think. We applied for it on the tuesday and she got the go ahaead to start school the following monday. When we first came out my daughter and myself treated the first 3 weeks as holiday time and got the school things sorted on the 4th week so theres no rush to do it all.

This is a copy of the email I got and there was a form attached. Glad I can help xx Thank you for your inquiry. As a holder of visa subclass 457 there is a requirement to pay education fees for your child if they study in a New South Wales government school. The Temporary Residents Program annual education fee represents a partial contribution to the education costs of temporary residency students enrolled in the New South Wales government school system. A fee exemption process exists to provide assistance to families who are unable to pay the education fees due to financial hardship. Each exemption application is considered on a case by case basis and requires the applicant to furnish a number of documents to support their case and make a declaration regarding their financial position. The supply of false or misleading information is a serious offence and may lead to the termination of enrolment and legal action. The Exemption Review Panel may either grant a full 12 month exemption from the fees, offer the applicant the facility to pay the fees by way of an instalment plan or decline the exemption application. The Exemption Review Panel takes into consideration the Henderson Poverty Line. This takes into account the disposable income required to support the basic needs of a family unit depending on the number of dependants. I have attached an information sheet to explain the requirements of the exemption process for you. I trust this has been of assistance.

I'm pretty sure this is the number for the temporary residents program, just give them a ring and they will email you a form. +61 1300 300 229 The headmaster at the school did the rest and headteachers can certify documents, make sure you have copies of your visa emails as you need these certified and also passports of each parent and child. xx

Hi Yerrik, My hubby was on $50, 000 and we got the fee waived but dont know if what the limit is but you can pay in instalments you just have to ask. xx

Ha Ha Ha! We live in gateshead! But not had any trouble, our street is nice and quiet :)And we weren't in any position to be picky so we took the first house that we got, which was the 2nd house we applied for. We did see some baaad houses whilst looking though so bear in mind that if it looks rough then it probably is )

Hi, we got our fee waived as my husband wasnt earning enough to pay it but you can also pay in instalments. All they need is proof of income, not whar you have in savings. Josie

hi PBnJ, We moved to jewells, near belmont (5min drive) in january and got my 10yr old daughter into a really good local school and she is loving it, it is Jewells primary and they take students from the belmont area. For house hunting I would look at Belmont north and Jewells, or even Redhead as it is next to the beach and just gorgeous. Any questions about the area just feel free to ask . xx Josie

Thanks for that Mckays! It would be nice to meet up once I have found us a house (easy peasy), found my daughter a school (no problem for me, super mum) and got my hubby settled in to work (can't work miracles) then it should be possible. Please do ask your hairdresser for me but could you ask if they braid afro hair, lots of places in the uk say they can braid but when i say "Afro hair?" they go all thoughtful and say "weeeellllll i could give it a try" lol We are packing light as i figure i can buy fleeces n coats when it gets cold(?) and got rid of lots of my pretty pretty shoes just so i can go shoe shopping again ha ha ha ha. We have a 16 hr stop in singapore and i am looking forward to it so much! mainly a swim and a shower but also the butterfly garden and foot massages. Im a simple gal. lol Where abouts in the uk are you from? and how far from Jewells area do you live? Ihave no concept of distance on maps, think its cos im female lol xx

Thanks mckays, My daughter is having her hair braided tomorrow so will hopefully last for 6 weeks and by then will have chance to check these places out. We arrive next sunday and we are sooooooo excited!!!!!

Oh brill! thank you so much. will check it out when we get there..hopefully soon :biggrin:

Thanks for the reply. yoiu have some good ideads for me there so thank you very much...a day trip into sydney every 6-8 weeks..think i can manage that ha ha ha.

Oh and one more question....has anyone had there vit d checked since they went out to oz? mine is very low (in the uk, in winter lol), so it should be better in australia but just wondering if anyone had any probs? Underactive thyroid and vit d deficiency sometimes go hand in hand.

What a great thread! I'm currently on 250mcg of levothyroxine in the uk and was a bit concerned about the costs of meds in Oz but not anymore! Does anyone know the "range" for the thyroid tests in oz? in the uk the standard range that my doc works off is 0.6-6, so if my tsh is 3.5 then i am "normal"...hoping the range is lower is oz because getting my doctor to listen to me whe i go in and tell him that all my symptoms are back...but im within normal range..grrrrrrrrr.

Ok so it may seem a bit random to be asking this but I really need a good afro hairdresser in Newcsatle or surrounding areas. My daughter has the most amazing 'fro and I'm not really willing to cut it when we get to Oz ( in Feb), as it takes ages to grow back but i want her to be able to get a sunhat on for school etc. I will be getting it braided before we leave so it won't be a major issue for about 6 weeks but need to keep on top of it in Oz as her hair is so thick it tends to hold the heat in. Thanks to all who help in my random quest x