Bilsland Family

Hi There Me and my family are living in Tannum Sands and working in Gladstone and would certainly be interested in meeting up at some point. We are from Scotland and similar to yourselves only being here for 7 weeks now. We are a relatively young family although have a few gray hairs creeping in. Our children are William 9 yrs old and Jodie 4 yrs old. Look forward to hearing back from you. The Bilsland Family

Hi all My wife 29 yrs old and I 31yrs old will be moving over to Hopefully Tannum and after an induction period at head office expect to be there 3rd week in Sept. I have absorbed the schooling details and wonder if anyone has managed to secure a childcare place? as we have a 9 yr old boy and a 3yr old girl who wont stop talking about her new nursery in Tannum. I believe places are hard to come by. Further to the education issue me and my wife would like for the opportunity of socializing with families similar to that of ours. Regards The Bilsland Family

Many Thanks everyone for your feedback. I have now contacted the Registry for Scotland and they are carrying out a marriage search on my wife from her 16th birthday till the date we married and will issue a To Whom it May Concern letter stating no marriage prior to ours which eliminates one way that the biological father could have obtained parental rights. I am also currently in the process of arranging a sworn affidavit through a solicitor for my wife to state that she has never been married, has sole parental rights, that there has never been a court order applied for nor granted and also that there would be no legal restriction from her taking our boy out of the country. We can also change our boys name on his birth certificate which we would like to do anyway so as he shares the same name as the rest of the family and we can only do this without the biological fathers signature if my wife has sole parental rights, so I believe that this may also satisfy. The only other thing which I would like to do is to obtain confirmation that a court order has never been applied for and to be honest I am not sure how to go about obtaining such confirmation. It seems like such a minefield and is very draining to say the least. Thanks again The Bilsland Family

Hi There I am looking for some advice, guidance or experiences from people who are or were in a similar position. My wife has a son from her past relationship and our boys biological father has not seen his son in over six years, his choice! The child was born before December 2003 and although the fathers name is on the birth certificate Scottish Law states that he has no parental rights. The childs biological father has never provided financial support through CSA or other means and has never attempted to maintain contact or lodge a court order for rights. We do not know the biological fathers whereabouts and to be honest wish not to contact him as he was violent to my wife, is an unsavoury character and for the risk of him attempting to be difficult. We would be confident that the court would see in our favour as we have a daughter together also and we are very much a family unit where I have dedicated my time to our boy through teaching him to ski, coaching his football team and general dad duties however we would like to advoid courts altogether due to cost and time. I have been offered a job where I would be travelling out on a 457 Visa and very much under way with regards to the Visa process with the emigration agent advising my potential employer of an expected date of first week in July for approval. However only today recieved an e-mail requesting copies of the childrens birth certificates and also if the children are from previous relationships then either a death certificate, court order or parental permission. My frustration is that at the beggining of the process i highlighted this situation upon submission of Client Questionnaire so why in the eleventh hour do they raise the issue when I could have been notified from day one and had time to organise said requirements. I would appreciate some advice on the fastest and least costly method of satisfying the requests i.e Is there a way that I could prove that he has never applied for parental rights? Is there some form of statement we could make with a solicitor? I had spoken with a solicitor in the Child Law Centre and she stated that this would not restrict us from taking the child out of the country however I am fully aware that it is Australian Law that we have to satisy and not UK Law. Many thanks in advance. The Bilsland Family

Are you sure you are on here to query or just gloat???, Only kidding! I too have been made a job offer working out of the Gladstone Area, with weekly visit to Rockhampton and monthly visit to Brisbane. The job is similar, to the point we are both construction type workers, with my field being Scaffolding and the job offer being that of a regional manager. The offer that I had been made was tempting however after some research believed it to be under the requirement for supporting my family. I then had a final discussion with my potential employer, where he offered to contribute $600 p/wk towards a suitable rental property for 12 months. After researching property I would note that you can get a brand new out the wrapper 4 bedroom property for $650-$800 p/wk. I would like to add the rarity of furnished property for rent. My employer has noted that there will be a salary review in 12 months and has noted that should I be the right man for the job which they and I believe I am then the package would have to be adjusted to suit my requirements, hence ensuring satifaction for me where it matters. My acceptance of the offer was not purely based on salary which to be honest is fair but also the willingness to provide the opportunity for further progression and the offer of traveling to spain for product knowledge and training, my potential employer is already financially investing in me and for me that highlights the values and career prospects ahead with this company. I have done some costings which are below and are per month: Rent - $2800 Water - $60 - may not be required if property has water efficient tap wear etc, keep in for safety sake! Gas - $60 Electricity - $140 Telephone (home) - $60 Contents insurance - $40 Broadband/Cable TV - $130 mobile phone 1nr - $30 - For my wife in emergency situations as I will have on included in package, poss pay as you go or transfer of UK (vodafone contract) School expenses - $150 included is books, uniform, luches, snack, excursions =total for year broken down per month although there will be monhs wih school breaks Clothing - $200 Healthcare - $220 Food - $1200 - including requirement for sun care, mosquito repellant etc Birthdays/Christmas/ Special Occasions - £200 I would like to add that I have not priced a car as belive living in Tannum Sands/Bone Island which is arround a 25km commute to Gladstone has Schooling, shops etc walking distance to most accommodation on offer and also that a car is included in my package. Worth noting is the requirement for any medicines that you or your famly may take on a daily basis, asthma, psoriasis etc etc. I have not priced this as yet, I have psoriasis and use cream daily to control however my experiences with travelling to sunny climates on holiday have highlighted that it tends to clear with the sun and sea water. So to answer yor question, yes that is a good offer and I would not forsee you having any difficulties in saving, certainly enough to have a decent deposit for a purchase after the first year, unless you have failed to disclose any bad habits like gambling or binge eating, only kidding however give some consideration to hobbies and the costs associated with them. I believe that you can get family memberships to many sporting clubs which will be a must with children. Check out the Gladstone council website and also the Australian Tax office for deductions from your salary. Can I ask where you are relocating from? When you hope to make the move? We hope to have our 457 Visa in place for June, making the move late June early July and we are re-locating from Glasgow, Scotland with 2 children, William 9 in june and Jodie 3. Would be great to hear back from you. All the best The Bilsland Family

Thanks for your reply's I have spoken witha Trainee Solicitor on Friday at the Child Law Centre in Edinburgh Scotland and he confirmed what I thought with regards to the biological father having no parental rights however as he was only a trainee he informed that he would have a qualified Solicitor call me on Monday to confirm this and discuss the mattert in full, suprise suprise no phone call, so I guess I will call again tomorrow. The company that will be sponsoring me have appointed an immigration agent to deal with our visa application so assume such assistance and knowledge will make the process alot smoother and less daunting. I completed a very length document last night and I feel following this input the requirement for further info will be minmimal and not so hard to collate, fingers crossed. Again thanks for your input and I will up-date on my progression. Kind Regards The Bilsland Family

I would appreciate some advice on this subject as we are starting to panic and can not find the correct answers on line. I have been offered a job in Australia travelling on a 457 visa and the sponsoring company are about to start the visa application process. The prediciment we are in is that my fiancee which I am marrying in May prior to travel has a son to another man, we also have a daughter together. This man has not been in the childs life since I have known my fiancee some 6.5 years and the child will be 9 in June. Not so much as a christmas card a request to see his son etc etc. This other man has never contributed a penny and to be honest we wouldn't even know how to track him down to ask for any permission. This other man is on the childs birth certificate and the child has his fathers surname. I believe that in Scottish Law the childs father has no legal rights as the child was born prior to a change in Law in 2006 however I would ask for some clarity on this. We have always spoke of me adopting what I feel is our son and spoke with our son also on this and he shares the same feelings. We are very much a family so much so that the thought of the problems this will cause us hadn't even crossed our minds. It raises an enormous ammount of frustration as I have brought his boy up as my own, the temper tantrums, bad dreams, coaching his football team, taking him skiing you name it Ive been there. I look forward to reply's and hope that someone can install some confidence that this will work out OK for my family. The Bilsland Family

Hi Julie Thank you for a very informative response. A further offer has been made by my potential employer who would be willing to pay $600.00 per week towards a suitable rental accomodation and hope to have the job offer agreed within the next couple of days to allow both parties to set the wheels in motion so to speak. We do not have a rental history as we own our own property in the UK which I would be letting during our stay in Queensland and the plan regarding this property is to continue to let until such a time as we are due to retire, thus allowing us to use the funds as a pension or for university fees for our children. Just thinking, I may be able to obtain a refference from our mortgage company detailing the fact that there has never been missed nor late payments and also the value of our monthly commitment. I would not forsee any problems with my potential employer providing a reference as they will be sponsoring us and to be honest at this stage I am unsure on whether they would make the payments direct or whether they would make the payments direct to the real estate company or to me to maintain my own payments. With regards to bank balance, passport, driving licence and medicare there would be no issues there, we have all the required documents and will be purchasing private medical care before leaving the UK. We would be looking for a modern 4 bedroom lowset and don't forsee any problems with the price range stipulated. You mentioned an approx water charge of $160 per billing period, could you tell me if the billing period is monthly or quarterly please? I had come across numerous properties asking people not to apply online and would ask if there are real estate companies that would accept this, the reason being that the travel is a lengthy one and with two children I would like the transition to be as smooth as possible and believe that you can view a substantial amount of info through google maps and also photographs of the property on the web sites. Further to this it would allow our relocation costs to be kept as low as possible and we would have no problem with forwarding any down payments prior to the travel. To be honest I would be willing to accept and satisfy any requests within reason to allow this to happen and as you can imagine with me and my Fiancee marrying in May and relocating in June every $ is a prisoner. I look forward to hearing back from you. Kind Regards The Bilsland Family

Hi jt95045AAAA Many Thanks for your response. After researching the area I have no doubt that we could happily settle in Tannum/Boyne Island as we feel that the lifestyle on offer is one that we so desire. I have spent some time researching property in the area and my potential employer would be willing to pay for rental to the value of $500 p/wk,the question is whether we could find a property that fits our requirements at that value. Should this present an issue then I would have to make up the shortfall. During my searches I have come across many properties that highlight that the property is non water compliant and I assume that renting such a property would be involve water charges and as per your message is one that should be avoided. Could you tell me what the water charges for such a family would be approximately for a family of four with 2 young children? When you say that you are a property manager do you oversee the rental of properties for a real estate company or do you let properties yourself? Could you possibly tell me what I would require to enable the process of obtaining a rental property and as such to make the process smooth and time eficient. I would be letting my property in the UK and as such would be in the position to photograph as evidence of the high standard of decor and cleanliness that we maintain. If it wasn't a burden to you I would appreciate the opportunity of staying in touch and up-dating you on my career progression and seeking further advice when the move draws closer. We aim to make the move mid to late June and obviously timescales are dependent on visa processing times. Kind Regards The Bilsland Family

Thanks everyone for your response which has been informative. I have now done my sums and beleive that we will require a minimum income of 95k to survive as I have a few commitments in the Uk with regards to mortgage, letting and a personal loan. Unfortunately this is slightly more than my offer, I so hope that there is room for negotiation with regards to salary. I can only ask. Does anyone know if we would have a water charge in a rented accomodation in Tannum/Boyne area? Many Thanks The Bilsland Family.

I have just received a job offer this morning for a job in Gladstone where my potential employer will be sponsoring us, I will generally be working in Gladstone with a visit to Rockhampton once a week and a visit to Brisbane once a month. After reading numerous posts it seems to me that Tannum has alot to offer for families and would ask for opinions on this based on a young family lifestyle. Me and my Fiancee are wedding on the 19th May and my potential employer thinks that we could be out as soon as June. My Fiancee Karen is 28 and I am 31 and we have 2 children William 8 and Jodie 3 and would appreciate any advice that you could provide. My main concerns are cost of living, so if anyone could provide us with an idea of your general monthly outgoings broken down so I can see if I can make the numbers work it would be greatly apreciated, a big ask I know and hate to be so intrusive. The overall relocation costs, flights, shipping, medicals etc etc and how do you find the bugs i.e spiders, snakes, mosquitos and cockroaches? and is the temperature bearable? We would love to here back from families that have made the move or considering it like ourselves and would like for the opportunity to build a social network for our arrival. Many Thanks the Bilsland Family

Hi Millers I have just received a job offer this morning for a job in Gladstone where my potential employer will be sponsoring us, I will generally be working in Gladstone with a visit to Rockhampton once a week and a visit to Brisbane once a month. After reading numerous posts it seems to me that Tannum has alot to offer for families. Me and my Fiancee are wedding on the 19th May and my potential employer thinks that we could be out as soon as June. We are a young family with 2 children William 8 and Jodie 3 and would appreciate any advice that you could provide. My main concerns are cost of living, so if its not to intrusive I would appreciate if you could provide me with an idea of your general monthly outgoings so I can see if I can make the numbers work? Also how do you find the bugs i.e spiders, snakes, mosquitos and cockroaches? and is the temperature bearable? Many Thanks the Bilsland Family