Jimmy P

Do as the AITSL ask. If they will only accept certified copies then that's what you will have to provide. Check to see if that is still the case.

Did you have to send the certified copies and the form to Oz, or can it be done through Australia House in London?

Let her go to the Prom! We are emigrating on the Saturday after Prom on the Thursday. Good closure for the child with all her mates in UK. It's not going to take 10 days to get to Oz unless Britain blows away or sinks by then!

Hi there- good to see teachers getting together! I'm a Teacher of Business, Accounts and Finance with a variety of previous responsibilities moving over end of June this year. Registered with SMART. QCT registered. Looking at Greater Brisbane and Gold Coast

It depends if you need the ielts for the aitsl assessment. If you got your 4 years degree plus teacher training from an English speaking uni you only need the extra points for the visa application.

Thanks for the replies- we have now booked our initial stay at Brisbane Holiday Village at Eight Mile Plains. Paul, I will PM you later

We are going down the self-pack/self-load option for our move this summer. We have had a quote for £2700 + insurance (as outlined by IYM above) from shipit.co.uk. The only extra we need to add in Australia is the AQIS fee. They also offer £100 of packaging materials from MacFarlane packaging. I will try to keep our progress updated. So far so good...

Hi there- We are now within 6 months of emigrating to the Greater Brisbane area and are looking at the options for our accommodation for the first few weeks. We have found a few possibilities for furnished homes on the usual websites, but were wondering if anyone had personal experience of any particular furnished properties for a 4-6 week rental. We are looking for a 3 bed house/apartment within about 15km of Brisbane CBD. Any suggestions would be great. Many thanks, Jim (also posted on Queensland Forum!)

Hi there- We are now within 6 months of emigrating to the Greater Brisbane area and are looking at the options for our accommodation for the first few weeks. We have found a few possibilities for furnished homes on the usual websites, but were wondering if anyone had personal experience of any particular furnished properties for a 4-6 week rental. We are looking for a 3 bed house/apartment within about 15km of Brisbane CBD. Any suggestions would be great. Many thanks, Jim

Thanks for that link. There have been similar discussions in "free schools" in UK

Thanks for the information Bob- its good to have some external perspective. Jim

I have posted this in the education threads, but thought I would try here as well. Just wondering if anyone has any experience of this College, in Durack, Brisbane, either as parent, teacher or just local. Found a few bits on Google, but that's about it. Cheers, Jim

Just wondering if anyone local to the Australian International Islamic College in Durack has had any experience of the place- either with children studying there, or knows of anyone who has worked there. Found a few old bits of news from Google, but not a lot else. Many thanks, Jim

Save as a PDF . Download for free from adobe

We went with them for validation trip. 2 adults 3 children. I too was worried about some of the write ups I had seen, but were £150 cheaper than next best. Found them very good, food OK, entertainment good, kids happy with ipods,DS, tablet etc as they charged them up from the seat. Abu Dhabi airport a bit grim in parts though. Enrolled everyone into their frequent flier programme, and linked all their miles to my account. I can now convert the points to cash to use online (a nice £280 bonus to spend in Amazon!)

I used a local solicitor - go along with the original, and a copy. Solicitor stamps copy with "I certify this is a true copy blah blah..." and signs it. He charged £20 for about 12 documents- always haggle with them- initially quoted £5 each until I mentioned we would be selling the house and would need a conveyancer! Scan the copies and save them- you may well need them for teacher registration later

I have just had a quote off "ewepack". From Preston, Lancs to Brisbane. Self pack and self load including AQIS/port fees and delivery/unloading in Brisbane (no insurance though) for £2800 for a sole use 20ft container. Seems like a no-brainer to me. Get packaging stuff off t'internet, case of beers for helpers on loading day. Still a while off, but will definitely consider it when I need to. Would be useful to know if anyone has experience of this company.

My PGCE also allows me to teach 11-18, but I have only taught 16-18. AITSL gained with no problem! Good luck

Don't want to worry any blokes out there about to have their medical- no prostate exam- made me laugh to see what Australia's "First Bloke" said about it!

Nurse does height/weight/eyesight/urine sample, then the medical exam itsef I found to be very brief. Listen to chest/heart, hammer thing on knee, look down throat/in ears, digital prostate examination etc.

I don't think broken bones etc need to be declared. You have to declare illnesses as described on the forms you have to fill in. No cholesterol test, but will check height/weight and calculate BMI

We had ours done at Spire Manchester. 2 adults, 3 kids cost just over £1000. Very efficient, good with the kids. Make sure you remember your glasses/lenses for the eyesight test. My OH nearly failed hers! Admin lady very good- we had to submit further meds and she got it all uploaded no problem. All the best!

Hi there We are going on our validation trip at Easter, spending some time in SE Queensland, and a few days around Melbourne. We are staying on Mornington Peninsular (Frankston), and would like some advice on some good beaches suitable for a family, and whether there are any beaches with some decent waves in the area. many thanks, Jim

It would be worth double checking the healthcare thing. I was under the impression from a friend that if you studied in English speaking country that can negate the need for academic test for Skills assessment purposes. I'm sure plenty of nurses on this forum can confirm.

Do you definitely need to do Academic? If its for the 20 points for the visa then General should do. I bought a book with 3 tests in (plus CD for listening test. Easier with more practice. Good luck!