Wellers and Whitehead Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 The reality with the postcode lottery is that the medical students who study at the likes of Cambridge or University College London are unlikely to want to become GPs in the poorest areas of South Yorkshire or Tyneside etc, and so you often see better quality medical services in wealthier areas. Plus consider that in poorer areas, the population density tends to be greater with more ailments putting a greater demand on the health services. I suspect this would be true in most countries worldwide though. The UK has had a massive influx of unskilled migration affecting these poorer areas, and this puts a burden in the system, that I certainly witnessed in my birth town of Doncaster. The only people who don't believe that, are from wealthier middle class areas and somewhat isolated from reality. oh as we speak I'm on the train to work heading to Doncaster. .Never been to the place before but god its grim ..I breath a sigh of relief when catching my train home to York on an evening. The gps are not great in Doncaster. .The only reason I have contact with them is to get medical info on clients for social work assessments. .They are either busy or incompetent. .Haven't decided which as yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul1Perth Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 oh as we speak I'm on the train to work heading to Doncaster. .Never been to the place before but god its grim ..I breath a sigh of relief when catching my train home to York on an evening. The gps are not great in Doncaster. .The only reason I have contact with them is to get medical info on clients for social work assessments. .They are either busy or incompetent. .Haven't decided which as yet. I think Grim could be used to describe a lot of places in the UK at this time of year. Doncaster is up there with the grimmest though.:wink: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wellers and Whitehead Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 I think Grim could be used to describe a lot of places in the UK at this time of year. Doncaster is up there with the grimmest though.:wink: Is like a different world. .25 mins on the train to York and back to civilization. . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caramac Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 The reality with the postcode lottery is that the medical students who study at the likes of Cambridge or University College London are unlikely to want to become GPs in the poorest areas of South Yorkshire or Tyneside etc, and so you often see better quality medical services in wealthier areas. Plus consider that in poorer areas, the population density tends to be greater with more ailments putting a greater demand on the health services. I suspect this would be true in most countries worldwide though. The UK has had a massive influx of unskilled migration affecting these poorer areas, and this puts a burden in the system, that I certainly witnessed in my birth town of Doncaster. The only people who don't believe that, are from wealthier middle class areas and somewhat isolated from reality. My oh is Cambridge educated and he works in Sunderland. He's not a GP though :cute: The postcode lottery is less of a problem than it used to be (although it does still exist to an extent, probably for the reasons you state) since the Quality Outcomes Framework was implemented. It does mean that those with chronic problems - diabetes, asthma, mental health problem, cancer etc are treated and followed up in the same way in primary care because there are automatic recalls for tests and follow up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Some of it will do yes. However, at the present time I live in Bristol, which in its self is ridiculously expensive. Also, going as a couple makes it easier financially with renting rates ect... Going alone would be financially hard tho, even with the extra 10k. I find that amusing, because I'm about to move to back to the UK and while Bristol is expensive by British standards, it will be cheaper for me (I live in Sydney). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 One of the other factors when comparing rent is that in Oz the landlord pays the council tax, whereas in UK you pay council tax on top of your rent, so that can even out the difference a bit. we rent out a 3 bed (ex slightly tatty council) terrace in Islington London, rent is over 2000 pds per calendar month + tenants pay council tax. Daughter rents 2 bed terrace in Paddington Sydney $750 weekly, so just over $3000 monthly (can't be bothered to do the maths!) and no council tax, so you could say areas are similar. just thought this would be an interesting comparison for posters. sorry NicF I didn't mean to attach this to your post, blame a late night out in Sydney with the young ones! That is interesting and backs up what a lot of people say about Sydney and London being comparable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azh Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 I find that amusing, because I'm about to move to back to the UK and while Bristol is expensive by British standards, it will be cheaper for me (I live in Sydney). Fair enough, i don't really have a reply to that haha.. Just that I will hopefully get paid more than I am in bristol! Stupid logic I know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) Fair enough, i don't really have a reply to that haha.. Just that I will hopefully get paid more than I am in bristol! Stupid logic I know. You're going to Queensland, aren't you, so it doesn't affect you - in terms of house prices, Sydney is to Australia what London is to the UK, basically. As another poster said, anyone coming to Sydney from anywhere BUT London will think it's horribly expensive. Londoners will find it about the same. Edited January 7, 2015 by Marisawright Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) Yeah, I have been constantly checking it to get a good idea. We currently pay 1200 a month for a 3 bedroom flat in clifton, obviously when we go out there we will only need a 1-2 bedroom apartment for starters! I've seen a few "nice looking" ones along the Sunshine Coast of which are asking for between 350 - 500. I don't know the areas very well tho! Can I pick your brain? I assume that's 1200 pounds a month, and how much do you pay in rates? What would you pay for a nice 2 bedder (I recall Clifton is a nice area, but I haven't lived there for thirty years !!). Any tips for cheaper areas that are still desirable and handy for transport? By the way, if you can multiply your salary by 3 then you're laughin'. That doesn't apply for most professions so that's why you're being given the warning - sounds like you're one of the lucky ones. Edited January 7, 2015 by Marisawright Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 The flight thing is a real consideration because Australians are forced to pay much more for flights than anyone else. . In fact, this is our main driver for going back to the UK and I often find myself wondering whether that's completely bonkers. However, we're retired now and considering how we want to keep ourselves occupied in retirement, the answer always comes back to European holidays. It makes far more sense to move to the UK so we can holiday cheaply and often, than stay in Oz and pay a fortune to fly to Europe every couple of years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 I guess my simple answer will be WHY NOT!!! I think there are lots of reasons why not, for some people. I came out with my husband, we had no kids and few possessions so it was easy, didn't cost us much and he had a job to come to. I'm amazed to see families moving to Australia with no job to come to, and having to spend $5,000 or $10,000 to move their possessions, thousands on air fares plus shipping the dog. The cost of moving and getting set up can easily top $50,000. If it all goes pear-shaped, that's another $50,000 to get home again. How many families can really afford to make a hole like that in their finances for the sake of an adventure? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azh Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Can I pick your brain? I assume that's 1200 pounds a month, and how much do you pay in rates? What would you pay for a nice 2 bedder (I recall Clifton is a nice area, but I haven't lived there for thirty years !!). Any tips for cheaper areas that are still desirable and handy for transport? By the way, if you can multiply your salary by 3 then you're laughin'. That doesn't apply for most professions so that's why you're being given the warning - sounds like you're one of the lucky ones. Yeah sure! I'm in a 3 bed top floor flat, we got lucky at 1200 a month. There isn't really much similar for the same price. We pay £170 pounds a month for council tax. I don't really know much about the other side of bristol to be honest but Cotham and Redlands are nice places to look into. Then you have Westbury and maybe Henleaze but these are a little out of town and I'm unsure if the rent prices differ that much. For a 2 bedroom flat your still looking at 850-1100 for a desirable area. http://www.rightmove.co.uk/property-to-rent/Bristol-County/2-bed-flats.html That's just a quick google! But may give you some idea! With the research I have done, my salary triples. Obviously this depends on the places I would work etc.. Luckily for me, my occupation is so poorly paid here in the uk that almost anywhere I go will only be better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) That's where you need to have a 'pact'. An agreement before you go to stick together no matter what. So if one isn't happy you would most likely return. . Sorry, that doesn't work. On these forums we see a lot of couples where one is saying "I'm miserable here" and the other is saying "I'll be miserable if you force me to go back". A resolve to stick together regardless doesn't help in that situation, because one of the couple has to give in, and both will have arguments why their view should prevail. In the same way that possession is 9/10ths of the law, the person who wants to stay in Australia has the upper hand - they can point to the better income coming in, or how much the kids are loving the beach, or the thousands of dollars it will cost to move back, or all of the above. I've seen several instances where one partner has finally gone home on their own, either for an extended holiday or for good - and by the time someone feels driven to take that action, the marriage is already badly damaged even if the other partner doesn't realise it. The pact needs to be that if one of the family is still unhappy after a certain time period (which you decide in advance), then you'll move home no matter how well you're doing in Oz. Edited January 7, 2015 by Marisawright Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 Yeah sure! I'm in a 3 bed top floor flat, we got lucky at 1200 a month. There isn't really much similar for the same price. We pay £170 pounds a month for council tax. Thanks! That sounds great. That kind of money would get you a small two bedder or a nice one-bedder in a similar area in Sydney, so Bristol is definitely cheaper than where we are now. However you should have no trouble getting somewhere really nice for that money up North. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Azh Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 No worries, if you have any other questions don't hesitate to ask me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramot Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) We retired from Asia and have lived on the Sunshine Coast for 12 years. we go to Bristol for 3 months every year as our son and grandchildren are there. we find it very hard to get a rental, actually it's a nightmare, for less than 6 months, so are faced with short term which costs about 100pds a night so about 700 per week. Just a warning about costs for when you arrive. we are looking at airbnb as an option if we can't get a house swap. You pay the price according to the area, my son is in Westbury on Trym a nice area that is priced accordingly, obviously you can't compare property prices of Sydney to Bristol, but the wages are less in Bristol. Another strange thing is that we have never felt welcomed by anyone in the activities that we have joined in, and we are very used to moving around, so it's either because we are only there short term, although annually there, or people are a bit insular? Have no idea. but have never ever been invited to join anything or been invited anywhere. Wishing you all the best for your plans Edited January 7, 2015 by ramot Last part missing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Roberto Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 (edited) Sorry, that doesn't work. On these forums we see a lot of couples where one is saying "I'm miserable here" and the other is saying "I'll be miserable if you force me to go back". A resolve to stick together regardless doesn't help in that situation, because one of the couple has to give in, and both will have arguments why their view should prevail. In the same way that possession is 9/10ths of the law, the person who wants to stay in Australia has the upper hand - they can point to the better income coming in, or how much the kids are loving the beach, or the thousands of dollars it will cost to move back, or all of the above. I've seen several instances where one partner has finally gone home on their own, either for an extended holiday or for good - and by the time someone feels driven to take that action, the marriage is already badly damaged even if the other partner doesn't realise it. The pact needs to be that if one of the family is still unhappy after a certain time period (which you decide in advance), then you'll move home no matter how well you're doing in Oz. Sure. That's pretty much what I meant. My wife and I will have been together for 24.5 years by the time we arrive in Australia, and I don't take that for granted or f%ck about. A pact basically means any problems we go home (pardon my French!). Everyone is different so your generalisations won't apply to everyone. At the end of the day we all get one life. If we spend it all living in the same town doing the same things, life could get extremely dull.. Moving to another country obviously involves an amount of risk. In our case we still own our house and moving back won't cost the earth. Things can go wrong (wherever you are) and do. That's life! Edited January 7, 2015 by Captain Roberto Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chortlepuss Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 In fact, this is our main driver for going back to the UK and I often find myself wondering whether that's completely bonkers. However, we're retired now and considering how we want to keep ourselves occupied in retirement, the answer always comes back to European holidays. It makes far more sense to move to the UK so we can holiday cheaply and often, than stay in Oz and pay a fortune to fly to Europe every couple of years. In a similar situation, don't think your reasons are bonkers at all - Lots more to do on a lower income in UK than Oz and I'm looking forward to getting on a plane and being in another country in a couple of hours. Even if I had the $ I'm a bit over having to fly for so long to get anywhere...... I'm sure that you can have a brilliant retirement in Australia if you have sufficient money, with the boat, the pool and so many lovely places, but I can never see us being rich enough to survive here on a pension... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Que Sera Sera Posted January 7, 2015 Share Posted January 7, 2015 We retired from Asia and have lived on the Sunshine Coast for 12 years.we go to Bristol for 3 months every year as our son and grandchildren are there. we find it very hard to get a rental, actually it's a nightmare, for less than 6 months, so are faced with short term which costs about 100pds a night so about 700 per week. Just a warning about costs for when you arrive. we are looking at airbnb as an option if we can't get a house swap. You pay the price according to the area, my son is in Westbury on Trym a nice area that is priced accordingly, obviously you can't compare property prices of Sydney to Bristol, but the wages are less in Bristol. Another strange thing is that we have never felt welcomed by anyone in the activities that we have joined in, and we are very used to moving around, so it's either because we are only there short term, although annually there, or people are a bit insular? Have no idea. but have never ever been invited to join anything or been invited anywhere. Wishing you all the best for your plans It's not just you. As you know I'm Bristol born and bred. I would not live in any of the inner city areas. Those described as nice to me really are not. Lots of postcodes out of the city are gorgeous. Bristol City Central anyways is not a friendly place and I should know I worked in it for 25 years. It's a student and busy office environment. When we went back recently we had a service apartment in the BS1 postcode for a week. In October in cost us $1700 for the week, a two bedroomed inner city apartment above the bars. Broken bottle and vomit on the streets the norm ( it's a student area ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 we find it very hard to get a rental, actually it's a nightmare, for less than 6 months, so are faced with short term which costs about 100pds a night so about 700 per week. Just a warning about costs for when you arrive. You pay the price according to the area, my son is in Westbury on Trym a nice area that is priced accordingly, obviously you can't compare property prices of Sydney to Bristol, but the wages are less in Bristol. Another strange thing is that we have never felt welcomed by anyone in the activities that we have joined in, and we are very used to moving around, so it's either because we are only there short term, although annually there, or people are a bit insular? Thanks, I've noticed the same thing when I've been looking for short-term accommodation. I thought maybe I was missing something, but obviously not! Wages are not really an issue for us: though I'd like to get a part-time job, we're more or less retired. I am a bit worried about the lack of welcome though. Sydney can be a bit like that, at least in the centre, and we're looking forward to a less stand-offish attitude back in the UK - but maybe Bristol is not the place to find that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 (edited) Sure. That's pretty much what I meant. My point was just that the pact needs to be that you'll go home if one doesn't like it, not just a "we'll stick together" agreement, and that's what you meant - so no worries then. Edited January 8, 2015 by Marisawright Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ramot Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 (edited) In fact, this is our main driver for going back to the UK and I often find myself wondering whether that's completely bonkers. However, we're retired now and considering how we want to keep ourselves occupied in retirement, the answer always comes back to European holidays. It makes far more sense to move to the UK so we can holiday cheaply and often, than stay in Oz and pay a fortune to fly to Europe every couple of years. I can understand that you want to travel to Europe especially as you haven't lived in UK for a long time, but I assume not during the hot summer months as I seem to remember your husband has had a bad skin cancer scare. But out of interest most of our friends are retired in UK and don't actually go to the continent on holiday much more than twice a year and strangely only go for 2 weeks, seems they still think of work holiday restrictions. as posted below hope this post goes, sorry if it didn't make sense earlier Edited January 8, 2015 by ramot No internet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 (edited) It's not just you. As you know I'm Bristol born and bred. I would not live in any of the inner city areas. Those described as nice to me really are not. Lots of postcodes out of the city are gorgeous. Bristol City Central anyways is not a friendly place Any suggestions where else is worth looking at? We have no particular attachment to any particular place, and work is not an issue. We picked Bristol because it's a big city and therefore likely to have lots of activities, but if we have to go out to the fringes to get a nice area, we'll have to drive miles to get to those activities and that's not what we want. What counts as "inner city"? Edited January 8, 2015 by Marisawright Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marisawright Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 (edited) I can understand that you want to travel to Europe especially as you haven't lived in UK for a long time, but I assume not during the hot summer months as I seem to remember your husband has had a bad skin cancer scare.But out of interest most of our friends are retired in UK and don't actually go to the continent on holiday much more than twic No we'd probably spend the hottest summer months in the UK, where the UV never gets into the Extreme range so he can be out in the sun all day (cheaper that way anyway). We're not beach people so we'd be going to Europe for the history and culture, not to lie on the beach, so out of season wouldn't be a problem. Besides as I haven't been in the UK so long, and my hubby is Australian, there's a whole heap of places we haven't seen in the UK itself to keep us busy. Edited January 8, 2015 by Marisawright Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Que Sera Sera Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 Bath would be my choice over Bristol but then aim probably not the person to ask. We lived out in the sticks and commuted in everyday because all. The areas I like are in the sticks. Winterbourne, Wick. Iron Acton, Frampton Cottrell , Hinton, Doynton, Saltford all out in the sticks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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