School Year in England

[Timeforachange]

Hi,

We are thinking about moving back to England after living in Australia for 20 years.  Our 2 boys are 13 and 11.  Because of their date of births I am finding that they will be in a school year above what they would be in Australia.  My oldest is just finishing year 7 but have started year 9 in September in England and the youngest is finishing year 5 here but would be in year 7 in England.  

I am finding that schools do not hold children back as easily in England than Australia.  Has anyone else come across this?  This will determine if we move back or not.  

How is everyone enjoying living back in England? Do you find it more expensive?  I know the wages are less there but is the cost of living cheaper?  

Any information you can give would be much appreciated. 

 

 

 

 

[newjez]

32 minutes ago, Timeforachange said:

Hi,

We are thinking about moving back to England after living in Australia for 20 years.  Our 2 boys are 13 and 11.  Because of their date of births I am finding that they will be in a school year above what they would be in Australia.  My oldest is just finishing year 7 but have started year 9 in September in England and the youngest is finishing year 5 here but would be in year 7 in England.  

I am finding that schools do not hold children back as easily in England than Australia.  Has anyone else come across this?  This will determine if we move back or not.  

How is everyone enjoying living back in England? Do you find it more expensive?  I know the wages are less there but is the cost of living cheaper?  

Any information you can give would be much appreciated. 

 

 

 

 

My youngest just missed six months schooling due to illness (kidney failure). He was 12 turning thirteen. It's been hard work, but he is 14 now and has fully caught up. As long as you have a good understanding school, and possibly get some tutoring, (we didn't), you should be fine.

Edited October 27, 2019 by newjez

[bunbury61]

9 hours ago, Timeforachange said:

Hi,

We are thinking about moving back to England after living in Australia for 20 years.  Our 2 boys are 13 and 11.  Because of their date of births I am finding that they will be in a school year above what they would be in Australia.  My oldest is just finishing year 7 but have started year 9 in September in England and the youngest is finishing year 5 here but would be in year 7 in England.  

I am finding that schools do not hold children back as easily in England than Australia.  Has anyone else come across this?  This will determine if we move back or not.  

How is everyone enjoying living back in England? Do you find it more expensive?  I know the wages are less there but is the cost of living cheaper?  

Any information you can give would be much appreciated. 

 

 

 

 

On the whole ,as I get older,  couldn't see myself living anywhere else .

I could do with 2-3 months away in the winter , but leaving the u.k permanently - no .

Weather is generally improving , and of course we have a vast array of places to visit in europe , only a couple of hours away .

London is down the road for us , train station, doctors , pubs within walking distance.  

Airport within a short distance .

Spoilt really .

Is it perfect , far from it , but I wouldn't want to leave now .

[Martinbjulieb]

We moved in the March so our kids had literally just started years 9 and 7. Obviously  by March in the U.K. the school year is three quarters over. We were able to have our son (eldest) go into year 8 for the remainder of that school year and start year 9 from the beginning in the September. Our daughter was less of a worry as year 7 is more of a transition year and she has had more time to catch up if required and obviously they don’t start the GCSE coursework in year 7 anyway. If you do want to hold back a year though it has to be done through the council UNLESS the school is an Academy (which ours was) and then they can make their own decisions. Good luck. Any questions just ask.

[Timeforachange]

Can I ask when is their birthdays?  My oldest is at the end of July. He misses out staying back a year by 4 weeks.  Even by staying back a year he still misses part of year 8. The other would start year 6 next year but but would start year 7 in September. That wouldn’t be too bad. 

Its so worrying.  I got an email from the council and they said they don’t hold children back.  It makes no sense.  I am sure it will all come good once we get there and speak in person. 

How long have you been back in England? Are you enjoying it?  Do you find it more expensive than Australia?  We are finding Australia to be so expensive these last few years   

Would love to hear your story   

 

Thanks 

 

 

[Martinbjulieb]

5 hours ago, Timeforachange said:

Can I ask when is their birthdays?  My oldest is at the end of July. He misses out staying back a year by 4 weeks.  Even by staying back a year he still misses part of year 8. The other would start year 6 next year but but would start year 7 in September. That wouldn’t be too bad. 

Its so worrying.  I got an email from the council and they said they don’t hold children back.  It makes no sense.  I am sure it will all come good once we get there and speak in person. 

How long have you been back in England? Are you enjoying it?  Do you find it more expensive than Australia?  We are finding Australia to be so expensive these last few years   

Would love to hear your story   

 

Thanks 

 

 

We moved to Perth in 2007 when our children were 4 and 2. They are both June birthdays, being 5th (youngest) and 28th (eldest) so they were the youngest in their year groups in Australia. 
We moved back in March 2017, no house, no jobs, two kids, one dog and no idea where we would end up living. We rented a holiday cottage for three weeks in the Peak District and ended up staying three months and the owners of that cottage are one of our closest friends, we just clicked right away. Our children went to a school temporarily whilst we were there but that council would not put our eldest back a year. Well they WOULD but it was a very strict guideline and we knew it was a temporary school so didn’t really bother. By time they had started school in the April, after Easter there was only one term left anyway!  Anyway 3 months later my husband had found work and we rented a beautiful old farmhouse in a village in Nottinghamshire. We picked a very central part of the country deliberately, knowing we could get most places easily and also keeping in mind after 10 years away the construction industry had changed massively and we wanted to be centrally located for other work opportunities should it not pan out. 
so after we moved to the village we picked one of the two schools in the next town based on the Ofsted report. As it happens it was an Academy and they have a say in how they enrol students. There were very accommodating and understood our desire to have our son stay back a year. Our daughter was fine though and she slotted straight into year 8 that September. Although it was a necessity we felt to have our son held back a year for curriculum  purposes I cannot pretend that it has all been plain sailing for him socially, and being 6 foot 5 and in year 9 didn’t really help!! It was also frustrating for him from a sporting perspective, as he was in year 9 but technically a year 10 he wasn’t able to play in any of the inter school sports games for his school year!! A minor issue I know but important to him. 
We have now bought our own house in the same village and are settled. To give you an idea of bills on a 4 bed house we pay £60 Per month electricity, we have oil central heating and that pro ratas at about £50 per month, council tax is £200 per month, phone and internet, super fast,  with anytime calls to landline and mobiles is £39 (special offer from SKY) water is about £60 per quarter. Home insurance for buildings and contents is around £25 per month.  Food shopping for 4 including wine etc and fresh stuff is around £100-£120 per week depending on what I am buying. Petrol is probably the most expensive thing at around £1.25 per litre. Clothes shopping is pretty good with lots of choice and good quality items.

lots to think about for you. Good luck in your decision making and if you want any more specific information feel free to PM me!!   Julie  

 

 

[Vickie78]

12 hours ago, Timeforachange said:

Can I ask when is their birthdays?  My oldest is at the end of July. He misses out staying back a year by 4 weeks.  Even by staying back a year he still misses part of year 8. The other would start year 6 next year but but would start year 7 in September. That wouldn’t be too bad. 

Its so worrying.  I got an email from the council and they said they don’t hold children back.  It makes no sense.  I am sure it will all come good once we get there and speak in person. 

How long have you been back in England? Are you enjoying it?  Do you find it more expensive than Australia?  We are finding Australia to be so expensive these last few years   

Would love to hear your story   

 

Thanks 

 

 

I too am returning with an 11 and 12 year old in Jan next year. All I can say is, stop stressing, Schools over there are very good at helping kids catch up, and generally the education is better than the Australian system, it seems daunting and if you over think it, it will freak you out. They will be fine.  Both my kids are bored at their current school as the school work is too easy for them, they get frustrated easily and off the charts for NAPLAN.  The only thing my 11 year old struggles with is Math. Probably gets that from me (doh!) but he's not super behind, he just doesn't grasp some concepts well, and as for their homework I have often commented it is Prep level even at Year 5/6 O.o 

ETA: Sorry forgot to also write when my 12 year old started School here the general consensus was to hold him back as he is "a boy". Huge mistake!  He is a March baby and his brother is July.

 

Edited October 28, 2019 by Vickie78

[thinker78]

hi. I returned in 2015 with a child who had done just half a term of formal education in Oz reception! As an August baby, she was also screwed as had to enter Year 2, therefore effectively missing the whole first 2 years of schooling. I was so stressed - not only could she not read or write, she was not used to sitting down for long periods and was used to being outdoors a lot. Fast forward 4 years....

She is now in her final year of primary. Effectively where as most british kids have 7 years of primary schooling she has had just 5. She is also still the youngest in her class. The school have been brilliant with her - she's had a lot of one to one support, and is currently doing great in literacy and all other subject areas. Not the best, not top of the class, but on a par with her peers. 

Maths has and always has been a struggle. Hard to tell if it's because she missed two years of education or if she's just pants at maths. UK maths curriculum is full on and hard though! 

As we end her primary career, I can only say we've had a positive experience despite a) school years going against her and b) being youngest in her class. 

You'll find the UK system (for the most part) is more clued up on SEN and catch ups - they seem to put more resources into this. I'd say schools are more onto things here, although the focus on SATS at the end of primary is stressful. 

Kids are adaptable. The stress now seems misplaced. Overall, she's had wonderful schooling here. 

UK being cheaper - depends where you live! South is expensive. Some things much cheaper than Oz, others on a par. Move somewhere with ok house prices and you'll be ok. Good luck! 

[Timeforachange]

On 27/10/2019 at 11:52, newjez said:

My youngest just missed six months schooling due to illness (kidney failure). He was 12 turning thirteen. It's been hard work, but he is 14 now and has fully caught up. As long as you have a good understanding school, and possibly get some tutoring, (we didn't), you should be fine.

Thank you 

 

On 27/10/2019 at 20:59, bunbury61 said:

On the whole ,as I get older,  couldn't see myself living anywhere else .

I could do with 2-3 months away in the winter , but leaving the u.k permanently - no .

Weather is generally improving , and of course we have a vast array of places to visit in europe , only a couple of hours away .

London is down the road for us , train station, doctors , pubs within walking distance.  

Airport within a short distance .

Spoilt really .

Is it perfect , far from it , but I wouldn't want to leave now .

[Timeforachange]

On 29/10/2019 at 06:32, Vickie78 said:

I too am returning with an 11 and 12 year old in Jan next year. All I can say is, stop stressing, Schools over there are very good at helping kids catch up, and generally the education is better than the Australian system, it seems daunting and if you over think it, it will freak you out. They will be fine.  Both my kids are bored at their current school as the school work is too easy for them, they get frustrated easily and off the charts for NAPLAN.  The only thing my 11 year old struggles with is Math. Probably gets that from me (doh!) but he's not super behind, he just doesn't grasp some concepts well, and as for their homework I have often commented it is Prep level even at Year 5/6 O.o 

ETA: Sorry forgot to also write when my 12 year old started School here the general consensus was to hold him back as he is "a boy". Huge mistake!  He is a March baby and his brother is July.

 

Thank you.  

Good luck with your move.

I am sure everything  will work out with the schools.  

Thanks 

[Timeforachange]

10 hours ago, thinker78 said:

hi. I returned in 2015 with a child who had done just half a term of formal education in Oz reception! As an August baby, she was also screwed as had to enter Year 2, therefore effectively missing the whole first 2 years of schooling. I was so stressed - not only could she not read or write, she was not used to sitting down for long periods and was used to being outdoors a lot. Fast forward 4 years....

She is now in her final year of primary. Effectively where as most british kids have 7 years of primary schooling she has had just 5. She is also still the youngest in her class. The school have been brilliant with her - she's had a lot of one to one support, and is currently doing great in literacy and all other subject areas. Not the best, not top of the class, but on a par with her peers. 

Maths has and always has been a struggle. Hard to tell if it's because she missed two years of education or if she's just pants at maths. UK maths curriculum is full on and hard though! 

As we end her primary career, I can only say we've had a positive experience despite a) school years going against her and b) being youngest in her class. 

You'll find the UK system (for the most part) is more clued up on SEN and catch ups - they seem to put more resources into this. I'd say schools are more onto things here, although the focus on SATS at the end of primary is stressful. 

Kids are adaptable. The stress now seems misplaced. Overall, she's had wonderful schooling here. 

UK being cheaper - depends where you live! South is expensive. Some things much cheaper than Oz, others on a par. Move somewhere with ok house prices and you'll be ok. Good luck! 

Thank you for your reply. 

That must have been a worry missing 2 years of schooling.  So glad it worked out for you.  

Another person mentioned by holding my son back a year he won’t be able to play sport for his school year as he would be older   This is also something to consider as he loves sports. 

Hopefully everything will be good for my son also.  

 

Thanks 

[thinker78]

The general vibe here is that they don't like holding kids back. I've never come across it. You'll find things a bit different here. Kids grow up faster and it's not necessarily a good thing but just the way it is. The focus on academic stuff is more critical. I've lots to moan about - not being allowed to take your kids on holiday without getting fined, the ridiculous curriculum, the government cutbacks which have severely impacted schools - but overall I am still so glad mine went to school here. The teachers are brilliant, the pastoral care has been superb. I prefer the curriculum - I relate to the history, languages and culture. I think the Australian system is more relaxed - possibly a good thing but I can't fault our experience here. A good school will support children with additional needs or background issues. The 'free' system here, if you're in an ok area, seemed to me much better than the public schools we had on offer down under. 

My understanding is that year 9 is now critical as this is when they begin to study for GCSEs - not year 10, as was back in the day. So you do need to time things for that really. It's easier in primary. Good luck