Move to Scotland for free training, prescriptions, education...?

chipolatta

Hi,
Been thinking of this for some time now. So would any one else consider moving just a little north of the boarder to get more freebies?
A mate of mine on the rigs has just paid out about £3k for offshore courses which he would have got free if he lived in Scotland, other training courses to work on windfarms amount to over £7k, which I would be interested in if not for the initial expense...

Also have to ask the question as time is ramping-on and I might like to see my kids go to a University, but the thought of £9500 per year fees and starting them off in life in huge debt isn't really rocking our boat!
Add to that free prescritions, eye tests, dental checkups, no hospital parking fees (which literally cost us a small fortune recently here in the UK with a bit of poor health in the family lately), and free water. What else have I missed?
Cheers,
Chipper

Me2you

Lack of job prospects

Tigsteroonie

Dealing with midges.

chipolatta

Me2you wrote: »

Lack of job prospects

Yes, but our job prospects here not to far south of the boarder are dismal too, in fact, incredibly dismal!

Stephenmac

Hi. Water is not free, it is added as a seperate charge and collected via the Council Tax. Speaking of water, it seems to rain here an awful lot. Alcohol costs a bit more than what our neighbours pay.

What ever you decide, you will be made most welcome I am sure. Good luck and best wishes from me in Scotland. :-)

MovingForwards

You have to live in scotland a couple of years to qualify for funding to pay for courses, previous education (eg degree) will rule out funding. Search the net for the info.

Free scripts - yes

Free eye tests - every two years (but many vouchers are given out by specsavers in England so you can get a yearly test for free if you time it right).

Free dental - is it f*** but slightly cheaper than England (google the fees)

Free water - is it f*** it's billed with the council tax so on par with England

We pay a slightly higher tax up here than England (do a salary calculator and compare your current wage to ticking the box for scotland)

You want a job on the rigs? You got someone working there who can put in a good word? Happy to do about 4 weeks on the rigs/ 4 weeks (i think) off and live in or near Aberdeen? My OH has muttered about going back on the rigs but the cost is too much and it isnt a way of life if you have family.

Look at the cost of property and the way the offers over thing works up here, hope you got a fair bit of spare cash to go over the valuation in some areas.... somw properties are fixed price but never are they ONO.

It gets bloody cold up here so more gas used = higher bills = more money needed

Gets dark early, stays dark longer in Autumn/Winter and the start of spring. Means more electric used.

Mobile phone signal - get the wrong provider and you hang your phone out the window to make a call / receive texts.

A pint or three in the wrong pub will cost you.

Getting taken on by a doctor is hard as a lot are up to capacity. Wait time for booking an appointment is 2 - 4 weeks if you get registered.

Depending on the area you pick it could be a high student / tourist area and so not really family friendly.

There are a lot of flats up here and old ones at that.

It can get very wet and oppressive, think waiting 10 mins for a bus being soaked through and sitting in your soggy clothes all day at work, just as they are bareable it's time to go home.

Various bus companies up here, all have their own fare rates (lothian are one of the cheapest £1.70 for a single and £4 for a day ticket, monthly pass is £56ish).

So for the sake of saving £8odd per script, £10 for an eye test and free parking at hospital and about £1ish for dental plus uni fees, offset against everything else is it really any cheaper?!

agrinnall

Stephenmac wrote: »

Hi. Water is not free...

That's not true in every case, the house I owned had free water (and a septic tank so no sewage charges) from a hill source. The only costs were occasional charges for testing by the council for bugs such as cryptosporidium and once replacing a pipe. But it could run dry in the summer and in a very cold winter it froze solid for about 10 days.

anmarj

Two hospitals in Scotland still charge for car parking, and one has announced a price rise! Not all are free.

MovingForwards

Mentioned this thread to my OH after posting and he corrected me on a couple of things (i've been up here nearly 2 years, he is a native):

Free funding - only if the parents earn under 25k, aside from that it is student loans that are needed.

Rigs - 2 or 3 weeks on with 2 weeks off, courses are self funded or sponsored (cannot use funding up here for them), there are several courses needed and rig jobs are difficult to land.

The job market is the same as anywhere in the UK, there are jobs not not in all areas and it may take a while to secure one. Have a look at Reed/S1 jobs and see what is about in the area(s) you are thinking of.

Comms69

chipolatta wrote: »

Hi,
Been thinking of this for some time now. So would any one else consider moving just a little north of the boarder to get more freebies?
A mate of mine on the rigs has just paid out about £3k for offshore courses which he would have got free if he lived in Scotland, other training courses to work on windfarms amount to over £7k, which I would be interested in if not for the initial expense...

Also have to ask the question as time is ramping-on and I might like to see my kids go to a University, but the thought of £9500 per year fees and starting them off in life in huge debt isn't really rocking our boat!
Add to that free prescritions, eye tests, dental checkups, no hospital parking fees (which literally cost us a small fortune recently here in the UK with a bit of poor health in the family lately), and free water. What else have I missed?
Cheers,
Chipper

1: Scotland is still in the UK...
2: if you don’t want your kids to start life in debt there’s plenty of time to save the money and pay for their education yourself

Owain_Moneysaver

chipolatta wrote: »

but the thought of £9500 per year fees and starting them off in life in huge debt isn't really rocking our boat!

Open University fees are £5,904 in total for an honours degree part-time over 6 years. If their personal income is £25,000 or less, or on certain benefits, they could qualify for the Part-Time Fee Grant and funding to cover 100% of course fees.