Portland, Oregon to London, UK

Greetings!

We decided we must find a place with a similar climate, and so we're planning to relocate from Portland, Oregon to London for 2-3 years to assist the company I work for in establishing a suitable presence there.

My husband was born in the UK (East London), immigrated to the US and holds dual citizenship, as do our two boys, ages 7 and 9. I'm a US citizen (assuming my birth state of Texas remains part of the Union) and we're looking for advice and tips, as it's been 20 years since my husband has lived there.

Our biggest question is about schools: my older son has Down Syndrome (Trisomy 21) and is currently mainstreamed into public schools here. We think there might be more educational options for children with Down Syndrome, but we just don't know.

Looking forward to participating on the board!

Welcome! 

Welcome!

From my minimal knowledge of the school system, I am told that the USA is far superior for special needs.  Hopefully the area you end up in will have an excellent special education system in place that will put the USA system to shame. 

Hi and welcome!

I don't have children and I have not taken the time to research it too much, so I can tell you virtually nothing about the education system here.  But as with most things, I expect it comes down to a postcode lottery... settle in the right area and you may find great supportive programs in place for him.

Is he looking to move back to East London? Because its full of bankers and posh millennials over here now 

Given the special child needs you may want to ask specifically about programs in a more specialised part of the forum. I dont have children either, but I would imagine any of the "wealthier" boroughs would have better services or at least SOME services.

Welcome.....SW Washington boy myself.

Well, it does vary immensely from state to state. Oregon is somewhere in the middle. Then again, I hear support varies immensely from borough to borough. . . .

Welcome!

From my minimal knowledge of the school system, I am told that the USA is far superior for special needs.  Hopefully the area you end up in will have an excellent special education system in place that will put the USA system to shame. 

Welcome.....SW Washington boy myself.

Excellent! You'll be happy to know it's pouring rain and chilly outside now.

Another West Coaster (B'hamster) and now-Londoner here!

Welcome to the forum!

Well, it does vary immensely from state to state. Oregon is somewhere in the middle. Then again, I hear support varies immensely from borough to borough. . . .

Exactly right!

Welcome!

I recommend joining some Facebook groups in the area you're planning to move and asking about services for your child. There are also probably charities that can provide knowledge and assistance. I have a rare disease and Facebook definitely helped steer me closer to the area where I would be close enough to receive care but still able to afford rent. They'll likely have similar suggestions for schools.

And anyone who complains about the weather clearly comes from somewhere warm and sunny. It may rain some of nearly every day, but the sun comes out for a bit of the afternoon quite often! I'm not missing snow at all.

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Hey there. My husband and I live in Renton, WA (just south of Seattle) and we will be moving over there in a year or two.

He is still a British citizen and I work for Amazon and am looking to transfer to their London office. We've been wanting to move over there for sometime. We really want to move to Edinburgh but at the time, our office there doesn't have positions that I'm qualified for so we are using London as our foot in the door and then we look to eventually move up north. All his family live in Newcastle and Leeds.

I love that the weather is very similar between the Pacific NW and the UK. Makes it an easy transition as far as that is concerned. haha

I love that the weather is very similar between the Pacific NW and the UK. Makes it an easy transition as far as that is concerned. haha

Rain-wise, it is quite similar to the PNW, but it feels so much colder here. Even inside, I find myself bundling up a lot more in London than where I grew up in NW Washington.