Moving to a New Area with Children

When you move to a new area it can be rather daunting. When I first moved ‘down south’ from Yorkshire, I was just so thankful for Google. You don’t realise just how much little things like not knowing where the post office is, can bother you! It makes a trip out a lot of hassle when you need directions to everything.

I haven’t moved areas since we have had children, but we are looking to move to a larger house soon. It won’t be too far away from where we are now, as the husband still works in central London. I can imagine that it can be a lot harder to do with children. They are so use to life a certain way and doing certain things. I think they are a lot more resilient than we think, though. They’ll probably settle in and make friends much easier than we do!

If you are moving to an area without family or friends close by, even things like finding childcare or a babysitter can be tricky and can take a lot of time. I know this from first hand experience – it is hard to get to know people well enough in an area like London, to want them to babysit your kids. Knowing you have trusted, local babysitters in London and the surrounding areas, is amazing peace of mind. Having a go-to person for times when you might have a dentist appointment or just small things like that, can be hard. Heck, even for date nights out! They are so important to keep your relationship alive. It is much easier to find a babysitter in London than you might think.

I think some of the best ways to have a successful move is to tell the children well in advance. If they are old enough to understand that is! Another key thing is to keep positive about the move. I know this is of paramount importance when you are just moving as a couple, so it must be so much more important when there are children involved. If you don’t seem positive about the move, they won’t either. They easily pick up on bad feeling or anxiety and can affect them a little more than we think.

If possible, I think it will be important to arrange a day out to your new area. If you focus on the fun places that they can use, like new playgrounds, a leisure centre and restaurants, it can get you all feeling much more excited about the move. If you can get access to your new property then you can show where their new bedrooms will be like. Telling them where their things might go, gives them something visual to think about and imagine their belongings in the room.

Have you moved around with children? How have you found it?

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