CASE STUDY: JOANNE & SCOTT
MEET THE MOVERS
Names:
Joanne and Scott Noble-Nesbitt
Occupation:
In the UK, Joanne worked as company secretary for a social housing provider. In NZ, Joanne works as an executive assistant
Scott worked as partner in a construction consultancy (chartered surveyors). Now Scott works as a senior quantity surveyor
Moved from:
Brighton, UK
Moved to:
Christchurch, NZ
“We both love to travel and always spoke about experiencing life somewhere other than the UK. I was always more keen than Scott to do this, probably because career wise he wanted to become a partner. After a few tough years because of the recession he surprised me one day by announcing that he was up for a move abroad and so we began searching where to go.
Not knowing where to begin we attended a Down Under Live event in Glasgow in March 2013 and at the event we met Borey Chum from Migration Associates. We realised we had enough ‘points’ to get into New Zealand and from thereon in began doing a lot of research and fact finding. The more we researched the more we realized NZ was the place for us.
The rebuild of Christchurch was a big draw as we realized that there were lots of potential job opportunities for Scott and that his skills were in demand. We made the decision in October 2013 to go on holiday to NZ for a month to have a look around. We spent three days in Christchurch as part of our trip and this experience made us realise that we could happily live there.
MIGRATION PROCESS
Scott speculatively sent off his CV to a few quantity surveying practices in March 2014. We were both excited when he was offered a job within four days after a Skype interview. This meant however a crazy three months spent applying for visas, packing up our house, quitting our jobs and basically unravelling our lives in England ready for the big move to New Zealand.
We were extremely lucky and managed to get residency within three months from our initial application! There is no way we’d have got through the visa process ourselves so quickly without the help of Borey and his team. He was always there to answer our questions no matter how daft or trivial they seemed. As well as providing advice and support, Migration Associates also put us in contact with movers, banks and money brokers which made the process of moving a lot easier for us.
Borey knew we had to be in NZ by July so Scott could start work and he pulled out all the stops to ensure we got residency within a very quick timeframe. There is a lot of paperwork when emigrating but Borey made sure everything was completed properly. Emigrating is an expensive process but in some ways that makes you more determined to succeed. We paid for our move from savings. There were the costs for our licensed immigration adviser, visa fees, medical fees, police check fees, shipping costs, insurance, flights… Sometimes the bills felt endless! The hardest thing about the move though was saying goodbye to family and friends – this wasn’t easy for us.
GETTING SETTLED
We arrived in New Zealand on 2 July 2014 after a short holiday in Dubai. The first month we lived in a motel near the centre of Christchurch. Scott’s employer had arranged this through his relocation package. This enabled us to find out more about the city and where we wanted to live. I have a cousin who lives in Christchurch and after not seeing each other for nearly 20 years it was great for Scott and I to be able to meet up with him and his family.
My cousin and his wife really helped us with the transition into Kiwi life. They showed us the city, helped us find somewhere to live, fed us and lent us enough furniture to be able to survive until our container arrived. Our first few months here would have been very different without them! I started to look for a job a month before we arrived and had a telephone and Skype interview for an executive assistant position before we left. I was offered the job within my first week of arriving after I’d met my potential employer for coffee, and I started work in my third week here.
Within the first month of arriving we had both bought a car, which was great for exploring the city and travelling to work. Before we arrived we had a rough idea of the areas we thought we’d like to live. After Scott had started work I spent a week walking around areas we’d earmarked looking at properties and attending ‘open houses’. It soon became obvious that the quality of accommodation was a lot less than what we were used too – poorly insulated, expensive and sometimes not big enough to house all our possessions which were being shipped over.
My cousin advised us to widen our search area as you get more for your money the further out you go. We realised this was true and eventually found a four-bedroomed house to rent in Tumara Park, which is situated towards the north east of Christchurch. It’s a bungalow with a double garage and lots of land around it. The properties in Tumara Park are generally three or four bedrooms and have large gardens. It seems as if it’s predominately families that live in the area. We will probably rent for a few more years. After that we may decide to sell our house back in the UK and buy a house here.
There are some amazing houses here despite the earthquake and lots of new sections being built which could mean one day we can build our own dream home.
OUTDOOR LIFESTYLE
Near our rental property we have some amazing facilities. We live near a forest park which will be great for exploring on our bikes, and we’re about 10 minutes drive from the beach. We’ve got some great shops near us too. We both feel that we are making more of our weekends since our move here. We enjoy exploring Christchurch at the weekend and seem to spend very little time in our house.
We are embracing the NZ outdoor life and also drinking far more coffee! Work wise Scott is really busy and probably working slightly longer hours but the variety of work is greater than that in the UK and more interesting. The quality of food and drink in Christchurch is excellent and we’re really enjoying trying out new places. There’s a real buzz in Christchurch at the moment and lots of new bars and restaurants seem to be opening each week.
The city really feels alive and people are excited by what is to come. As for leisure activities, Christchurch offers everything from skiing and kayaking to surfing and mountain biking. Whilst Newcastle had great leisure opportunities there is definitely more activities here – all within 1.5 hours from home. Meeting new people has probably been one of the harder aspects of our new life.
We heard about the Christchurch Newcomers Network, and recently attended our first event. Through this I met a group of ladies and now meet up with them every Tuesday evening for a walk around Hagley Park and a coffee. This has been a great way to meet people experiencing the same as you and swap stories. We were also told about an internet site called ‘Meet Up’, which is basically a collection of groups (such as under 25’s, ladies only, book group, newcomers group etc) where you can join the group(s) which are of most interest to you. You soon realise that you’re not the only person new to the city and that others are looking to make new friends too.
The big miss would have to be friends and family back in the UK, but thanks to Skype it is easy to keep in touch. As for the future, we plan to continue to settle in NZ, make friends, explore more of this amazing country, progress at work and buy a barbeque!
Our advice for other British people wanting to move to New Zealand is just do it! All throughout the process we kept saying we’d rather give it a go than always wonder ‘what if’. If for whatever reason things don’t work out we can always go back to the UK. We would definitely use a licensed immigration adviser again. Borey and his team at Migration Associates didn’t just fill in forms for us, their experience and knowledge of the system was value for money.”
CHRISTCHURCH PROs & CONs
Pros:
The outdoor activities, like skiing and kayaking.
Food and drink – there is an amazing variety of cuisines.
The friendly people and their great outlook on life.
The chance to be a small part of the Christchurch Rebuild.
The various groups for newcomers in Christchurch.
Cons:
Cost of renting and buying property.
Distance from friends and family.
Lack of heating!
Driving – damaged roads following the earthquakes and crazy drivers.
Lack of Premiership football.