Moving to ashburton from Ireland, with 15 year old son

[kimy1]

Hi we are moving to ashburton as a family of 4 from Ireland
It would be great to get some advice about the cost of living there,
Rents,grocery shopping,bills,schools,and so on,
I am most worried about my 15 year old son, he is not too keen on the move,
And I am hoping he will make friends and like the town,will he get board easily,
This is a big move so all honest advice welcomed. Thank you

[lin]

Hi Kimy1, I can't comment on Ashburton as I've never been there, & I don't have any kids. But I wanted to say hello & welcome to the forum. I am up in Blenheim, about 4hrs north of Christchurch, originally from Dublin & been here almost 4 years.

Have a look on Trade Me for rental prices, and all the big supermarkets have online stores where you can compare grocery prices. Don't know where you are located back in Ireland, but here shopping is a little different as many people grow their own veggies, or go the local Farmers market to get seasonal veg/fruit.

Have a look at the settling in services - I found the Newcomers Network great when I first moved here & knew no-one. (You can find the link on here http://www.familyservices.govt.nz/wo...anterbury.html). I also met a couple of people via this forum which was great. (And, they have become good friends too!)

I am sure you will get a few more responses from people that are either living in Ashburton, or have emigrated with their teens. Good luck with the move!!

[kimy1]

Hi Lin, i am from Dublin myself and my hubby is from the midlands, its a big move for me, i am afraid that i will be too homesick when i get there as i have a very close family here in Ireland, how did you overcome the homesickness, and thanks for your advice.........

[JandM]

This is a great recent post from someone who moved not very long ago. http://www.enz.org/forum/showthread....229#post480229 And this may also help. http://www.enz.org/forum/showthread....598#post479598

[edw123]

You’ll have to spend a lot of time with your 15yr old son as it will be very hard for him.

Sorry to be negative, I personally find Ashburton a very dull, insular, unpleasant place. I do have experience there, and have spent time working there, let me put it this way – a drive in winter back to ChCh (over an hour) in the dark was far more preferable than staying there.

Anything “stranded” in NZ – Ashburton is at least an hour to Christchurch, and about 4hrs from Dunedin – tends to have some pretty odd people living there. Fine if you’re an adult if you want a quiet life – you can spend time with the family, enjoy the scenery nearby, and travel to Christchurch for entertainment. I won’t tell the story of some of the people I have seen in the streets in AB, or pubs, or out driving.

Any of those South Island little towns which are “cut-off” do have to be experienced.

Problem comes when you have to start to socialise, and to be honest, if I recall how I was at 15 – social, friends meant a lot – if you pulled me out of that environment and dumped me in Ashburton with it’s “odd” locals I’d find it incredibly difficult to adapt. My advice would be to be very flexible, supportive, prepared for challenges, invest to make sure he keeps links with friends (Skype, PSN or XBOX live etc.), and be prepared to drive to Christchurch a lot to keep him entertained. Loads to do there.

Best of luck!

[coopers]

Ashvegas eh...as mentioned above it is a quite place, that has it's roots and probably still the main stay of its economy in agriculture. I have no experience of living there, but have been there with the footy team I coach in ChCh. If your son likes football there appears to be a good set-up there that drags in lads from all over. Good fishing there and abouts on the rivers and lakes. Skiing not too far off in winter.
To be honest moving anywhere depends on where you come from, what you are used to and your expectations, and moving anywhere on the other side of the world it hard work. My daughter was 12, and we initially moved to Lincoln, which is tiny compared to Ashburton, but she made friends very quickly, although there was alot of driving to ChCh at weekends. Good luck and keep positive.

[edw123]

Ashvegas eh...as mentioned above it is a quite place, that has it's roots and probably still the main stay of its economy in agriculture. I have no experience of living there, but have been there with the footy team I coach in ChCh. If your son likes football there appears to be a good set-up there that drags in lads from all over. Good fishing there and abouts on the rivers and lakes. Skiing not too far off in winter.
To be honest moving anywhere depends on where you come from, what you are used to and your expectations, and moving anywhere on the other side of the world it hard work. My daughter was 12, and we initially moved to Lincoln, which is tiny compared to Ashburton, but she made friends very quickly, although there was alot of driving to ChCh at weekends. Good luck and keep positive.

Lincoln IS Christchurch really (a bit like Rangiora), they're satellite towns to ChCh, so you still get the benefits easily and there's a bus service which gets you to ChCh to meet friends etc. etc.

Would agree though, it's all about being positive.

If they like football, factor in huge cost of sky plus (or my sky) - you can't realistically watch Premier League or Champs League games without it - unless you're always awake at 2am or 4am.....

[lin]

Hi Lin, i am from Dublin myself and my hubby is from the midlands, its a big move for me, i am afraid that i will be too homesick when i get there as i have a very close family here in Ireland, how did you overcome the homesickness, and thanks for your advice.........

I know what you mean Kimy1 - miss my family terribly, and found it very hard initially but I met a few people through this forum, which was a godsend. I also volunteered as I wasn't working & OH (whose from Christchurch originally) was working long hours. I did a few evening classes too, just to get out & meet people. I think, one thing you can do to help you settle, is to get involved with the community. There is always a fair/market/event on in town here, and while Blenheim is bigger than Ashburton, its still quite 'rural' (well it is for a city girl like me! )

Feel free to PM me if you want to chat some more.

[kimy1]

I know what you mean Kimy1 - miss my family terribly, and found it very hard initially but I met a few people through this forum, which was a godsend. I also volunteered as I wasn't working & OH (whose from Christchurch originally) was working long hours. I did a few evening classes too, just to get out & meet people. I think, one thing you can do to help you settle, is to get involved with the community. There is always a fair/market/event on in town here, and while Blenheim is bigger than Ashburton, its still quite 'rural' (well it is for a city girl like me! )

Feel free to PM me if you want to chat some more.

Thanks for all your advice, i will take it on board, i will keep you informed on how we get on..........

[kimy1]

Thanks for all your advice, i will take it on board, i will keep you informed on how we get on..........

Hi Lin, just want to say my husband has got his visa and is heading to NZ next week, the panic is setting in, i have a question i was hoping you can help me with, as you know we hope to follow in Oct or Nov, and with christmas ahead of us i want to know how do the Irish celebrate it over in NZ, i will REALLY miss home at this time so i want to do my best and keep the tradition going, all advice needed, thanks ..............