What are people's experiences of moving to Spain with kids?

Hi Hannah

can I start with a few negatives before getting to the positives.  Since Brexit it not as straightforward as pre Brexit.  Your husband could have difficulty getting employment as we are not in the EU.  There will be lots of difficult channels ahead including getting a Visa but I will not go into that because I’m sure you will have researched this.  Language is the another hurdle you will have to overcome as will your children.  As a holiday maker it is ok to have pigeon Spanish but in the real world without it and if you are hoping to integrate it will be difficult.  Again I’m sure you will have looked at buying a property v renting one.

On the positive side Spain is a wonderful country to live if you are prepared to work hard at it.  It is a much healthier style of living and although some might disagree it is cheaper.  You feel much less pressure and Spaniards love children.

Hi Hannah,

There is a bilingual school in Los Narejos - Las Claras. My kids (9 & 12 then) did a summer school there two years ago.  They managed with little Spanish and had a great time. There are lots of English speaking kids there so it’s worth checking out. I’m moving for 6 months a year soon but have decided that my daughter will use a British online school as too late for her with GCSEs coming up. As yours are young, they should not have a problem as they will pick up the language fast. Lessons are in Spanish obviously but I am told by a few parents that enrolled their children there, that they grasped the main language within three months as they were talking it daily. You can enrol yourself locally in an intensive course and once moved, there are conversations classes in Los Alcázares and Los Narejos that I know of.

Good luck!