Moving to Mayo with family

HappyHippy

Hi Folks

I am relocating to Mayo so would love to get some feedback/opinions! Myself and husband along with our 3 children (9, 5 & 2) are moving to Mayo from Greystones, Co Wicklow this coming summer. What with the enormous rents and childcare costs we are finding it extremely difficult to save for a rainy day, let alone a deposit for a house! We both work full time but our lives seems to be one big rat race and to be honest I have had quite enough!

I have family near Clonbur so we have decided to relocate to Claremorris/Ballinrobe so at least we'll have some sort of support network.
My husbands job is nationwide so it doesn't really matter where he relocates to. I've a good job in Dublin however its not transferrable so I am now planning on not working for the first year in Mayo. It'll give me the opportunity to get the know the place and be around for the children while they settle in. The plan would be to rent for a year while we find our feet.
Has anyone done the same? How are you settling in? I'd love to hear from you or from others that are familiar with these areas. Nice to get some opinions!
Are they friendly communities and do they welcome "blow-in's"?

In relation to schooling, both my kids are in the Educate Together School however there are none within driving distance of Claremorris or Ballinrobe (Castlebar ET school opening in Sept so wouldn't have the classes yet and same for Tuam ET). It would be interesting to hear your take on the schools in the area.

Thanks a million

farmchoice

welcome to Mayo!!! i'm from the north of the county so i cant give any particular advice regarding the ballinrobe /claremorris area, except that there is a good squash club in claremorris (if that's your thing).

in general i'm sure you will find the communities very welcoming wherever you go. i'd be inclined to send the kids to the local school as this will be by far and away your best conduit into the local community. if you send them off to castlebar then it will be harder for them to get to know the local kids, ill leave sorting the religion thing to yourself but i'm sure the local school will sort something out for you.

you will only be seen as an outsider if you leave yourself on the outside, so get stuck in don't be afraid to volunteer with local organizations they will all be only too happy to get the help whether it is gaa, soccer, girl guides amateur dramatics, wherever you are into.

good luck with the move i really hope it works out for you, if you are interested in the squash let me know and ill get you the details.

HappyHippy

Thanks so much for taking the time to reply to my post. I feel a lot more confident after reading it and yes you're right about the schools. I should definitely send the kids to the local one. Makes a lot of sense!
Thanks again 😊

PARlance

HappyHippy wrote: »

Hi Folks

I am relocating to Mayo so would love to get some feedback/opinions! Myself and husband along with our 3 children (9, 5 & 2) are moving to Mayo from Greystones, Co Wicklow this coming summer. What with the enormous rents and childcare costs we are finding it extremely difficult to save for a rainy day, let alone a deposit for a house! We both work full time but our lives seems to be one big rat race and to be honest I have had quite enough!

I have family near Clonbur so we have decided to relocate to Claremorris/Ballinrobe so at least we'll have some sort of support network.
My husbands job is nationwide so it doesn't really matter where he relocates to. I've a good job in Dublin however its not transferrable so I am now planning on not working for the first year in Mayo. It'll give me the opportunity to get the know the place and be around for the children while they settle in. The plan would be to rent for a year while we find our feet.
Has anyone done the same? How are you settling in? I'd love to hear from you or from others that are familiar with these areas. Nice to get some opinions!
Are they friendly communities and do they welcome "blow-in's"?

In relation to schooling, both my kids are in the Educate Together School however there are none within driving distance of Claremorris or Ballinrobe (Castlebar ET school opening in Sept so wouldn't have the classes yet and same for Tuam ET). It would be interesting to hear your take on the schools in the area.

Thanks a million

I moved from Terenure to Castlebar with my wife and two young kids a few weeks ago.
I'm originally from the area so it has been less of a major move for me. We made the move primarily for our kids 3 & 1. You will have less headaches re schooling but you will also have less choice. There are less extremes, you pick the best of a few local schools if there even is a choice. It's limiting in a sense but it's liberating too. The school doesn't define the child as is the case in Dublin sometimes. Ours are very young but if we stayed we were facing a bit of a minefield in finding the "right school".

I'm not really familiar with Ballinrobe / Claremorris but it I guess it will be a culture shock coming from Greystones. There will be negatives but plenty of positives too. There's no point going into specifics as it's really a general City (or near City in your case) vs Country living kind of scenario.

The one word of warning I would have is that you will probably find it a lot harder to find work. We found jobs first and then made the move. If it's the case that you will need to be working after a year then you should almost start looking now just in case. I wouldn't advise moving unless you're familiar with the jobs scene.

Childcare costs aren't massively different down here. We're paying just a little less but not enough to make a difference. Rent on the other hand is massively different. We are getting more than twice the house for half the amount for what we would get in Dublin/Wicklow.

If you make any kind of effort to bed into the community you'll be welcomed with open arms. Feel free to PM me if you would like to talk about anything. We're delighted to have made the move but just going on above, make sure to look into the employment side of things would beforehand would be my advice, that's the one thing that could make it a struggle for you down the line.

HappyHippy

PARlance wrote: »

I moved from Terenure to Castlebar with my wife and two young kids a few weeks ago.
I'm originally from the area so it has been less of a major move for me. We made the move primarily for our kids 3 & 1. You will have less headaches re schooling but you will also have less choice. There are less extremes, you pick the best of a few local schools if there even is a choice. It's limiting in a sense but it's liberating too. The school doesn't define the child as is the case in Dublin sometimes. Ours are very young but if we stayed we were facing a bit of a minefield in finding the "right school".

I'm not really familiar with Ballinrobe / Claremorris but it I guess it will be a culture shock coming from Greystones. There will be negatives but plenty of positives too. There's no point going into specifics as it's really a general City (or near City in your case) vs Country living kind of scenario.

The one word of warning I would have is that you will probably find it a lot harder to find work. We found jobs first and then made the move. If it's the case that you will need to be working after a year then you should almost start looking now just in case. I wouldn't advise moving unless you're familiar with the jobs scene.

Childcare costs aren't massively different down here. We're paying just a little less but not enough to make a difference. Rent on the other hand is massively different. We are getting more than twice the house for half the amount for what we would get in Dublin/Wicklow.

If you make any kind of effort to bed into the community you'll be welcomed with open arms. Feel free to PM me if you would like to talk about anything. We're delighted to have made the move but just going on above, make sure to look into the employment side of things would beforehand would be my advice, that's the one thing that could make it a struggle for you down the line.

Hi PARlance

Thanks so much for your message. Great to hear I'm not the only one that has taken the plunge! You are right about the schooling, I've been doing a'lot of research and because of the limited choice its easier just to go with whatever is there.
I think it is the rent prices that I can't get over! We are paying 3 times the price in Greystones for half the house and a tiny garden!!
Thanks also for the jobs advice. I'll definitely bare that in mind.

From spending summers in Mayo and Connemara when I was young, I've always wanted to live in the country. I know it'll be a different way of life....quieter, slower....
But like yourself we are making the move primarily for the kids. Monday to Friday here are spent charging around, working to live and I've had quite enough really!

If you don't mind, I'll PM you when questions arise!
Thanks again, much appreciated

clogher71

Yes I agree with the poster who says go with the local schools. I think it's easier to get along with the locals when you have no connection with the area. It's very rural in that part of the world. Claremorris has a little more going for it than Ballinrobe, more shops, swimming pool etc.

yew_tree

Claremorris is a good town. The area is not as rural as most parts of Mayo and is very accessible. Galway without traffic is 45mims away but with the motorway from Tuam to Limerick opening next year it will really open up the region. You are not that far from Castlebar (20mins) and Westoort a half hour away. I Typically do Claremorris to Dublin in 2hrs and 40mins and that journey will get a lot easier when we have that motorway open to Tuam. Knock airport is only 20 mins up the road.
Claremorris has a lot of leisure activities, GAA, Rugby, Leisure Centre, Tennis Club, running track, three gyms, Clare lake and some good local bars and restaurants.

Dats_rite

Hi OP,

We moved to Claremorris in September last year after moving back from Australia. We had a look at Ballinrobe and Ballindine and TUam before settling on Claremorris.

Claremorris is a nice small town and has everything you really need. Tesco, Aldi, Cafes, leisure centre and pool in the McWilliam Park.

One thing I found was there was a shortage of houses to rent even though in a lot of the estates there are empty houses. Must be owned by the bank but still a bit frustrating when you are keen to move in to somewhere.

The location is good for getting on the N17 going north or South.

We have a 2 year old also and she goes to Creche in Claremount a few days a week and I would recommend it. The staff are great and the location and facilities are great too.

Clare Lake is nice for a walk and the land of the giants sculptures keep the kids entertained and there is a play park at the beginning of it too.

All in all we are glad we chose Claremorris over the other places we looked at.

Any questions PM me!

HappyHippy

Dats_rite wrote: »

Hi OP,

We moved to Claremorris in September last year after moving back from Australia. We had a look at Ballinrobe and Ballindine and TUam before settling on Claremorris.

Claremorris is a nice small town and has everything you really need. Tesco, Aldi, Cafes, leisure centre and pool in the McWilliam Park.

One thing I found was there was a shortage of houses to rent even though in a lot of the estates there are empty houses. Must be owned by the bank but still a bit frustrating when you are keen to move in to somewhere.

The location is good for getting on the N17 going north or South.

We have a 2 year old also and she goes to Creche in Claremount a few days a week and I would recommend it. The staff are great and the location and facilities are great too.

Clare Lake is nice for a walk and the land of the giants sculptures keep the kids entertained and there is a play park at the beginning of it too.

All in all we are glad we chose Claremorris over the other places we looked at.

Any questions PM me!

Thanks a mil for your message. I'll send you a PM now!

sillysu

Hi HappyHippy, I was just wondering how you got on with the move to Mayo? We (myself, partner and 4 kids) are planning on moving to just outside Westport from Galway in the next year, (we'll be building on my partners land), so any advice would be greatly appreciated for the big move!!!! Thanks.

HappyHippy

sillysu wrote: »

Hi HappyHippy, I was just wondering how you got on with the move to Mayo? We (myself, partner and 4 kids) are planning on moving to just outside Westport from Galway in the next year, (we'll be building on my partners land), so any advice would be greatly appreciated for the big move!!!! Thanks.

Hey Sillysu

We moved over at the end of July. At the moment we're based in Ballinrobe. Not the nicest of towns but I found a school I really liked so we made our decision based around that. It's been a big adjustment but we're getting there! Kids are settling in well which is the main thing.

I ended up staying in my job in Dublin. I'm pregnant on our 4th so I wrangled a deal them that I work 3 days in Dublin and the other 2 at home. So the days I'm in Dublin I drive down on a Monday and stay until Wednesday, then drive home again. Tough going but I'm going on maternity leave beginning of Dec so once I finish up the move will feel more real and I can get into the country life!!

We don't know anyone here (apart from godparents and my mum, who moved too) but I've become friendly with one or two mums from the school which has helped.

It's a different way of life here. Slower, quieter, friendlier. But we love it! When I head over for work, what with the traffic and chaos, I know we've made the right decision. I must say we've a much better quality of life living here.
It's a lot more outdoors with lots of lovely walks. Westport is such a lovely town too. It's just lovely here!

Once you get to know one parent from the school you're sorted. I also contacted the local resource centre when we first arrived. They were a wealth of information in relation to clubs for the kids to join. So your local centre would definitely be worth a visit. They were able to give me loads of contact names and numbers. Plus info on things I could do.

I see you're moving next year? You're more than welcome to take a spin over to us anytime.

Best of luck with the move, exciting times!

Any other questions give me a shout.
All the best,
Alanna

farmchoice

hi i'm glad thing are going ok for you, it is a big move but stick with it.

once you are on maternity leave take to frequenting the local coffee shops in the mornings, there you will find a gaggle of woman who are pregnant or have recently had babies they love to talk about being pregnant and having babies.
you wont need to say anything they will just descend upon you!!!! i know this is a very sexist thing to say!! but i know from my own wife that's how it works in north mayo anyway!!

HappyHippy

farmchoice wrote: »

hi i'm glad thing are going ok for you, it is a big move but stick with it.

once you are on maternity leave take to frequenting the local coffee shops in the mornings, there you will find a gaggle of woman who are pregnant or have recently had babies they love to talk about being pregnant and having babies.
you wont need to say anything they will just descend upon you!!!! i know this is a very sexist thing to say!! but i know from my own wife that's how it works in north mayo anyway!!

Haha! It's gas how we've to use our children to network!!! I've sourced the mother, baby and toddler groups so I'll definitely give them a visit!

nuac

sillysu wrote: »

Hi HappyHippy, I was just wondering how you got on with the move to Mayo? We (myself, partner and 4 kids) are planning on moving to just outside Westport from Galway in the next year, (we'll be building on my partners land), so any advice would be greatly appreciated for the big move!!!! Thanks.

Hi, best of luck with your move to near Westport.

I live in Westport so you can PM me when you get here

sillysu

Many thanks Alanna and Nuac for your posts. It's a big move and I'm sure a lot of stressful times ahead, but all worth it in the end hopefully. The difference between you and me Alanna is that I'm moving away from my family, where you moved closer to your mum. But Galway is only just over an hour away, so not too bad, but I will miss them on my doorstep. Also, we're living in an estate in the city at the moment, so we have conveniences close by plus the kids can run in and out to each others houses or go down to the green as they wish, yet we're not caught up in a rat race, like Dublin, whereas in the countryside, we'll have to be arranging playdates etc because there's no children in the neighbouring houses. But again, it's just a matter of getting used to a different way of life. I will like the extra space and bigger garden though. Plus, of all places to go to, Westport is a lovely town.