Setting yourself up in the UK

Before I left, it felt like I had a thousand things I needed to do. Setting yourself up in a completely new country can seem like a daunting task, especially if you don’t know anyone there. This was my reality. I’d never travelled to the UK; I didn’t know anyone; I had no clue where I was going to live. The only thing I was really sure about was that I had a job.

Having never travelled far from home, there were certainly tough moments that made me question whether I could ‘hack it’. In this post, you will get some more information on setting yourself up in the UK:

the paperwork you’ll need to sort
accommodation choices
adjusting to a new way of living
some ‘key lingo’ to keep you from scratching your head at some of the sayings.

Paperwork

Depending on the agency you choose, you may already have the following organised. If not, here is a list of the documents you’ll need to get over to the UK and setting yourself up:

UK Visa. You may be lucky enough to have a UK passport. If you’re like me, you’ll need to check out your options on the UK visa site. I applied for the Youth Mobility Visa, which allowed me to stay in the UK for 2 years. The only unfortunate thing is you can only use it once. If you want to stick around longer, you’ll need to source a sponsor school – or find your dream partner.
Bank account to get paid. Most agencies help you sign up for a bank account when you first arrive. This is easy to do as you can use the organisations address to open an account.
Apply for a National Insurance (NI) number. Again, your agency should do this for you, but in the off chance, you’ll need to make sure you have one.

Finding Accommodation

When the paperwork is all sorted, now comes the fun part. Finding your own accommodation! There are several places you can use to start looking for accommodation.

Spareroom was the best site I have seen. With search options that you can make as specific as you like, you can locate the exact accommodation you want. Choose from; a whole house, single room, double room, room with ensuite, close to public transport, monthly price etc.

The only downside of this site is that you won’t be able to apply for a place/room until you’re in the UK. You need to go to the house/apartment to see if it’s what you’re after AND so the owners can see whether you will be a ‘good fit’.

LHA London has several locations around London. Some are aimed at university students; however, they provide short term stays for all at a decent price. You can have your own room and bathroom or move into a dorm room. When I was between places I stayed at the ‘Friendship house’ which was a short walk to London Bridge and markets. It was a secure building and had restaurants and a Tesco’s out front.

Booking.com is a brilliant site to access hotels and hostels around the globe if you are looking at short-stay accommodation. I ended up using this site (and downloading the app) throughout my entire stay in the UK. It got me through Europe when I wasn’t on a tour.

Safestay is one of the nicer hostels I have stayed in. If you’re looking for cheap hostel accommodation when you first get to London, you’ll want to check this place out. With decent prices AND your own curtain around your bunk (hold for excitement!) it’s like you have your own private little nook.

Setting yourself up – Adjusting to a new way of living

Heading over to the UK, I was so ready to experience a different life. As an English-speaking country, it wasn’t a huge culture shock which helped considering it was my first big adventure from home. Here are a few things I picked up – some quirky, some VERY important!

Always stand to the right on escalators – don’t make this mistake or you will have very angry people piling up behind you. You may even find yourself flying down the stairs after a sneaky, well-placed shove from behind you.

Accept that you no longer have personal space in public transport or when walking down Oxford Street. You’ll experience some intimate moments on the tube, especially if you travel at peak hour.

Get yourself an Oyster Card. If you are living in London and don’t have a car (let’s face it, the cost for parking your car on the street outside your own home can be pretty horrendous) public transport is your saving grace. Like me, if you’re used to the slow, usually cancelled transport schedules in Australia, you will be amazed by the public transport in London. It’s not unusual to walk past people complaining that the tube is “1 minute late” …. if only they knew the real pain!!

Download the City Mapper app. I used this app religiously. Just type in exactly where you want to go in London and it will tell you the public transport options available for you, what times they are leaving and if you need to change at any stations. The best part is you can save the directions so if you have no service, like when you’re on the tube, you can still access the information.

Key ‘Lingo’

Even though it is an English speaking country, it was funny how many language barriers I came up against. Some were funny, some embarrassing and some just….weird. Here is a list of words or phrases I heard and their ‘translations’: