The McCartney Family - now of Perth, Western Australia

Mark McCartney first visited Perth on a working holiday in the summer of 1987/88 and returned with Vanessa in 2004/5 for a reconnaissance before making the decision to move permanently.

They applied for a Skilled Sponsored (subclass 176) visa based on Mark’s engineering skills but unfortunately their migration plan was interrupted when Mark fell ill. 18 months later though, with an all-clear, they resumed their application process armed with information from Western Australia’s State Migration Centre. Their contact at the State Migration Centre provided information about their visa options and supported them throughout the State Sponsorship process.

They arrived in Perth mid-2007 with their son, Ben, and have been busy ever since. Mark got a job as refrigeration engineer within days of stepping off the plane. Mark says, “There is plenty of work and the demand looks like it will continue.” They had friends from London who were already living in Perth so the McCartneys benefited hugely from the research their friends had already done.

They were settled in to their rental accommodation within one month and Vanessa also found work as a hairdresser fairly quickly. Ben is enjoying high school and will start an apprenticeship in refrigeration engineering as he is keen to follow in his father’s footsteps.

Vanessa advises, “Timing is an important consideration when emigrating. If you do have children don’t leave it too late to make the move.” Mark and Vanessa’s two older children have decided to stay in the UK which has made the move a lot harder but there are no regrets.

Future plans for the McCartneys include spending more leisure time together, building or buying a new home, cycling Perth’s network of cycleways and maybe even buying a boat.

Source – Emigrate Australia Published by Outbound Media