Living in gibraltar

After living in the Costa Blanca for 7 years 12 months ago I moved back to the UK with my husband and 2 small children.  We have struggled to settle back in the UK so are looking at relocating to Gibraltar.
We would like to know how easy it is to get the children into schools and are they free as this is the reason we dont want to go back to Spain as we would like the children to go to English schools and it would be expensive to pay for in Spain.
We dont need jobs as I will be looking after our children and my husband works on the oil rigs.
If anyone can help with an idea of what it is like for families in Gibraltar and the cost of living... is it better than being in the UK? Then your opinions are appreciated. 
We do have a trip planned for August so we can experience different areas.

Thank you

Hi sallyann1969!

Welcome to Expat.com!

Armand

Hi Sallyann

So long as you are living in Gibraltar the schooling is free and is based on the UK system.
I have not lived in UK for many years but believe that the cost of lining in Gib is comparable or slightly higher than UK.
Housing is more expensive, cigarettes and petrol much cheaper, weekly shopping I belive is higher but a lot of people shop in Spain. It depends on what items you use, we like a lot of people tend to shop both sides of the frontier.

Regards

Grumpy

Hi Sallyann,

As Grumpy said, education is free  for residents in Gibraltar.  The Department of Education is very helpful and all you need is a residency card and the child's full birth certificate.

The cost of living varies... there are cheaper flats in the twon area, and premium flats in the marinas.  it depends on how you wish to live.

We have just spent 3 years living in Gib and it is a charmed life, you've got both the British and Spanish influences, along with a few Morrocan too!

Hope this helps  :D

Hi,

I am about to become a retired Brit in Gib with a working teacher wife there and a daughter, 14, a small pension, some income, and we'll buy a flat, but I'll have no job! I have done lots of research so can answer some of your Qs. Are you still gong to Gib? We both need to pick some brains about life there!

Nick