Nearly 70 per cent gave work-life balance and family reasons as their motivation. Others make a completely fresh start.”When a man is tired of London he is tired of life; for there is in London all that life can afford.” So said Samuel Johnson. Today, however, it is life in London that some young professionals can no longer afford. Many graduates head to London for their first job but look further afield for their second. There are also family programmes that include information on how to move children, and on repatriation.Moves abroad are usually made for career development reasons, but within the UK many relocations are not connected with work but are made to improve work-life balance.

Some people move out of large cities in order to find better homes and schools and become commuters; some manage to work from home for part of the week and commute less. Topics cover cultural awareness, current social, economic and political issues, business practices, health and security, and living and working conditions (the latter often described by recently returned expatriates). Some large companies organise this in-house, or put departing families in touch with recently returned colleagues. Many others, including FTSE-100 companies such as Shell and Texaco, use briefing centres.One such centre, the International Briefing and Conference Centre in Farnham, Surrey, run one- or two-day programmes for staff about to be sent abroad – normally one day for European countries and the US, two for other destinations. “My husband stayed to finish his contract, then found a job in England where everyone was happier.”Getting a pre-departure briefing helps employees and their families to make a smooth transition.

My son gained a lot from the experience and although he is now at a UK university he still has American friends.”Not all families adapt so well. Adverse effects on children, for example, can call for drastic solutions. Liz Campbell’s children did not adjust to a change in education systems and became so unhappy that she had to take a tough decision “I went back to Scotland with the girls,” she says. And of the mothers at my son’s school I was the only one who worked. I freelanced for London papers.
“But I got involved in the school, joined a gym and started to make friends We grew to love America and American people Nothing teaches you so much about a country as living there. “We think we know about America because we see so much about it on television but it is not like that at all. What, though, of the effect on their partners? One person’s career may prosper but the second one’s can suffer unless they can find something suitable in the new area – or work in a job that lends itself to flexibility.

Journalist Sarah Holland spent six years in the US when her husband’s career took him to Washington DC She had not expected the culture shock. Either they are transferred by their employers or they move of their own volition in order to progress their careers. Why do it? Why disrupt family and social life to move to a different part of the UK, or even to another country? The reason for most people is, quite simply, work. Some foundation degree students at Sheffield College, for example, go on to study rolling-stock design at Sheffield Hallam University. So while this year’s anniversary reminds us that our rail industry truly was the marvel of the 19th century, isn’t it good to see the wealth of expertise and experience in our colleges helping it to get back on track in the 21st? John Brennan, Association of Colleges. Relocation, relocation, relocation.