Newsletter response

[Admin]

A recipient of our newsletter (who shall remain nameless) sent this to me the other day and I thought it would make an interesting talking point. I would value your opinions...
I have not edited the copy in any way.

[Wendy J]

So all Brits are the same?

You're a Brit and you are allowed to live here? so you are different somehow?

Somehow I don't think the French will allow the Anglo Saxons to change them.. anybody else agree with me.

Oh yes, I suggest you buy a dictionary.

[Martin G]

I'd ignore what this person is saying, just some nationalist, not all of the French are like him/her.

[Martin W]

We have 4 children and have been living here for 2 years. Given the age of our children now 12, 10, 3 and 5 I feel reasonably qualified to repost on healthcare, food, schools and social security.

1. Healthcare - I started business, registered and have paid cotisations since 1st September 2008. It took until July 2009 to receive our healthcare attestations. This despite considerable help from the assistance sociale office at our local Marie. We were told that when the attestation came through doctors and pharmacists would accept it - none did. It took until late September 2009 to receive our Carte Vitales.

We still seem to have to pay upfront all the places we use healhcare and then go through the turgid (supposed to be automated reclaim process by post). But the real problem with no attestation is no social security number to get a mutuelle with. So despite paying cotisations, up until July 2009 we cannot get back 30% of the healthcare costs. (Remember if you want your kids to do activities like sports etc. in France. Each time you have to get a medical certificate from a doctor at 22Euros, the same for the canteen at our schools etc, etc,

My wife is a highly qualified nurse who used to run the Royal County Surrey Hospital. To be quite frank the UK hasn't had a hospital in the decrepit state of the St Jean in Perpignan for 40 years. Our friend who is the the Consultant Neuro Surgeon there and has worked in the UK also supports this opinion.

There is bi-annual free dental checks for children otherwise nothing unless you pay, eye care has to be paid for also. All of which I have mentioned is provided for children at far greater levels and free at the point of provision in the UK and delivered at the highest standards. My thid child had to go for a night at St Jean for observation - The room was actually decorated in dark blue painted woodchip, it was dirty the equipment was at least 20 years old. I was provided with a stained chair to spend the night in. The morning produced breakfast. Consisting of a bowl of cereal and a cup of luke warm coffee and a bill for 700 euros. I could have booked a 5 star hotel suite and paid a nurse to spend the night with us for less.

As a young family our view of the French health service is in direct contrast to ex pat retirees who of course have had the worst of a dramatically improved UK NHS in their lives. They then come here without a penny to pay for it and since you can just go direct to a specialist it feels like a Rolls Royce service in terms of speed of access.

2. Food - we like good food and can both cook to a high standard. It seems to me that French children only eat Steak Hache (burgers) and sweets. Our kids are laughed at by their peers when they take fruit to school for goute. Takeaways appear to be solely pizza (italian) or McDonalds. Yes there are good restaurants and cafes, but there are also many bad ones. There is just not the variety of choice in supermarkets here as opposed to the UK. They clearly haven't got on op of additives and salt yet in tinned and packed goods. Local markets can be good as is buying direct. Wine is a huge bonus and seafood and meat are a joy. Is it cheaper probably just about, but you can feel the costs creep all the time. I think bread choices in the UK are superior to the tasteless and nutritionally valueless white bageutte that's generally on offer here. However, we do have the most sensational boulengere and people come from miles around to buy from them.

3.Schools - we have now tried a total of 5 schools and 1 chreche since we've been here. This is because of moving after initialy renting in one catchment then buying in another. Overall conslusions

a) Good headmaster/mistress means good school.
b) Some teachers don't give a toss, these are the ones who arrive at school after you do and are out the gate and gone before your kids are. If you get one of these your kids are going to have problems. They are doing the bare minimum they need to, so any extra for kids who are struggling is not forthcoming.
c) Some schools fail repetitively to replace teachers when absent for unplanned and even long term planned absences. During one term our daughter averaged a two day week.
d) Our older children's writing is beautiful their friends in the Uk scrawl.
e) Chreches seems on the whole to be enjoyed by the children.
f) We love both maternelles we have used.
g) The schools in our town Le Soler are superb.
h) Our daughter after 1 year speaks and writes a level of Spanish her friend's in England will probably not reach by O level.
I) All the children are fluent in French speaking and comprehension.

We came from South Farnham in Surrey which, has probably the best state schools in the UK. So our barometer was high and Le Soler is up there in many respects.

4. Social Security - since they take 45% of my earnings without any allowances for this and the level of family benefits (despite) 4 kids is actually less than we received in the UK between Tax Credits and family allowance, it's disappointing to say the least. Also, the fact that it took 10 months to come through because of the social security cock ups does not enamour the concept that France is better for families.

Conclusions - Disappointed with the system here as a family but we will continue. I have de-registered and have chosen to return to the UK for work now. My wife is starting a high quality French furniture importation business as an Auto-Entrepreneur to keep us covered here. Have you seen the price of furniture here?

Are we ruining France? - No France will rumble on the way it always has and none of us Johnny foreigners will have any impact on it like the French themselves. Mr reactionary should go and have a chat with Nick Griffin, he might find an ally there among us lot, but thank god it's only there he will find one!