A couple has shared how they decided to leave the UK for good in order to give their daughter the best childhood possible – after becoming increasingly alarmed by the crime rates, issues with the NHS, and the cost of living crisis.
Rosie and Craig Richardson upped and moved to Cyprus with their three-year-old daughter, Summer, having planned the move when she was born.
Back in East Yorkshire, where they are from, they “could no longer see a safe childhood” for their little girl, and struggled with a skewed work-life balance, as well as other factors like the dreary weather.
After quitting their jobs and selling their home before making the move this Spring, the family haven’t looked back – loving their new lifestyle, living in a four-bedroom detached villa with a pool, and finding themselves £9,000 better off financially a year.
Rosie’s parents Denise, 60, and Andrew, 59, have also joined them in making a new life in the sun.
“I don’t see us returning to the UK at any point in the near future,” 30-year-old Rosie, a beauty therapist and quality assurance officer, told Need To Know.
“Crime had been increasing for a long time, but it seemed to be getting closer to home.
“An article about a teenage girl in critical condition after a stabbing incident was actually the turning point for us – along with a long list of other incidents.”
Rosie and former scaffolder Craig, 38 – who now works remotely in the sports analysis field – had planned the move for years, prompted by the birth of their daughter.
She said: “We knew we didn’t want her to grow up in the UK, and we knew if we were going, it had to be before she started school to minimise stressful transitions.
“We had planned our wedding for 2024 so we knew after that we really had to focus on emigrating to make it happen.
“We wanted more for Summer – more sun, more family time, more stories to tell, more roaming free along the shoreline, more staying up to watch the sun set, more wildlife, more culture.
“Most importantly we wanted to show her that anything is possible and, if you can believe it can be done, it will be.”
They pegged the move down to several crucial reasons – including crime rates and the cost of living crisis.
Rosie explained: “The rise in crime seemed to be getting closer to home, and the fact we could no longer foresee a safe childhood for our daughter.
“The cost of living, meaning work life balance was non-existent – we had one day per week as a family, Craig had to work away and we were paying for a house we never had time to actually live in.
“Inflation was at an all-time high and wages hadn’t increased.
“Although we had well-paid jobs, having less and less to show at the end of the month started to seem pointless, if not stupid.”
The couple also cited a “failing” NHS as another factor in their choice to leave.
Rosie said: “We’d been subject to a failing NHS for so long that we actually thought it was normal to have to wait six weeks for a doctors appointment, eight weeks for treatment and 12 weeks for operations – it’s not.
“Here, if you ring a doctor in the morning, you are usually seen the same day – the next day at worst.
“If you need scans or tests, they are normally carried out the same week, and if you need an operation it’s usually done within a month.”
The weather was also a strong motivator behind their move.
Rosie said: “We counted seven months of continuously crappy weather from arriving back from our wedding in September 2024.
“We had the odd sunny day here and there but it was 80% crap, and we questioned why we were killing ourselves to pay for two weeks of sun a year when we could just live in a warmer climate.”
They had originally considered Spain, but decided on Cyprus as their new home due to better Visa options for remote workers, as well as the similarities it shares with the UK.
Rosie explained: “They drive on the same side of the road, have the same three-pin electrical sockets, and large expat communities – not to mention the fact that English is vastly spoken everywhere on the island.”
After making the move in May this year, the Richardsons have been thrilled with their new lifestyle.
The mum said: “It’s been a whirlwind but our experience so far has been amazing, we absolutely love it.
“Summer has settled in well at nursery and has made friends.
“The people are welcoming, the food is brilliant and the weather is beautiful.
“We have an outdoor lifestyle – Summer gets the beach, pool, park, bike and scooter rides on demand because there’s no weather impacting those activities for the most part of the year.”
As well as the weather, the family – who are currently renting while they explore different areas of the country – were also thrilled to learn that they would be £9,000 better off financially per year, thanks to a reduced cost of living in Cyprus.
Rosie added: “Some things are more expensive, especially the weekly shop and rent, but everything else is far cheaper when compared to the UK.
“The only downsides are having to leave family behind in the UK – but on the flip side they get a holiday whenever they want.
“We are big believers in living without regrets, of which we have none.
“If we ever did return to the UK later down the line, it would have been one hell of a ride in a beautiful country with amazing memories.”
