Stitt Family Wanted Down Under Revisited

If your job meant never seeing

the people you loved,

how far would you go

for the family life you dreamt of?

In 2011, the Stitt family had to decide if the answer

lay on the other side of the world.

Four years on, we'll find out if they made the leap

and moved to Australia.

The Stitts were desperate for a new life...

I just don't want in ten years' time for my children to turn around

and say, "Daddy, who are you?"

..but it would come at a high price.

That's what we have to give up,

and that to me is a huge, huge stumbling block.

Today, we'll discover which side of the world the family now call home.

We were happy.

We'd made the decision and we're sticking to it and that was it.

Australia's the most popular destination

for Brits emigrating abroad,

with nearly 35,000 of us tempted each year

by the promise of a better life down under.

However, many find the grass isn't greener

on the other side of the world

and almost half return to the UK.

In 2011, the Stitt family spent a week

experiencing the reality of life in Australia.

At the end of it, they faced a huge decision -

whether to stay in the UK or make the move for good.

Today, four years after their trial week,

we'll find out if the family's Australian dream

has become a reality.

The Stitt's week in Perth in 2011

began with a gruelling 20-hour flight.

It had given Corinne plenty of time for second thoughts.

I am just thinking, what if we don't like it?

What are we going to do?

Is our situation so bad that we have to leave Northern Ireland?

Despite the nerves, the couple were looking forward to the week ahead.

-Nice for us to spend a bit of time together...

-Yes, yes.

-..as a family.

-Yeah.

Cos we don't get a lot of that family time together,

so it's an opportunity for us to be together and...

-SHE GIGGLES

-..see how that works out.

Four years ago, Eric, Corinne,

and their daughters, Jodie, then aged nine,

and Madison, who was five,

were living in Bangor in Northern Ireland.

The setting provided them with a lifestyle they loved.

Both Eric and I are born and bred in Northern Ireland,

and we're very proud to be Northern Irish.

We have a lot going on here.

We do love where we live - we live in a very nice area.

We're so close to the school the kids go to.

We've been able to provide the girls lots of opportunities for things.

But the Stitts were considering giving all that up

for a new life in Australia.

Eric's work was tearing the family apart.

In a month, Eric would be away for two or three weeks at a time.

He's home for the weekend,

and he would have one full day erm, with us,

and in that stage, everything is rushed into the full day,

and then, the next day, Eric's away off to the airport

and away to work,

and it could be for another two weeks.

Eric's absence from home had taken its toll on everyone.

He has missed out over the years

on those things where, really, you know, he should be there,

and he does feel it.

It can be very hard trying to explain to a five year old

that, no, Daddy has to go to work,

you have to keep a roof over your heads.

OK. Do I get a kiss for Daddy?

All right, give Daddy a kiss.

Mwah!

Eric owned his own business designing pipe systems

for oil and gas rigs all over Europe.

Working offshore meant

he was missing out on his family growing up.

I just don't want in ten years' time

for my children to turn around and say, "Daddy, who are you?"

or, "Where have you been?"

-Mwah!

-Aw, you behave yourself now for your mummy.

-OK.

It's vitally important that we do get our lives sorted out

and get to spend the time together as a family that we need to.

I'm trying not...

-You're all right.

-OK. I'll see you. Take care.

Corinne does feel it hard sometimes.

She has to be here 24/7 for the girls.

Everything is on her shoulders.

She says she feels like she's a single parent.

It's not easy for her, and I do appreciate that.

The Stitts were looking to Australia

to give them their dream of a normal family life.

They hoped its booming oil industry would mean Eric could find a job

which would allow him to spend more time at home.

We're just hoping for a lifestyle that's you work to live,

you don't live to work.

The girls could see the benefits.

We would like to go to Australia. Wouldn't we?

Yeah.

It would be fun to spend some time with Dad and everything.

-And he'll help us with our homework.

-Yeah!

But if the Stitts did move down under,

they were aware of how much they stood to lose.

We are quite a close family.

It's very daunting, I suppose, sometimes

just to think that you're going to be on the other side of the world,

that you're not going to be there when they need you.

The Stitts spent their trial week in Perth,

where much of Australia's oil and gas industry's based.

Home for their trial week was a three-bedroom cottage

just five minutes from Fremantle Beach.

Everything's here that we need.

It's really nice and it's clean and it's modern

with that sort of shabby chic-y twist to it.

Corinne and Eric were aware

how much was resting on the next seven days.

I really want it to go well,

for this to be a really positive experience for us.

Otherwise, we're going to be down the road in another ten years' time

and just wonder what we've done with ourselves.

A lot really does ride on it.

Though they were hoping for a future in Australia,

they also knew choosing it could have huge repercussions.

I worry that if I really, really do like it,

that...people at home are going to be a bit...

There's a sense of guilt.

Actually being here now brings home to you

-just maybe how big a decision it would be...

-Mm-hm.

..to make the move.

This is a serious decision for us. This is...

If we like this, we're coming out here -

we're not hanging about.

In 2011, the Stitts were living in a three-bedroom house

in Bangor, in Northern Ireland,

and they had plenty of thoughts

on what their Australian home needed to deliver.

The right sort of property would be very important.

My dream property in Australia

would be a pretty big house in the middle of nowhere.

It has to have a swimming pool for the girls.

And just somewhere where we can spread out

and just enjoy being outdoors and just having room around us.

That all sounded great, but it wouldn't come cheap.

The Stitts had a budget of around £300,000.

To give the family a taste of the Perth property market,

we showed them three options

based on what they wanted from their ideal home down under

and what they could afford.

First up was this three-bedroom house in Byford,

20 miles south of Perth.

Popular with young families and offering good value for money,

what did the Stitts make of it?

Looks like a box with windows.

THEY GIGGLE

Oh.

Straight into the living room.

It's smaller than what I thought.

No, I don't like this at all.

-You're not keen on coming straight in off the door.

-No, no.

It's really not what I would come out here for.

And the garden didn't go down well either.

Well, it's just not practical at all.

-Not for...

-No.

-Not for having kids.

Where are you going to play?

What are they going to do...out here?

Go round in a circle on their bikes?

-No, that's not working for me at all.

-No.

That's a real big letdown.

The house had been a big disappointment,

and they still had to find out its cost.

Was it somewhere they could even afford to call home

with their £300,000 budget?

-CORINNE LAUGHS

-£250,000.

It may have been £50,000 under budget,

but Corinne still wasn't buying.

There needs to be a wee bit of reality on that,

cos this house is not worth £250,000 of anybody's money.

Things weren't great for the Stitts so far.

If this property wasn't worth considering,

would the house of their dreams be beyond their means?

Property number two was in the small town of Baldivis.

Close to shops, restaurants and the beach,

was this four-bedroom house more up their street?

OK.

Ah.

-Ah, you see, this has a hall.

-This is better.

This is nice. This has a nice feel about it.

Yeah. This is better.

It's open plan, but it works a lot better than that other property.

It's a bigger area.

With much more space, the interior of this house was more pleasing.

But stepping out into the garden...

Aw, it's like...

-Hm?

-Aw, that... I'd pull my hair out.

-That's like the...

-Peace wall.

-That's like a peace wall.

-Er...

-No.

-It's a wee bit...

The house is nice. This here is a big no-no.

It's not my dream.

It's not really not my idea of living the Australian dream.

It's... No, it doesn't do it for me. I'm sorry.

Can we go?

It may have seemed like an extreme reaction,

but it was a painful reminder of

something they were trying to leave behind.

It reminds us both of a boundary wall in Belfast

called the peace wall,

which separates two communities in Belfast.

It's there to keep people apart.

I'm not coming to Western Australia to look at that

-or be reminded of it, thanks very much.

-No.

Although the garden was a definite no-go,

the rest of the house had been a hit with the family,

but was it somewhere they could afford

on their £300,000 budget?

315,000.

It's probably overvalued at 315,000.

Well, basing it and comparing it to...

Comparing it to what I would get at home, yeah.

But I certainly would not pay it for here.

-It's not giving you what you're looking for.

-No.

As if the wall wasn't enough,

the house was at the top of their budget.

If this was the best they could buy,

would Eric and Corinne have to

rethink their future?

Everything rested on the last house.

Property three in Secret Harbour

was only a few minutes' walk from the beach

but nearly 40 miles south of Perth.

The Stitts could have got more for their money here,

but it would mean a long commute for Eric.

Oh, this is really...swanky, isn't it?

-This is better.

-Yeah, this is nice.

Which way do we go?

-Er... Follow Daddy!

-Go this way?

-Yes.

-Go this way.

-Master bedroom...

-Yeah.

-..I think.

Aw, that's lovely.

-That's beautiful.

-That's really nice.

The decor as well is really nice.

And that looks like an en-suite.

-Oh, wow.

-Ooh.

-CORINNE LAUGHS

-That's bigger than our bathroom at home.

-Probably is.

After a bad start to the day,

this house had certainly lifted Corinne and Eric's spirits.

-Wow.

-THEY LAUGH

-I like this.

-Wow factor there.

Yeah, this is what I'm talking about.

Oh!

Mummy, are you going to get this house?

-CORINNE LAUGHS

-She is going to get it.

Well, it ticks quite a lot of my boxes.

Well, it's ticking all the boxes so far.

Madison seemed to have made her mind up already,

but the best was yet to come.

There were no complaints about this garden.

No tears this time.

-ERIC CHUCKLES

-Quite happy.

Everyone loved this house,

but they were yet to find out its price.

If it was way above their £300,000 budget,

Eric and Corinne's dream could be brought to a halt.

-400.

-OK.

Approximately 400,000.

-Yep. I think the finish, the detail...

-..the detail there.

..the swimming pool, that all adds up.

They'd found the ideal house, but it was well over budget.

Would the Stitts have to settle for less

if they were to make the move?

We'll have to see what I can expect, obviously, to earn.

Yeah. It would have to take a house like this or similar standard

for us to make the move.

Both Eric and Corinne had come to realise

affording their dream would need Eric to earn considerably more.

So, when it came to properties down under,

which way did they vote?

Based on the houses we've looked at today

and what we think we can get,

our decision is...

-ALL:

-Australia!

Back home in Northern Ireland, Eric ran his own company

designing pipework for the oil and gas industry

and earned £75,000 a year.

But while the money was good,

his job meant working away for weeks at a time.

To get an idea of his job prospects down under,

we arranged for Eric to meet an oil and gas recruitment consultant.

Eric knew, though, starting again was a gamble.

Things have been going very, very well for me. I enjoy the work.

So, yeah, I'm worried about

possibly leaving that behind,

taking the plunge to...for pastures new.

Everything could rest on Eric's interview.

While he prepared for it,

Corinne gave the girls a taste of Aussie life.

-Hi, I'm Corinne.

-Corinne.

-Yeah. This is Jodie and Madison.

-How you going, guys?

-Good.

And the girls didn't waste any time getting into the saddle.

Walk on.

Ah!

Back in the city,

recruitment manager Andrei Sarpe had been poring over Eric's CV.

The positive thing is because of the industry, where it is,

it's at a massive growth stage,

and I think the skills that you've already got

and the packages that you've been working with

are very transferable to the market here.

It was exactly what Eric had been hoping to hear.

At the stables, Corinne's time alone with the girls

was reminding her why their life needed to change.

Eric misses out on a lot of the kids' day-to-day activities.

And when he does come home from work,

he feels absolutely wrecked.

That's when we feel the pressure,

we pack everything into the short time that he is home.

And then...the routine starts again,

and that's when the upset starts, when Eric heads off again.

-CRYING:

-I find it really difficult. I find it difficult.

I find, emotionally, sometimes, I'm wrecked.

My kids have to come first, my family have to come first,

and I can't really cope much longer with the upset that it causes them.

It was this upset that had pushed the family

to consider emigrating to the other side of the world,

but any move would have been pointless

if Eric still had to work away from home.

-Most of the work is done office-based in Perth...

-Yeah.

..and most of the companies do have facilities in the CBD,

so it is more family-friendly compared to lot of other places.

To get an opportunity to work in the same city,

the same country as where my wife and children are...

-And you get to go home every night.

-I get to go home every night.

It would be fantastic.

That just left one big question.

Based on the contract rules,

what would you ballpark figure would you say? Salary potential.

The salary ranges can start anywhere between 180

up into the vicinities of the 300,000

for the senior roles and the lead roles.

Yeah. Just trying to do the sums in my head there,

but I think that compares really favourably.

-Certainly the news I wanted to hear.

-Fantastic.

I think those figures will go down well with my wife as well.

-I'm sure they will.

-THEY CHUCKLE

Even the lowest possible salary was £113,000 -

38,000 more than Eric earned at home.

Suddenly, a future where he could be part of the family

was looking possible.

So, how did Eric vote on work in the UK versus Australia?

Based on all I've been able to find out today,

my vote goes to...

..Australia!

Eric's second vote for Australia

meant the couple's dream life was one step closer.

Now it was time to find out if they could actually afford it.

We'd prepared a comparison of costs between Australia and the UK,

but the figures didn't look good.

Basically slightly more than double what it would be in the UK.

It was a massive difference, but did Eric's higher salary

make up for the hole in their finances?

Right, so looking at the figures,

-in the UK, we can get £80,000 a year.

-Yeah.

-In Australia, going in at the mid-range...

-Mm-hm.

..you're looking at £110,000 a year

with the potential to go up another 10,000, 15,000.

-So...

-OK.

-..right away, you are £30,000 a year better off here.

We can achieve the dream...of being together as a family,

and, financially, we're not going to suffer.

It's better than what we possibly thought.

With their dream life looking achievable,

the couple voted on living costs.

Our vote goes to...

-Australia!

-..Australia!

With the finances well in the black, the dream was still on course.

But they still had to face the emotional cost of moving.

The family watch messages from home together.

Let's see what everyone has to say about us back home.

About a year and a half ago, they came to see us one night,

and they happened to say that

they were thinking of going to Australia

and how did we feel about it.

-Well, we were shocked...

-Mm-hm.

..but we understood the situation,

we understood how they felt.

'We'll miss sometimes having to go to school'

to collect the kids, bring them home...

..just doing different things in general with them.

It'll be different

that a family member lives over there so close to you,

but...

..if it helps their family life and betters...better for them,

it'll be...it'll be good for them, you know?

I will feel very emotional about it.

It did affect me.

Sometimes I try not to show it...

..but it does.

If they do go and if they stay,

I know we properly said we would never fly,

but we will try to go to see them.

But God willing, they'll come back to see us,

and we'll keep in touch the best we can.

And...I just think that...

..all the best, Son, all the best.

Think about it, take in... Weigh pros and cons

of what you have in Australia and what you have here at home

and weigh out the difference

and make the right decision for both of yous.

We love yous. God bless.

-CRYING:

-At the end of the day,

they understand that our quality of life just isn't there.

Exactly.

-And...

-You know that...

-..that's the compromise.

We're OK financially here, we're OK with the lifestyle.

That's our compromise, that's what we have to give up.

And that, to me, is a huge...a huge stumbling block.

It's emotional. There's no doubt about it.

Watching messages had been a painful reminder

of what the family stood to lose.

As their final decision drew closer,

Eric and Corinne had to decide if a life down under

was worth leaving loved ones behind.

You can see the emotions, you can see how...

You can see how people feel...

..and it is, it's a significant... A significant sacrifice.

You are walking away from your life, your established life,

everything that you know, everything that's familiar to you,

and there is a risk involved in that.

We have to weigh up the pros and cons.

And obviously, on the minus side

is the sacrifice of leaving people behind.

But the plus side is the opportunities and lifestyle

that it can offer Jodie and Madison.

At the end of an emotional week,

it was time for the Stitts to make their final crucial vote.

Had the promise of more time together in Australia

been enough to overcome the pull of home and loved ones?

We started off,

we weren't too sure how we would fit in the Australian life...

..but, all in all,

we, as a family, have enjoyed our experience here in Perth.

It's been a positive experience,

I think we all can see that

the dream is more of a possibility now.

Our vote goes to...

-ALL:

-Australia!

Woo!

Are you happy enough with your decision?

Yeah, I think so.

I think it's just reinforced what we were thinking before we came.

-I think we can make it work for us.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

I think we'll be able to work together.

-Do you want a kiss too?

-Yeah!

-Do you get one?

-Ergh!

-No?

After a week to remember,

the family had decided Australia

could offer them the fresh start they so desperately wanted.

We caught up with them one year later in May 2012,

and Corinne still had a smile on her face.

Well, in a weeks' time, I will be on a flight to Australia.

Their trial week had left the couple with no doubts

as to where their future lay.

Well, once we returned to the UK,

we were pretty happy that we wanted to make the move to Australia,

so we basically got started right away

trying to put the plans in order.

We were just... We were really excited,

but we're really, really nervous about it as well,

and it was just a rollercoaster after that.

Now, as the time has come closer,

I think we're all... We're just all sort of getting to the stage

where we just want to be away now.

We're tired, we're living out of suitcases -

it's not normal.

Eric had flown out to Perth nine weeks earlier

to start a new job

and was looking forward to the rest of his family

joining him down under.

Oh, I can't wait, I can't wait until yous get out now.

I'm really missing you and Jodie and Madison.

While Corinne and the girls were coping with

the upheaval of leaving the UK,

in Australia, Eric was dealing with

starting a new job in unfamiliar territory.

I've started here as a senior piping designer.

The financial package is very good,

and also the professional development.

It had taken him long to find his feet.

There's a lot worse places

you can think of going to work every morning

than coming into the centre of Perth

when you're travelling in, and there's sunshine

and it's... Yeah, it's very, very different.

And the benefits of a move were already starting to sink in.

I'll be home every night just after dinner time

and be able to spend the evenings with Corinne and the kids.

There'll just be so much more time together

and the family time that we've been looking for and we've been wanting.

Meanwhile, back in the UK...

What did you get? Oh, wow! And a book on Madison.

..the reality of what they were leaving behind

was sinking in with Corinne.

It's just closing such a chapter in our lives, in our kids' lives.

I wish Eric had've been here.

I miss him not being here now,

and the support of trying to cope with these final few days.

-And this is you with Barney Bear.

-Yeah!

Were you sad to leave all your friends?

-A wee bit.

-Just a wee bit.

-You're very, very brave, aren't you?

-Ee!

-Yeah.

I'm glad you had a good day.

In Perth, Eric was also busy

viewing properties for the family to rent -

a big responsibility.

Having somewhere where they're going to feel at home,

the kids are going to settle, Corinne's going to settle

is really, really crucial.

I'll leave it up to you, you know, make the decision that you think...

-Don't do...don't do that.

-..would be right for us!

-No!

-And if it's not, then...

No, no, I can't take responsibility for this -

you're the one that makes all the big decisions like this, pet.

But he'd risen to the challenge...

-Hi, Carol. Pleased to meet you.

-Hi. Come on in.

-Thanks very much.

Oh, this is lovely.

..and was hoping everyone would be pleased with his choice.

I'm looking at this pool.

-It is nice.

-THEY CHUCKLE

Yeah, I can see two little girls' faces right now.

It's so calm.

-I'm really happy.

-HE LAUGHS

I hope Corinne is.

With a job and house down under sorted,

the move just couldn't come quick enough for Corinne.

-CRYING:

-I just can't wait...

I can't wait to get out there and start our lives together.

I really can't.

And when she and the girls finally arrived down under,

it was an emotional reunion.

-Hello!

-Hello!

Hello, pet.

So glad to see you.

At last, the Stitts were back together again.

It's just so much to take in.

It's really this is real now,

and we're going to be altogether and it's the dream come true.

-Oh, shall we go home?

-THEY CHUCKLE

After years of Eric working away from home,

the Stitts were ready to start their new lives in Perth

hoping it would give them the time together they so badly needed.

So, three years later,

have the family finally achieved

the dream life they'd been longing for?

It's May 2015,

and the Stitts are still living in...

Perth, Australia.

Corinne and Eric still have fond memories of

the moment their family was brought back together.

At the airport, when Corinne and the girls arrived, was...

That was fantastic.

We really missed Eric

and then, you know, we knew that whenever we saw him

that it was all going to be OK.

Do you want me to put the movie on?

I felt relieved. "We're here. We've done it."

And we were together

and that really was the start of the journey for us all

here as a family together.

And the timing couldn't have been better,

with their furniture landing down under

just before Corinne and the girls.

When we went back to the rental, we stepped into our belongings.

Just familiar things around us, and it really helped.

The family had arrived in winter,

and their introduction to Aussie life

got off to a rough start.

The first weekend we were here,

we hit a storm.

A storm whipped through Secret Harbour

and took the power out for three days.

-It took garden fences out, garden plants out...

-Trees.

-A couple of trees.

-Oh, it really whipped up.

We laugh about it now,

but probably at the time,

we did sort of think, "Oh, what's this about?

"We didn't come here for that."

As the weather settled, though, so did the family...

..and the first priority was finding a school for the girls.

We enrolled them in the local primary school in Secret Harbour,

and they settled in.

They settled in really, really well.

Coming home and talking about learning Indonesian,

learning about Australian history

and they're both would just be able to tell you so much about Australia,

and that, to us, is brilliant

because we realised that they had settled and were enjoying it.

-Oh, we've got to put it in notes?

-Yeah.

With Eric at work and the girls at school,

Corinne kept herself busy too.

I went out, I met different people, I met people for coffee.

It was important for me to try and make friends quickly

so that I wasn't left at home waiting for everybody to come back.

It could have gone that way

that I would've ended up very much isolated

and sort of thinking, "Well, what am I doing here?"

so to avoid that, I really had to get involved.

The family couldn't quite believe

their long-held dream was finally becoming reality.

We'd been planning about it, thinking about it for so long,

and now we were here

and things seemed to be falling into place for us.

Secured the rent, secured work, the kids seemed happy.

It was, yeah, it was all our new big adventure.

But the honeymoon period came to an end 18 months in

when Corinne and Eric began to question

whether they'd made the right move.

I started to miss friends and family.

We've had different things go on in the UK

that we have missed out on,

and I think Eric and I sort of thought,

"Well...do we stay or do we go?"

To help them decide once and for all where they should be,

the family flew home to Northern Ireland.

Brilliant time when we were there,

and we caught up with all our friends and family...

..but I think towards the end of it, we felt we wanted to come home.

When we were talking with people,

Corinne would say, "Oh, yeah, back home..." meaning here.

-And then I realised...

-And I was like, that's...

..that was the first time I think

I had really called Australia home then.

As much as we loved it, we had moved on.

As contradictory as it might seem,

going back actually, I think, helped settle us here.

With their decision about where their future lay put to rest,

Corinne and Eric started the hunt for a permanent home.

We just couldn't find something existing that ticked all the boxes,

and it ended up we realised to get what we wanted,

-it was a build.

-We would build.

And the girls helped cement where their new home should be.

We had a conversation with the kids, and they both said,

"Secret Harbour! We want to stay in Secret Harbour!"

The family had fallen in love with Secret Harbour

during their trial week in 2011

and had been renting there since the move.

We didn't really want to move out of the area.

The kids had started to find friends.

There's just a feeling of homeliness, community.

It's coastal, and that was important to us -

that we wanted to remain by the sea.

We had looked in other areas,

-but, honestly...

-Yeah.

-..we wanted to be here.

Decision made, the Stitts designed their ideal home from scratch.

We wanted the wow factor. We wanted the Aussie dream.

We wanted the house, theatre rooms, swimming pools, erm, yeah.

And it looks like that's exactly what they've got.

Eric and Corinne are delighted with

their new four-bedroom detached home.

This is us through now into our main living area...

..which we're very pleased with.

We spent a bit of time trying to make sure we got this one right.

It just gives you that feeling of being open,

and almost the outside comes into the house as well,

and we don't feel closed in.

The house is perched right on the edge of a golf course.

It can be great first thing early in the morning

just watching people playing up the fairway.

Outside, there's plenty of space for entertaining,

and, of course, the pool.

And this is the kids' favourite part.

We're able to sit here in the summer,

and the kids can splash about.

We've had lots of friends over in the pool already.

The kids would say it's part of their dream, isn't it?

And the pool's not the only feature to please Jodie and Madison.

As well as their bedrooms,

they've got their own area for entertaining guests.

We designed this so they could have their own zone-out area

when they have their friends over.

It's just their area for them to get away from Mum and Dad.

This is our master bedroom.

The most important thing was a huge walk-in wardrobe.

-So, it's packed...

-With mostly your...

-Well...

-..clothes.

-ERIC CHUCKLES

-Some of my stuff.

-Eric's got a bit of room down the back.

-Yeah, a tiny bit.

It's not just wardrobe space Corinne's reluctant to share.

In here, we have twin sinks,

which was very important, the his and hers sinks

and also the his and hers showers,

so it's a double shower, which is really important.

And it's really handy for coming in and out from the pool,

and we can... Not together, but...

THEY LAUGH

Oh, yes, Corinne?

The house comes with a room just for visitors from home.

The guest bedroom is purposely here

for friends and family to come out and stay

and know that they have a room here any time they want.

Building their own home from scratch was a challenge,

but Eric and Corinne feel the result's been well worth it.

It's a love-hate sort of a thing with the build, you know?

But we love the end product, and we've got here.

Yeah, and we're very, very proud of what we've been able to achieve.

-And, yeah, dream home. Yeah.

-Yeah.

Moving down under was all about regaining the family time

they'd been missing out on for years.

Eric's job in the UK meant things had got desperate.

I was drifting out, I wasn't part of their lives...

..as much as I wanted to be.

So, has Australia put a stop to Dad's absence?

I'm home every night, I'm home at the weekends.

It's a big change for me. Work's not the big "I am" any more.

You're going swimming!

While he's doing the same job,

being office-based rather than offshore

means a nine-to-five working day,

and that's made a big difference to family life.

I like having my dad around the house.

It feels really good when he's home.

Back home, he would always be going away,

where over here, he just comes home every night, which is nice.

Getting to spend more time with Corinne and the kids,

it makes me feel a lot better.

Just feels natural. It's just the way it should be.

I feel like I'm part of their lives now.

I know it's a bit drastic coming to Australia to achieve that,

but we've... That's what we've had to do.

It's all about the family and family time

and getting to spend it together.

And the Stitts are certainly

making the most of their time together down under.

We know what we're doing weekends in advance

and we've always something on the go.

We are at the beach quite a lot.

-Body boarding.

-Yeah.

-LAUGHING:

-Trying to surf.

Water sports are such a big part of everybody's lives,

and we've decided to go out

and invest and get ourselves a jet ski.

It's all about having fun as well,

and the family time that we were after.

Madison! Come quick, stand here.

Fore!

Better luck next time, Mum.

Three years into the move,

Eric and Corinne are delighted with the progress the girls have made.

-In the water!

-You hit a duck.

Definitely the two of them have developed a lot...

..since we've come here, confidence wise.

I'm just so proud of what they have achieved at school.

Jodie got Aussie of the Month award.

We get letters home congratulating the kids on

how well they're doing in different subjects.

They're certainly keeping busy.

Hockey, surf life-saving, golf, drama...

Bodyboard, surfing, horse riding...

Madison's already planning her future career down under.

When I finish school, I want to be...

either a vet or a lawyer.

Vets, you get to see lots of animals that people have had,

and a lawyer... Erm, I think my mum told me.

I think they....I think they get paid lots of money,

so that's probably why.

Is that an Aussie twang I hear, Madison?

Oh, is that coke?

The family have developed a solid social circle in Perth.

We've found making friends pretty easy...

..but maybe it's because you come

with a mind-set that you're going to put yourself out.

You have to put yourself out to meet new people.

I don't think Eric and I would've just had it just as well

if we hadn't have met the friends that we have met.

They fill that void that you do have

when you're not around familiarity and your family and friends,

so, in a way, they're your Aussie family.

Definitely a welcome addition to Secret Harbour, yeah.

They've brought a bit of life to it.

Well, an excitement to our lives, haven't they?

They're an amazing family, they've got so much love to give,

and they are so full of fun and friendly.

Bella!

You need your friends,

and we've got a really, really good solid friendship now,

and we can, you know, be there for each other.

So, three years into their new life,

is Australia now the family's forever home?

I love Australia, I love the freedom that it gives us as a family.

There's just so many positives about our new life here in Australia.

The mentality here is, it's a can-do.

So it's not, "Well, what would you want to do that for?" -

you can do it.

Going to have a bit of fun.

Yeah, I'm going to put my feet in the water, feel how cold it is.

Hey, hey!

While Jodie agrees with Mum and Dad...

I prefer Australia to the UK cos of the lifestyle

and, like, getting my dad home every night and that.

..Madison's not made her mind up quite yet.

Er... I like it back home cos it snows,

but I like it over here cos it's warm.

Oh, I don't know!

Oh, that's so hard.

Mm.... Probably a bit of both.

You'll have to be more decisive in the court room, Maddie!

As far as Eric and Corinne are concerned,

the move to the other side of the world is a permanent one.

Both of us feel that we have done the right thing coming to Australia,

and I can't imagine us being back living in Northern Ireland.

We have made the right decisions and we've made them together,

and we've made them for the right reasons,

and I think that's why we're happy here.

I am 100% sure we made the right move.

A move down under was all about

the Stitts achieving a normal, happy family life together,

and it looks like Australia is delivering just that.

We wish Eric, Corinne and the girls the best of luck.