Coming Home - A guide for expat families returning to the UK
You have lived abroad for years. Perhaps decades. You have built something there — a life, a community, a way of being in the world that felt, eventually, completely natural. And now you are coming back to the UK.
For some families, this return is planned and welcome. For others, it arrives faster than expected — prompted by changes in the region, by children reaching secondary school age and needing a British education, by a job that has come to a natural end, or by the simple recognition that the time has come.
Whatever the reason, the return to the UK is rarely simple. We have met many families who have gone through it, and the thing they tell us most often is this: they had underestimated how much had changed, and how unfamiliar their own country had become.
This post is written for those families. It is not a comprehensive relocation guide — there are solicitors, financial advisers and relocation agencies better placed to help with the technical details. What it is, instead, is a note from someone who knows this corner of England well, about why East Sussex might be worth considering as you navigate the transition — and how a few weeks in a private house in the Ashdown Forest can make the difference between a disorienting landing and a grounded one.
The Ashdown Escape — a private estate in East Sussex for families beginning the next chapter.
On the practicalities of returning
The things that tend to catch returning expat families off guard include:
The rental market moves quickly. UK rental properties — particularly family-sized houses in desirable areas — are often let within days of coming to market. If you are arriving from overseas and cannot attend viewings in person, you may miss several before you find the right one. A temporary base that is genuinely comfortable, rather than a serviced apartment or a hotel, buys you the time to make a good decision rather than a rushed one.
School places take time. Even for children whose names have been on waiting lists, the logistics of actually starting can take several weeks or months. State school applications must go through the local authority. Independent schools have their own timelines. Having a home address in a desirable catchment before applications are submitted can matter. Being in the area — settled, available for visits, locally present — helps.
UK tax residency is triggered by days in the country. For families who have structured their financial affairs around non-UK residency, the timing of a return matters. A few weeks in a holiday property while the permanent situation is organised is, for some families, not just convenient — it is financially sensible. We are not financial advisers and this is not advice, but we are aware that this question comes up, and we mention it because it is worth taking seriously with a specialist before you arrive.
The private hot tub — because sometimes the most productive thing is to stop.
Why East Sussex, and why the Ashdown Forest
There is a particular kind of family for whom the Ashdown Forest area is ideal. They want to be within reach of London — not living in it, but able to get to it without a half-day commitment. They want good schools nearby. They want their children to have outdoor space. And they want, after years of city living or hot-climate living, to feel the seasons again — to walk in the rain, to see bluebells in spring, to find that England is still, in places, quietly beautiful.
Colemans Hatch sits at the heart of this. The village itself is small — a pub, a church, an ancient forest on its eastern edge. East Grinstead is four miles north, with a full range of supermarkets, restaurants and shops. The coast is forty minutes south. London Bridge is fifty-five minutes by train from East Grinstead station.
The area attracts a particular kind of resident — professionals, families, people who have made considered decisions about how they want to live. The independent school system here is excellent. The High Weald Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty begins at the edge of the village. And for families arriving from the Gulf or from other international postings, there is a well-established community of people who have made exactly this journey and can tell you, from experience, what it looks like on the other side.
What we offer
The Ashdown Escape is a private five-bedroom estate sleeping up to ten guests. It has a heated pool, hot tub, Finnish sauna and steam cabin, tennis court, private gym, snooker room, outdoor kitchen and full domestic facilities. It is entirely self-contained — no shared spaces, no other guests on the property.
For families returning from overseas, we offer extended stays from two weeks, with monthly rates available on application. We are flexible on arrival and departure, and we understand that relocation timelines do not always conform to Saturday-to-Saturday rhythms.
We do not promise to make the return easy. What we offer is somewhere genuinely beautiful and genuinely private in which to begin it.