Any advice for a young British family?

[kemal dervish]

Hello members

I recently accepted a new job role based in Espoo; so my family will me to make the bold move from the UK to Finland in June.

My partner and our 2yr old daughter are very social people, so I was wondering if any of you have any tips or learnings to share which may help them settle?
Naturally I want them to enjoy all the local culture / but it would also be good for them to make contact with International people who have also moved to the country and can relate to their experience.

Do any of you know of any social groups around Espoo for mothers and toddlers?

It would be great to hear from any of you

Many thanks for any advice

[Rosamunda]

There is a mother and toddler group that meets regularly in the centre of Helsinki, more on here:

http://www.finnbrit.fi/social.html

There is also the BWA http://www.bwa-helsinki.com/

and there are many English-speaking activities in Espoo and Helsinki.

However, the capital region shuts down in June/July for the summer break, so you might have to wait a while for things to pick up.

With a toddler in a buggy, your wife (or you) can travel free on public transport in the whole capital region.

[Keplerinvaimo]

If either you or your partner are on facebook there are at least two groups that cater for the English speaking / Expat families in the Greater Helsinki Region.

[Pursuivant]

Theres been invites here for "organised" treks to the HopLop & mom&baby meets, so you should be able to find something. Mind you though Finland is bipolar, so when its June everyones on vacation (and stores closed)

[kemal dervish]

Thanks to you all; I have shared the Links with my partner - I will let you know how it goes!

Kind regards

Kemal

[dallan]

Someone else has already mentioned the expat groups on facebook - just thought I'd mention the name of a couple of them to help you find them. There's "Expat parents in Helsinki" (http://www.facebook.com/groups/131063933618519/), which is for parents in the Greater Helsinki region. There's also the Espoo International Group (http://www.facebook.com/groups/291612547523121/) and you might also be interested in Finland . (http://www.facebook.com/groups/2453203904/) .

There's a baby and toddler group that meets on a Tuesday, usually at Finnbrit in the centre of Helsinki, which is sponsored by . and advertised on all those groups and Finland Forum - we will continue meeting through the summer, but most likely at one of the play parks around town (we still have to decide which one).

I think someone has also already mentioned the nursery rhymes at FinnBrit every 2nd Sunday - I think there's 2 more to go this "season" and then there's a family Olympics in one of the parks in Helsinki on the 9th June before it breaks up for the summer.

Hope your move to Finland goes well - I am in Espoo with a 2 1/2 year old daughter and a 10 month old son, please feel free to get in touch when you've moved.

Deb

[carolinemaher]

Hi Kemal

We are also a British family living in Helsinki, we've been here for 6 years now, we have a 6 year old daughter who goes to the local daycare. We pretty much know the ropes so please feel free to private message me if there is anything you would like to know, or I can help in any way with settling in!

Good luck with your move
Caroline

[MiiaB]

Hi

We are a Finnish(mom)-American(dad) family with a 3.5 year old son moving to Lintuvaara Espoo in early June. We will both be working and our son will go to the english-speaking daycare. We would also love to meet up with other english speking families in the area. Looking forward to hearing from you!

[weegill]

if either of you are on Facebook ask to join the "Expat parents of Helsinki group"....