I long to move to the seaside, but will it unsettle my children?

You're unhappy where you are. How can you be sure you won't be just as unhappy in a different town, asks Annalisa Barbieri

Four years ago, we relocated at a time we thought least harmful to our children: the youngest was starting primary school, the eldest junior school. They are now nine and 13. They are of mixed ethnicity and we wanted to live somewhere more multicultural, in a larger house in a less urban area. Our close family live outside England, so we thought moving nearer to extended family might provide some roots. The children settled well but contact with the extended family didn't really happen.

Last year, going through the menopause, I became depressed and sought counselling. I recognised I'd been so focused on what might be best for the children that I'd disregarded what was right for me. I've always wanted to live by the sea and have become increasingly despondent about having missed an opportunity to move there four years ago. During lockdown my husband and I had time to reflect; he thinks our family unit will be stronger if we move again, before the children are any older. We both want our eldest settled before GCSEs. She is very empathic, knows I am unhappy and constantly asks why.