Welp, 'tis my 16th tomorrow. In the UK (for those who don't know) it's a big step towards being -legally - an adult.

In the eyes of the law, things such as moving out and giving consent are granted to you at 16 (both of which are kinda relevant here).

Sometime soon, I'm wanting to partly move in with my partner of 6 months. Being under 16 currently and before, my parents and most people haven't been aware of us 'being together'. Being in full-time education still, so not earning enough for rent, I'd stay at theirs 3 nights a week (as I'd be sharing an already full room). I wouldn't be moving my stuff, but it'd still be a move.

What do people think - has anyone done the same?

Matt,
Without going through my sordid past, I left home at 17. I was sort of alone.

It was hard, but I'm strong but never realised it.

I decided that I had to walk my path and again it was not easy. I had to grow quickly.

My saviour was my brain and my education. Somehow I kept that together. Although I had a pretty good attempt at destroying both.

You are not choosing an easy path. But I also know you well enough to respect you and your decisions.

Go for it my friend, and you always have an Aunty in Aus who will look over your shoulder (and laugh at your rugby team!)

Cindy

I'd say take your time, do what you like and don't burn bridges.


hugs

I left home at 18 for university and never came back. I was basically broke the entire time. The key to being able to do it for me was finding employment where one of the perks was the employer providing housing. I don't know if that is common in the UK or not. It'd be something to look into if you're looking to move out completely.

Personally, I have had very negative experiences living with people I've been in a relationship with. I've also watched friends go through some crappy experiences doing the same. As a result I'm firmly of the belief that I'd never live with someone I'm dating unless we were headed towards marriage and it was inconvenient to live separately (distance was prohibitive, paying rent on two places was restricting our ability to save for a joint expense, etc.). I'd go into it with some caution.

Like Laura said, take your time, do what you like, but don't burn any bridges. The best thing you can do is give yourself as many options as possible.

I stayed with my parents till I was about age 25 when I moved to California for treatment. This gave me a college education, work experience on my first job and a nice nest egg to start my transition. While they never paid a cent towards my transition cost, they cut up to 5 years off the time it would have taken me to complete my transition. Yes, I knew I had to live by their rules but to me it was worth it.