Response for birdlady
Thanks everyone for your replies. Once I hear from the CAA and IAA I'll let everyone know what they say.
birdlady, regarding your problem with the radio license. It may not be relevant in your case but I trained for my PPL in a CAA approved school in Florida. Because of time constraints I did not sit the RT practical although I did pass the RT written exam.
What this meant for me was that I could still get my CAA PPL license issued but could not fly in UK airspace with a UK registered aircraft. Since I'm now flying in Ireland it's not a problem for me. I will be sitting the RT practical at soom stage.
Hope this helps.