"No i think i need a bit more experence before trying that thanks". He then said "correct reply""
I know this is being pedantic but why on earth didn't he teach you to fly into Heathrow? It's just another airport, just another runway. You get an RV ILS. You can read the plates, the countless SID/STAR diagrams at your leisure beforehand.
You will need your credit card, of course
I've never landed there but I bet that making the arrangements for a piston plane to arrive and get avgas will take a lot longer than planning and executing the flight from elsewhere in the UK.
You had 50 (or 55 if ME) hrs in which to do some nice real IFR flights. That's plenty enough time under the hood to completely do your head in. Or, if done in real IMC at FL120, plenty long enough to get totally iced up. Real flight planning, stuffing routes into the CFMU website until it accepts it, and at the other end sorting out fuel, haggling with the BP man to get a "commercial" rate, paying the other bills, all the "real world" stuff.
That psychology reflects the JAA IR system. It is designed for airline pilots, who won't be flying anywhere at all for quite a while yet. It's just a piece of paper, not intended to be useful for FLYING. The typical holder won't ever be getting weather via various websites, filing flight plans, or trying to get refuelled at some far away airport where nobody speaks English. He doesn't need to know that.
A private owner-pilot would feel ripped off, having paid all that money, more importantly spent all that time (time spent flying plus much much more time, a year or two, swatting for the JAA IR exams) and not be able to get into his shiny new IFR plane and do an airways flights from the UK to any European airport within range. Down to minima if necessary. THAT is what private pilots want, need, and that's why they do the FAA IR. A lot of them fly around Europe accompanied by a CFII, doing real trips.