Hi There,
First of all thanks for all the input and keep it coming if you have anymore. Just an update:
Based on the fact that eventually i want to take trips with my family i have rulled out microlighting However i have spoken to 2 schools and rulled out a third:
Flight Wise: Rulled out due to there being a membership. I dont want to be paying money monthly as i expect it to take me some time and €40 per month for 2 or more years will really add up.
NFC: Spoke on the phone. Nice guy but to be honest i didnt really get answers to the questions i asked. It was more a case of take a lesson then we will explain, whereas i want more info before i decide so from that point of view I wasnt to happy.
Newcastle aerodrome: By far the best of the bunch so far. Answered all my questions straight and provided more info than i asked for. Good hourly rates (plane + instructor) and the added benifit of the sim. i know the others have sims too (although they didnt tell me that on the phone) but John explained that I will need to do 65 hours to be competent but only need 45 for the PPL so 20 can be done in the sim on the presumably many occations that i cant take to the skies. That means for me fewer wasted trips, time and money. Mostly i just liked his attitude. (thanks for the into jhill165).
I wont be doing anything for a couple of weeks yet so still plenty of time for directions from you kind people but so far newcastle is the front runner.
Thanks