To Mike..thats the problem of asking people on here who are either clueless, ignorant or simply stupid by making and agreeing with preconcieved prejudices. Ignore the uninformed, they assume all British drink alcohol like they do, or they are simply jealous about it. Your offer sounds low, I am assuming you dont have kids, because thats normally an added bonus that gets worked into the contract (paying for school fees here are expensive). The problem with accepting accomodation without mentioning an amount means they may put you in any place, which can cause problems for you later. If I was you I would request an estimate of how much they are willing to fork out (that way you can consider if it will be decent enough). I would contact a recruitment agency locally, and find out the market related basis for a QS. Here, unfortunately, the market depends on passport etc, sorry to say but it happens. Your basic just sounds much less that what you would expect to be paid. Rest of the benefits sound ok. Bearing in mind the cost of living is very high here, negociate fully before you accept. Hope this helps you.