What I'm getting at is that I'm going to have to pack all my models up & hopefully get them there all in one piece (fortunately only moving a couple of miles down the road!). Any suggestions for packing materials readily available & cheap (free even!) gratefully received. I have moved before, (15 years ago) that time I raided the loft & used some insulating granules & the kit boxes, neither of which I have this time (boxes went to recycling).

I just moved recently myself. I despise it. Moving the models is never fun. What I have done in the past (as I have moved many times in the past 10 years due to school etc) is pack each separtely using styrofoam "peanuts" and bubble wrap. For large dios (of which I have none) I've read that double packing, ie one box inside the other with styrofoam peanuts in between the two boxes works well. No broken parts in the last move of mine.
Good luck