Thanks 44Brendan, michaelg and noproblem for your input, this is precisely the advice I need. I have been considering approaching somebody to Negotiate on my behalf with the bank. I will research this a little more. I did try MABS before but they said I had to be in serious arrears, no job, no options left before I could use their services which ruled them out.
If anyone has any suggestions about a person or entity to contact that would be willing to help out with the negotiations side of things I'd be really greatful.
And just to finish up, the option of renting it out is a non-runner. We tried this before and ran into Arrears as the rent doesn't cover the monthly mortgage repayments, then on top on this we have to pay income tax on rent received, monthly maintenance fees for the upkeep of the communal areas and then maintenance for the apartment itself, if the washing machine broke down for example, which did happen the last time we had it rented out and we had to pay for a new one for our tenants. There are a lot of extra costs in being a Landlord which we really can't afford.