edanna

I dread to think what Black Friday deliveries and Christmas are going to do to the current situation. Do you think a petition or a catalogue of all the problems experienced by lots of residents would have more impact? At the moment there are lots of single complaints but probably an awful lot more people who are just putting up with it. Would it help to expose the scale of the problem do you think? Actually I’ve found a petition on change.org from early 2022, set up by David Brady, so this has been tried before. Maybe it’s time to revive that petition? https://www.change.org/p/residents-of-east-dulwich-fix-the-broken-postal-service-in-east-dulwich?source_location=search

I assume this is https://tpointuk.co.uk/ not to be confused with https://www.turning-point.co.uk/

I?d recommend circle Psychology partners https://circlepsychologypartners.co.uk/

Can anyone recommend a dentist who is particularly good with anxious children?

I?m interested to know if there are other secondaries locally where the SEN support is better or are all schools under the same pressure of much more need and no more money or staff?

My teen who has 70s rockstar/footballer long hair has had some good cuts at The Clipper with Finton or Darryl.

James, I?ve noticed that the bins along Lordship Lane and on roads off it (eg North cross, Upland and Frogley)and in Goose Green are frequently full to overflowing. It?s a bit disgusting and when they are that full it makes it harder for people to dispose of litter responsibly and easier for foxes to pull out rubbish and make a mess. Do you know if they are being emptied less frequently than before? It seems they really need emptying more often or the bins need to be bigger.

We went to Battersea park today and the toilets were open. Playground, go ape etc all closed of course. But the recumbent cycle hire was open (same company as Dulwich Park). The cafe was doing takeaway food and beer.

These jellycats books with animal tails are lovely https://www.fleurtations.uk.com/Little-Jellycat/Little-Jellycat-Pet-Tails-Book.asp?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIyK_Mzrj16QIVWe7tCh0dRAf7EAQYBSABEgIVafD_BwE I don?t remember ever machine washing it but you can hand wash.

I can give you feedback on Bessemer but not DKH like DuncanW. In total I have 7 years? experience of the school - my son left year 6 last summer and my daughter is currently in year 5. It?s a great school for all the reasons you and others have said. It is quite a big school but many local schools are 3-form entry and it?s never felt over-big to me or to my kids who have never known anything else. Because of the different playgrounds, children are only outside with their year and one other year (either above or below). There are also advantages to a bigger school - eg having 3 or(in years 5 and 6) 4 different groups for maths based on ability. More kids also mean a greater chance of your child hitting it off with others. Re art and music, they do some wonderful artwork, plus fantastic costumes and papier-m?ch? objects for the summer carnival (before the whole school including teachers perform a dance). One of the assistant heads is very talented artistically and has a lot of theatre contacts - trips to the Unicorn theatre are a fairly regular occurrence and they do some other great trips too. Re music, my daughter was taught clarinet with her class last year (free of charge) by visiting teachers from Southwark Music Service. There is also a fantastic new teacher who leads the choir. It may not be the most musical school but my kids have learnt songs and different instruments throughout their time there. I?m not sure what you mean about being constrained in internal activities - the classrooms are all a great size and for ?golden time? they go into other classrooms for their chosen activity. There are also two good-sized halls. There are many amazing teachers and teaching assistants and other staff. I don?t think there is a high turnover at all. The leadership team have mainly been there for several years if not longer. And in my children?s time there have been some brilliant class teachers that have been promoted to phase leaders. The school seems to be good at retaining staff after they have babies - their children can go to the on-site nursery, which does full working hours. I really admire this policy. My kids have also been going to breakfast and after school club since reception and I can?t tell you how helpful that has been for us as working parents. So clearly I?m biased. I really agree with the gut feeling - can you visit both Bessemer and DKH again before the deadline? Good luck with your decision.

Thanks everyone for your kind advice - as tiddles said, I wasn?t expecting this type of thing quite so early. I?ve ordered that book Crokes - looks really good, thank you

My 9 year old daughter has a very upsetting friendship issue at the moment and as a result really doesn't want to go to school. She has what has always looked like a lovely group of friends. But recently a pair of girls seem to have assumed more power over the group and according to my daughter have ostracised one girl for being too immature. My daughter feels terrible for this girl and wants to play with her but fears that she too will be cut out by the newly powerful pair, who she enjoys being friends with. She feels caught in the middle and afraid to express her opinion. It sounds very subtle, looks at her and looks exchanged etc. She doesn't want me to talk to the girls' mothers or the teachers. I am doing my best to advise her to stand up for what she thinks but she keeps saying she hasn't built up the courage yet. I'm also trying not to project my own school experiences onto her. Can anyone suggest any books or other sources of wisdom, or offer any advice? I have seen such good advice here in the past.

They were getting a lot of donations in M&S yesterday despite some pretty dire singing. One of the women was complaining her bucket was too heavy to hold. I didn't give them anything because I remembered last year's thread but most people won't stop to look at the details of the charity.

At Easter we stayed in a cottage near St Austell, which is in easy reach of the Eden Project and the Lost Gardens of Heligan. We also had a lovely beach day too.