LPrince

Evening all - can confirm this is a scam. I recently moved away from East Dulwich to Forest Hill and this kid has been collecting ?sponsorship? for months and months in the area (including from me with the same rudeness). Always a run, always a scruffy looking piece of paper and apparently collecting for NSPCC when challenged. The SE23 forum has a whole feed about this and it?s been reported to our local police officer via the forum. Seems he has now decided to try his luck in East Dulwich.

Hello all - as it's a new year, I'm sure there are quite a few people in the area thinking about signing up for some sessions with a personal trainer. I can't recommend Lee highly enough and would strongly encourage a chat with him if you're on the fence about training sessions and the value. I've been training with Lee for about 4 years now, lost over 50 pounds and, more importantly, have been able to change my attitude and approach to exercise, eating and drinking. Without Lee, I don't think I could have kept the motivation up or been able to get back on track after a dodgy spell (they happen!). What I love about Lee is that he really listens to what your goals are, is always very prepared with a tailored session every week, is super supportive and not in a pressured or judgmental way, challenges me to push myself and always fun to be around. He's also taught me so much about the various pieces of equipment in the gym that work outs alone are now far more satisfying too. In summary, Lee is brilliant...

Thanks for sharing this info, Pug wash. It doesn't surprise me about the rented properties being targeted - we were a victim of poor quality door and locks installed by our landlord (most of us hadn't even been provided with a key for the second lock when moving in), and we really had to force his hand to spend some money on fixing the issue after this latest break in. On that note, surely it would be a good idea for a representative of the police force to speak with landlords of properties that have been broken in to as a result of poor security, with the ability to force the landlord to address the issues? I admit that I have no idea about the law/legislation in place with regard to landlord responsibility to secure properties, so this may not be possible currently... James - thank you for your reply, and for providing information in an attempt to reassure... However, 12 burglaries in 12 months just doesn't make sense given the number of people reporting burglaries or attempted burglaries on the EDF within the past few months. Does the figure include attempted burglaries? As I said in my first post, burglary is a problem anywhere in London, and I'm certainly not suggesting that it is rife in ED all of the time - but we do seem to be going through a peak now (as many posts on the EDF support), and my question was what is being done in response to this peak? The measures suggested are mainly reactive and in the hands of property owners - what is being done proactively by the council/police other than offering property marking kits and security advice? There may be many initiatives, and I'm simply unaware (very possible!), but it would be great to hear about them.

Hi - there's another string on the forum called 'Attempted break in The Gardens' that has details, description etc

Hi James I agree with markeddie. We seem to be in the midst of a burglary spree in East Dulwich, and it would be good to hear what is being done by the council in response. Burglary is a problem in any area of London, of course; however, we do seem to have had a sharp rise in last month - as many posts on this forum demonstrate. A gang of three men attempted to break into our properly a few weeks ago (4 flats in one building), and they were successful in coming through the front door. I had seen them approach and so opened by flat door to try to scare them off - only to fine myself face to face with them. As a woman, home alone at the time, you can understand I'm sure how unnerving the experience was. Even worse though was that they were so confident and care free in their crime, they simply sauntered our, got in a car, drove round to The Gardens and tried another house (confirmed to me by police). Since then, again confirmed by police, the same group have targeted the area over and over and have been successful in gaining access to properties. These guys didn't seem concerned about being caught - didn't even try to mask who they were. That to me says that they just don't see the police as being a presence in ED. I'm not saying the police don't do a great job - the response to my report on the day was fantastic, but are they resourced sufficiently to deal with the peak in burglary occurring now in ED? Thanks

I completely agree - I also went for a swim today during the timetabled lane swim (4-6pm), and it was insanely over crowded. It was almost impossible to swim lengths, and I came close to giving up on the swim through frustration. I go swimming at the EDLC 3-4 times a week, but usually on the weekday lunchtime lane swim or late evenings (8-10pm), and for the most part, those sessions are fine. Weekends are the big issue for me, and I agree that it is the restricted opening hours that seem to cause the issue. An 8pm close would likely make a big difference. I also agree that the number of people in the pool at any one time should be capped - I would be frustrated for sure if I had to wait to swim, but not anywhere near as much as I was today in a pool so overcrowded. On the staff front, I approached reception last week to let them know that one of water fountains in the gym (which never work) was leaking from the sides - I felt I was doing a good deed letting them know, and the response I got was a grunt, a look of 'why are you disturbing me' and no 'thanks for letting us know'. The guys who staff the gym seem friendly and helpful, but the office/reception staff are rude and largely seem to be completely disinterested in providing a good service. The ladies changing room (swimming) is also poorly maintained - many of the lockers are broken, the showers are very temperamental - one of them doesn't even have a door. Shocking, as you say, when the centre is so newly refurbished.

The car that I saw them leave in (attempted break in on Solway Road), wasn't a Golf. But then it is possible they have changed cars since last Monday. It was a 2 door from what I could see, but more of a sleek car - lower roof, longer than a Golf. And silver rather than grey. I couldn't make out the model/make from where I was standing though before they drove off

From the conversation I had with a police officer yesterday, it sounds like the area is going through a bit of a peak of robberies. We've had police flyers put through our door this week as well about increasing security and how to be safer... Flyers were specifically for Peckham rye. But as you say, we'll see when the official figures come out!

LondonMix Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Thanks for the post but your irony detector is way > off. Everything people were saying was tongue in > cheek regarding the description (note they focused > on the colour of the car... not the people) Very happy if that's the case! It's easy to misread tone on these things. I was really upset my the break in on Monday - left me quite shaken up, and so I really want the crime spree they are on these last few days to come to an end

Hello all These three guys attempted to break in to our building (private flats) on Solway Rd on Monday. They actually managed to get through our front door in seconds - it was extremely quick and very quiet - they know what they are doing! I opened the door to my flat expecting them to be still on the other side of the front door as I had seen them approaching the building in an odd way just moments before through the window. They were already in and right in front of my door. They were not even vaguely troubled by being confronted by me - I asked them how they got in, and they simply shrugged, laughed and strolled out. They then jumped into a silver sports car. I now know from police that they simply drove round to the gardens, and tried again - thankfully stopped by the guy who started this string. Since then they have broken into other properties near to the Rye, between Solway and the gardens. So we didn't put them off... They are targeting the Peckham Rye area, and the police are very keen to put a stop to it. My friend provided a description above. As for including the fact that these guys are black - seriously?! It's part of a description! Along the same lines of being a slight build, having blue eyes, etc. So can we stop trying to turn this string into a racism debate given that absolutely nobody has said anything even remotely racist and be more concerned with catching 3 guys who are clearly determined to break into property and steal within our community? I'm helping the police to try and identify these guys, but they need people to report asap if they seen again in area