jesska

I need a reasonably handy person with a larger vehicle/van to help me remove some furniture (some to tip, so to another location) TOMORROW and for a reasonable price. Any takers/recommendations? Thanks in advance!

I found my son's tutor through the PATOSS website, which has a database of accredited tutors. You have to register with an email (for free) to search in your area, but then you can contact tutors directly. https://www.patoss-dyslexia.org/SupportAdvice/TutorAssessorIndex/ Our tutor is great but unfortunately she's not taking on new students at the moment. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

We have used Peter Bennison and his firm and sure, a few times he wasn't bang on time, but a lot of times he was and sorted things out quickly, professionally and reasonably. There have been a few times I had to wonder why someone had been recommended on here in the first place, but Pete is a good tradesman and it's just a shame he didn't get to you that day. Jessica

We just used South London Fencing to repair a fence at a rental and they were very professional and reasonable. http://www.south-london-fencing.co.uk

The learning support department at my sons' school recommends this course/school: http://www.yes-tuitionandtraining.co.uk I believe they do half-term courses and also a class that runs on the weekends. Due to a schedule conflict, my oldest wound up taking a course with this school, which ran a course in Fulham. http://www.nmtouchtyping.co.uk

I am a landlord and anywhere around ?70 quid seems to be the going rate if you want someone reputable. I think the least I have paid is ?60-something. British Gas engineers also charge slightly over ?70 unless you hold a home care agreement with them. We've used JA Powers and found them reliable and helpful in that you receive a soft copy of the certificate via email.

We use BAMS cleaning for our pre- and post-tenancy cleans. They are very thorough and dependable, and pleasant! Call Slywester on 07707479906. They also do a great job cleaning carpets.

Endless Horizons Ltd, the world?s first time-travel agency, are taking Dulwich residents back in time. Intrepid scientist Myrtle West has become un-stuck in time, hurtling through Dulwich?s history without any control. One second she?s lunching with Victorians, the next she?s dinner for a dinosaur. She urgently needs your help to bring her back to the present? Fortunately, Myrtle is leaving clues from the past. Help hapless time technician Smith track them all down to receive a reward. You may even find out some of the area?s secrets along the way! This time travel trail is totally free, you just need a smart phone and comfortable shoes. It lasts about an hour and a half, is suitable for all ages and uses mobile technology to bring Dulwich?s history to life. Go to http://www.endlesshorizonsltd.com/helpme to get started. Curious? Tweet: What is this trail all about then? to @EHL_Smith and she?ll tell you herself! FOR THE EXCITING CONCLUSION OF MYRTLE'S ADVENTURES, BE SURE TO ATTEND THE OUTDOOR PERFORMANCE AT 4PM IN DULWICH PARK. Part of the Dulwich Festival. For more information visit http://dulwichfestival.co.uk/product/the-multiple-myrtle-mysteries-2/

Live Street Art Painting, 13-15 MAY, 10AM ? DUSK. Part of the Dulwich Festival. Watch street artist, LOUIS MASAI, renowned worldwide for his exquisite renditions of endangered wildlife, paint the covering of the entrance to the old railway tunnel in Sydenham Hill Wood, a Local Nature Reserve to draw attention to the plight of the brown long-eared bat which lives in the tunnel, but which is heading for extinction. Masai, also a fine artist, includes references to a 400 year old wooded landscape by Adam Pynacker hanging in DULWICH PICTURE GALLERY. From entrance to Sydenham Hill Wood on Crescent Wood Road follow path down to old railway tunnel. Free event. Kindly supported by DULWICH GOING GREENER For more information on this and other Dulwich Festival events please visit http://dulwichfestival.co.uk/artists-open-house/louis-masai/

I took my generally not-interested-in-theme-park-or-kids-club-camps-etc-joining children and they also loved it. They still claim to have robbed the bank... They were 7 and 9yo at the time and we managed to go on a day when most other kids had gone back to school and it was not crowded at all. We stayed the full 4 hours and in that time I was free to leave and go roam the mall a bit myself, since they have security bracelets on which mean they can't leave the site without you (and they don't need you at all, more fun to run their own show). It is expensive but you are likely to use the full 4 hrs. Sorry I don't know about any deals but maybe check groupon or similar! I would also not bother bringing very young kids.

In one of the Dulwich Festival's fantastic performances, Dr Phil Hammond presents a comic look at the future of the NHS. The NHS is our most treasured institution, gluing us together as a humane society and treating us according to need not ability to pay. It?s also more dangerous to use than bungee jumping. After seventy years of political deforms and underfunding, the NHS is on its last legs and staff stress levels are off the scale. In this highly subversive comedy, Dr Phil calls for an end to top down disorganisation of the NHS, and launches his own ?bidet revolution? ? from the bottom up. Learn how not to use the NHS, how to survive when you have to and how to die properly when your time comes. Dr Phil has been Private Eye?s medical correspondent for 24 years and has appeared on shows such as Have I Got News for You, Jack Dee?s Helpdesk, The News Quiz, The Now Show and Question Time. ?If Dr Phil were a medicine, you should swig him by the litre? The Times Monday 9th May 7:30pm The Great Hall, Alleyn's School Townley Road Tickets ?12, concessions ?10 To book tickets to this and other Dulwich Festival events please visit http://dulwichfestival.co.uk/product/dr-phil-hammond-how-to-survive-the-nhsand-help-the-nhs-survive/

As the Dulwich Festival gets underway this weekend, we invite you to come and join Albert for an award-winning show where musical comedy meets theoretical physics. Ever looked at E=MC2 and thought? what?s that all about then? Ever been curious how they made the atomic bomb? Ever wanted to meet the genius behind the ?ber-coolest moustache in scientific history? Well, your time has come! Multi-award-winning Tangram Theatre Company?s ALBERT EINSTEIN: RELATIVITIVELY SPEAKING will be performing as part of their full Scientrilogy UK tour, finally (theoretically) providing the definitive answers about the greatest mind of the twentieth century. ALBERT EINSTEIN: RELATIVITIVELY SPEAKING is a brilliantly inventive hour of physical theatre, songs, science and the w?rst sausage jokes ever ? complete with this summer?s sure-fire hip-hop hit, the ?E=MC2 rap?. Open to everyone from amateurs to astrophysicists old and young, ALBERT EINSTEIN: RELATIVITIVELY SPEAKING is a frantically fast-paced, wonderfully warm-hearted celebration of the ideas, ideals and idiosyncrasies of the man whose theories sparked a revolution in modern science. It is vital viewing for anyone who wants to understand the modern world ? as well as utterly unmissable for anyone with a sense of humour and spirit of adventure. Saturday May 07 2016 7:00pm THE GREAT HALL, ALLEYN?S SCHOOL ?12 CONCESSIONS ?10 UNDER 18 ?8 For tickets to this and other Dulwich Festival events visit http://dulwichfestival.co.uk/product/albert-einstein-relativitively-speaking/

The Dulwich Festival is inviting children of all ages to enter this year's Children's Art Competition, with the deadline of 4pm, Friday May 6th, fast approaching! There are four categories: Under 5s, 5 to 7, 8 to 11, and 12 to 18. Artwork should be two-dimensional, a maximum size of A3 and should include your child's name, age and parents' name, telephone number and email address on the back so winners can be notified. Please submit entries to R. Woodfall Opticians on Lordship Lane before the deadline this week. Prizes in each category will be vouchers to spend at the Art Stationers in Dulwich Village. Prizewinners will have their artworks displayed in the windows of R. Woodfall Opticians and also Dulwich Books. After the competition, artwork may be collected from R. Woodfall Opticians until Saturday 28th May. For more information on the competition and the Dulwich Festival please visit http://dulwichfestival.co.uk/dulwich-festival-childrens-art-competition-open-for-entries/

This year?s Artists? Open House sees over 250 South-London based artists welcome the public into their homes and studios for a rare opportunity to view their work. Showing at over 150 venues across Dulwich and surrounding areas, this year?s artists represent a huge range of styles and disciplines. The Artists? Open House is part of the Dulwich Festival and will take place on the weekends of 7th-8th May and 14th-15th May. Full details can be found in the official Artists? Open House booklet (available at local shops and cafes) and on the Dulwich Festival wesbite at http://dulwichfestival.co.uk/artists-open-house/

The cherry blossoms are out and that means the popular Dulwich Festival is fast approaching! This year?s festival will host a tremendous calendar of art, music and cultural inspiration all squeezed into ten exhilarating days from 6th-15th May. In it's 23rd year, the festival boasts a fantastic programme of music concerts, literary and theatre events, walks and fairs, as well as the Artists' Open House weekends and mouth-watering Food Trail. For more information on all the Dulwich Festival has to offer this year, please visit http://dulwichfestival.co.uk or look out for our Events Guide at local shops and cafes. Tickets are available now on the website for all ticketed events.

Hi again, the London Garden studios have a tab for prices and they vary according to size. But that basically included instal and all the interior kit/electrics/finishes. You can customise things with a roof light or extra windows. We had an extra bit put on (making ours an L shape) to house actual garden stuff. But they were really easy to work with and they have done a few in the area now.

I have been using Sylwester at BAMS cleaning for the past few years after he rescued our stair runner from a tea disaster. He is very thorough and his prices are reasonable. His company has also done some cleaning for us at home and for tenants as well. Very reliable and pleasant service. His website is here: http://www.bamscleaning.co.uk His mobile is 07707479906

We had a garden office/man cave built by London Garden Studios. We're really pleased with it. Their website is here: http://www.londongardenstudios.co.uk

Another second to what JxC said. My older son went to HH until I was luckily able to move him and his younger brother to Dulwich Prep before the 7+ hit. Like JxC says, HH might be lovely in the early years but they put the screws to the kids immediately in Y1. Despite the fact that his class was tiny (18 students at one point), it didn't seem that my son was getting much attention and his reports focused solely on the negatives and what he COULDN'T do (I can only assume they wanted to freak us out into putting more pressure on him at home). The only kids to go to the good schools were at the top of the class and I know for a fact many of them were tutored on top of schoolwork. My son is much happier at the Prep and he has really blossomed due to the positive atmosphere and, frankly, patient approach to the development of boys (whilst still keeping high academic standards). I also found the Head at HH not helpful or friendly, although mainly the teachers are very good and supportive of the kids. I hope that helps - I just think there is a big difference between HH at the kindergarten stage and post Y1... Good luck.

In the past I have gone to the West Dulwich Bakery on Park Hall Road. They can order any size cake you wish and you can provide a picture to have printed on it with edible ink. I basically emailed them my photo and they sorted it, usually within a week or less. It might be a less expensive option than the cake in the above (you can always find pictures online for free at least). Happy birthday to your little girl btw.

Another recommendation for Sylwester at BAMS cleaning. He has done our carpets for 2 years now and a few rescues as well (tea spilled all down the stair runner - not that you would know now). His company also does great house cleaning (he's doing a end of tenancy cleaning for us right now). His number is 07707479906.

I took the nappies off both my boys at night shortly after they were trained for the daytime, so by 3yo for each. They wet the bed a bit, sure, but it wasn't that long before that was sorted and using a double or triple layer of waterproof sheets meant that it was a quick job to whip off the wet ones. I would suggest you just stop lifting him. He will wet the bed to start, as he is probably in the habit of going when you lift him (ps I had never heard of "lifting" before your post). But it won't last forever and he'll be sleeping through dry before you know it. I know I will be flamed but I don't think you need to keep kids in nappies at night until they are absolutely dry. The thought of a 5yo or older in night nappies makes me feel a little bad for the kid... It's only wet sheets for a few weeks, nothing to really dread and their bodies can certainly adjust if you give them a chance. good luck, sounds like you are mostly there!

I second a lot of the good advice on here, but would add that it might help to just be going in one direction (into bed!) after bath time. So bath, teeth, then stories and chats in his bed. If bath is at 7 then aim to be in bed with him reading stories by 730 and then have chat time but set the timer on your phone or have another way of marking the end of chat time. Talking and digesting the day together is great time spent for lots of reasons, and I find that if I give mine time to do that (within reason) they settle better. But I feel for you: I had a similar problem when my youngest was 2 and in a big bed. We also resorted to a "grab bag" of small toys he would be able to reach into in the morning after a good bedtime (whilst being very specific about what that was - reiterate that bedtime means going to bed, closing your eyes and going to sleep). The grab bag was necessary with his older brother too, who would go to bed nicely but then migrate to our (small) bed at around 3am to squirm and mangle us! It won't happen overnight, but, as iclaudia says, the bribery won't have to last forever. I won't lie though - I had a lock on the younger one's door for particularly bad nights where he wouldn't settle down, and the threat of him being shut in was a good motivator also. You have to protect your sanity, especially if there are other children who might get the same idea. Mine are now 5 and 7 and bedtimes are fine. Just remember that routine is your friend and an intensive but brief campaign of bribery can help you reset the routine to something that works for you. Good luck!

I've said this before on another thread, but I am a driver and also an occasional cyclist who occasionally cycles on the pavement. With my kids, we are always cycling on the pavement, and always for safety reasons. When it is just me on my little clapped-out theft-proof folding Raleigh, there are times when it is either safer or more considerate for me to cycle very slowly on a sparsely populated pavement than gum up traffic on a narrow road. Of course I am not going fast, and of course any pedestrians coming have right of way and I am very happy to stop and let them pass if it's too snug to stay on the bike. We used to live in Tokyo, where cyclists overwhelmingly ride on the pavements and, despite the density of pedestrians and cyclists using one space, this works because people are simply much more considerate of one another. The lack of consideration and common sense, among certain drivers and cyclists alike, is the real problem in London.

I wanted to post a recommendation for my personal trainer Phil Hargreaves. I've been working with him for almost 2 years and he is reliable, motivated and also a very nice guy. He worked with me to build strength and increase overall fitness after a long break from working out, and he can help you work to whatever goal you want to reach. He isn't shouty, but he will quietly push you to do more than you thought you could. And did I mention that he's very nice? He can work in your home or out and about; he's based in Bromley but, as most of his clients are in the city, I don't think there will be other recommendations for him on this forum. Please feel free to PM me for more details. Phil is on 07894072205. Thanks