Renata Hamvas

Hi Lee, I don't think there would be the funds available to provide an alternative temporary path. I will raise your points with Council officers and find out what the time frame for the path improvement works are. Thanks Nunhead_man for the alternative route. Renata

Unfortunately this meeting coincides with Council Assembly and therefore no Councillors can attend. Renata

Thanks everyone, who has posted so far. Renata

Hello James, I have seen your comments above, I certainly have had contact with Harris Girls! I've attended a variety of events and have been a guest on their GCSE course in citizenship too (discussing with pupils about the structure of local government, councillors etc). I've also bumped into my Labour Colleagues at some of these events, therefore I'm disturbed by your factually incorrect comments above. This is a school in Peckham Rye Ward and therefore, like all the other schools which significant numbers of Peckham Rye Ward residents attend (or may attend in the future), I have an interest in it. Renata

Thanks everyone, keep posting/emailing me. Renata

Hi Mrs TP, of the Southwark Schools, Harris Bermondsey is mixed, Notre Dame doesn't have a sixth form and St Olave's is girls only. Forest Hill Boys and Sydenham Girls have a joint sixth form and they operate a similar admissions system to year 7. Harris Boys and Girls are walking distance apart, run by the same federation and have a joint sixth form, it would be odd for them to have totally different admission systems. Renata

As both a local resident and ward councillor I am concerned about these proposals. Here are my personal thoughts on the matter. This is a good school which has over the last few years had good results, and has increasing numbers of local girl's applying to attend. It is not an under subscribed school. The reasoning for this proposal, to enable parents the choice to send their daughters to a single sexed school is flawed as there are other girls schools available, Harris Academy Bermondsey, Notre Dame, St Saviour's and St Olave's and to the south, Prendegast and Sydenham Girls (girls from the area do go to other single sex schools too, eg Greycoats). This would decrease the chances for local girls to secure a place and increase the travel times of pupils to the school and of local girls who end up having to commute further to school when they don't get in. Harris Girls and Boys have a joint 6th form, so with compulsory education now extended to age 18, parents are applying for an 11-16 single sex with 16-19 mixed school. This also raises the issue, if Harris Girls moves to the "random allocation" lottery system, what will happen with the boys admissions policy??? Will they be consulting next year? With the current increasing demand for secondary places in the East Dulwich area, I think that local girls who can walk to school, should have priority over those living 10 miles away, if the proposals would be adopted, this would not be the case. Renata

From my understanding of the situation: Due to the decision that the Wimbledon trains that were due to be terminated at Blackfriars will continue to go across London, the planned increase of the through London Thameslink service via Peckham Rye to 4 tph will not occur. The number of through trains will remain the same but there may be an additional 2tph that terminate at Blackfriars. I have been receiving reports from users that there are already issues with capacity on the northbound morning rush hour trains with passengers being left on the platform at Nunhead, Peckham Rye and Denmark Hill. Please could users of this service with these issues let me know. Thameslink has recently taken over this route from South Eastern and it's crazy that the trains are so full that people wanting to get to work can't even physically fit on them! (something needs to be done before 2018, and the more feedback I have, the better!) Renata

From what I've seen when out and about, the following routes are running a(greatly reduced) service, 12, 343, 363, 78, P4 Renata

Preference order does matter, but for sorting out which schools you prefer over other schools. It will not impact on your eligibility to gain a place at a particular school. You will be offered a place at the school ranked highest on your list that your are eligible for. For example if your put down 5 long shots and a primary 100m away as your 6th choice, you will offered this school if not eligible for your 5 higher choices above people who eg live 200m from your 6th choice school and put it as their first choice. it is advised to put down 6 choices and if in an area where you have no obvious very close by school (eg if your closest school is 300m and its last place distance was around that in 2014), to put a couple of less oversubscribed schools as your 5/6 choices. Renata

Hello all, gm99, I will pass on your points. Mima08, you won't end up without a school place. Southwark keeps the waiting lists until the start of the Autumn term. You are automatically accepted for your offered school. If you get offered a place at your 4th place school and then later at your 2nd choice school, you can choose whether to accept the place at the 4th or 2nd choice school. If you accept the 2nd choice school you will lose the place at your 4th choice school but still remain on the waiting list for your 1st choice school. If a place become available there eg in August, you can then decide first or second choice school. It is always advisable to put 6 schools down as being given a 5th or 6th choice school is usually preferable for parents than Southwark giving you a school place, where places remain, as you could be allocated a school that may be for example difficult for you to get to. Do look at last place distances from last year these are fluid from year to year but do give an idea of how close you need to be to a particular school to secure a place there. Be aware that these can go up or down and can shrink quite rapidly if a school suddenly becomes popular.If your 5th/6th closest school had a last place distance of 300m in 2014 and you live 1.1km from it, it may be a better option putting something else down eg a faith school close to you even if you're not religious or a school near the station you commute to for work that had a large last place distance etc. Order is important as you will be give the highest school on the list that you fulfill the criteria for. Remember you can apply separately for Belham this year. Renata

Hi Louie, from September 2014 all pupils in Reception, Year 1 and Year 2 in state-funded schools in England were eligible for free school meals (FSMs). The Southwark specific scheme, Free Healthy School Meals started in 2010 (FHSMs). This was initially in pilot schools and was expanded to all schools and all years gradually. The reason it was done this way is so that uptake could be looked at and also kitchen facilities. More children have school lunches now and several school kitchens required upgrading to properly deliver on FHSMs. In some cases for example, it may have meant retiming/altering lunch rotas for kitchens and space in dining halls to be sufficient for all. There are national guidelines for schools dinners, but Academies and Free Schools have a free rein. If your child's school is a Southwark school, I could look into this for you; I am wondering however that it may be Lambeth or Lewisham as you only mention reception to year 2 while the Southwark FHSMs scheme is for all pupils in Southwark state primary schools. If in Lambeth/Lewisham you could talk to the school and also gauge what is the opinion of other parents. Many schools have outside caterers and the school may have such an arrangement and be in a contract, however menus can be changed for the better (The schools mentioned above that have the fruit/yogurt options are Southwark schools but I don't know about other LAs!) Renata On a different but related note, I picked up on the article below: http://www.theguardian.com/education/2014/dec/09/ofsted-water-down-guidance-school-meals

The one situation where you may hold two places is if you apply via the CAF system and to the new Belham primary. See the thread about Belham if you are interested to apply to this school.

No, you would only be offered one school. If you are picked for a place in the JKFS lottery, you would only be offered that place if you weren't within the last place distance of higher placed schools. The only situation this year in the East Dulwich area where you could be offered two schools is if you are offered a place at the new Belham school and one via CAF. This year Belham as a new school has an entry system separate to the common one, next year it will be integrated. Renata

Hello all, you will be offered a place at your highest placed school on your form that you are eligible for a place for. This means that for example of you are within the last placed distance for two schools, you will be offered a place at the school higher on your list. If you are for example offered your 4th place school, you will automatically go onto the waiting list of the three higher placed schools. You can also ask Southwark Admissions to add your name to the waiting list of other schools, eg if you don't get a low choice and then realise you would prefer a local school that you didn't initially apply for. Goose Green (an Academy, hence why it 's distance wasn't in the Southwark book) had a last place offered distance over just over 300m. I don't know about DVI or St John's as they are both faith schools who offer half of their place on faith and half on distance, I would suggest contacting the schools directly. Anecdotal evidence suggest St John's had a small last place distance as there were many siblings this year. Harris ED offered places to all who applied. GM99, there are threads from previous years with the last place distances of Southwark Schools. Oversubscribed three form entry schools such as Bessemer and Goodrich tend to have larger last place distances than popular two form entry schools. Renata

Hi Susan, I can answer no 1, it would be any of your 6 choices and is basically a lottery and I can confirm that there has been a change of Head at the school. Renata

Local Charity ALDlife do pick up furniture to sell in their shops. 81-83 Forest Hill, Dartmouth Road, Forest Hill, London SE23 3HT 020 8291 0077 [email protected] Shop Manager: Maria Bennett and Annette Ession 45 Peckham High Street, Peckham, London SE15 5EB 020 7358 6871 [email protected] Shop Manager: Maria Silva and Adeniyi Raheem Renata

The application for no.30 Hindmans has come under my radar and I have been in discussion with Planning about it. Renata

Many schools have Xmas fairs. Renata

I think the issues with this site will remain whatever the applicants do. Renata

Hi NunheadRising, the distances are as the crow flies; there are internet tools that can give you an estimate from your postcode to the school; not as accurate as the Council's measurements, but it will give you an idea. Be aware that last place distance offers are not catchments and vary from year to year. From Fernholme you are a similar distance to Ivydale and Turnham, also not far from Beecroft Garden, I would also suggest looking at Hollydale, St Francesca Cabrini and Edmund Waller. Look at all your local schools and then put 6 in your true order of preference. I have mentioned a mix of Southwark and Lewisham schools as, in your case you are close to the border with Lewisham. Look at the Southwark website for information on the last place distance offers for Southwark Schools (or in the hard copy of "Starting Primary School"), likewise for Lewisham. Renata

There are many schools serving the Nunhead area, Ivydale, Hollydale, John Donne, Rye Oak, St Mary Magdalene, St Francesca Cabrini and Lewisham Schools Turnham/Haberdasher's Askes/Edmund Waller for those living near the border with Lewisham. Some of these were undersubscribed last year. Ivydale had a last place distance offered in the first round of 386 metres, 30 out of 60 places being offered on distance (the rest were siblings/SEN etc). The difficult area has been the area near Cheltenham Road, this area is close to the Stuart Road site so will be served by expanded Ivydale. The area towards Linden Grove, is closer to Rye Oak or Hollydale depending on the exact location. Renata

I've signed the petition. It was the Head of Harris Girl's ED I spoke to, a while ago now. She said there was no free/surplus space on the site. It is a sports specialty school. Part of the site which was used for sports was used to temporarily house their 6th form while the 6th form block was being built. A member of staff told me that after that part of their grounds was used for this it would take some work to get it back into shape for sports use and it's this area that has been used for the temporary siting of the Harris ED Free Primary until 2016. this date is significant as I believe the Harris Free School Nunhead is due to open in September 2015. The timeline for the temporary location for Harris ED means that the pupils wouldn't be on the former Police Station site until after the Nunhead school would be due to open, so it would be challenging to use it for Harris Nunhead even temporary basis. I believe the letter I saw from Harris said they would have liked to put it on the Harris Girl's site, but it's not possible as it's metropolitan open land, so I don't believe that Harris have pushed for this location themselves, also it would be 4 minutes walk to the Ivydale, Stuart Road site (by my walking speed). There is demand for primary school places further north in the Borough, so I think if I was in Harris's shoes I would set up a primary school in a location where there is a predicted need for more primary places within Southwark. I am flabbergasted that the Harris Nunhead application appears to have been piggybacked on the signatures of parents in the southern parts of East Dulwich which were already used for the support for the application for Harris ED. We need another secondary in the ED area to cope with the increased numbers of 11 year olds from 2016 onwards. I don't want to see the facilities of a new secondary compromised due to Harris Nunhead being squeezed onto this site. A local health care centre for local people is also necessary, an adequate space also needs to be allocated to this too. A pie cut into too many pieces is not the best solution for local residents. Renata

Hello all, there were issues with this application. the applicant has now withdrawn it. Renata

It does seem to be a new policy, we had several come up at the recent Peckham and Nunhead Community Council. Almost all were deferred in a unanimous decision by Councillors. One on St Dunstan's Road was approved but only with the stipulation from Councillors that it can't extend outside the dropped kerb to a neighbouring property which doesn't have a dropped kerb. I have communicated my concerns about this new policy. I still haven't had the official response from officers about this. Renata