observermum

Irish showbands were very popular in the pre-90's? http://www.irish-showbands.com/ Think some are like the reaction to Jedward - love'em or hate them

I agree - pleasant atmosphere Unfortunately the dates clashed with lots of other events and school fairs so many families were busy elsewhere. But still a good turn out and many people caught up with old friends. As for the stalls - they're a one-off thing - it was not really a profit making event with just stands for the county associations with a few raffles to raise money for the elderly or Across etc Well done to the organisers Hope it continues for many years to come.......

Think the sports are always on the saturday http://www.southwarkirish.com/

depends on the budget - http://www.sjguesthouse.co.uk/index.htm premier inns are ?29 per night if booked in advance - closest may be in greenwich Have heard this accomodation recommended a few years ago when there was a local wedding It's in Canadian Avenue in catford and seems quite busy and popular and has parking Glenthurston Holiday Apartments - www.londonselfcatering.co.uk 27 Canadian Avenue, London - 020 8690 3092 4 reviews, directions, and more ? Harefield - www.londonselfcatering.net 29 Canadian Avenue, london - 020 8690 3992 This B&B in Beckenham looks nice http://langleypark.yolasite.com/ or closer to the time could advertise to see what's available locally

I have just discovered that if you travel in zone 1 and zone 2 - but the default journey at oyster is zone 3 then you will have a charge added to your card - I have reported this to oystercard and look forward to the computer being amended asap - but when I gave the information was told that it's in the information that oyster can charge like this, and was given a list of unsuitable and impractical stations to travel via.... The problem for us is with the new east london line - first we were advised to let the computer know by validating the ticket at canada water - the next time it happened even though the journey had been validated at the beginning middle and end both ways an extra charge was added due to the computer 'default' Think oyster ticket users should check carefully - I think you can request a summary

I would say mixed for primary age - then single-sex for secondary (yrs 7-11)- with mixed 6th form if possible

how things have moved on playpens with tops or is it an igloo http://www.argos.co.uk/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Search?storeId=10001&catalogId=1500001801&langId=-1&searchTerms=398/7443&_$ja=tsid:11527%7Ccc:%7Cprd:3987443%7Ccat:nursery+%3E+baby+monitors+and+safety+gates+%3E+safety+gates+and+guards

For older children who may bed-wet heavy sleeping can be a factor http://www.dri-sleeper.com/index.htm this is good

I agree that the vast majority seem to arrive and get picked up by parents/carers walking. However places do become available further up in most schools - I am not sure of the situation in Southwark but there is definately an exodus of families who leave the borough I live in because of dissatisfaction with secondary school places - this has a big impact on primary schools. My older children did not attend St.Anthony's but in their primary school over half the class had left and for the most part the places taken by other children between yr R and Yr 6. I have met many parents who return to their homeplaces as their children get to secondary age as they cannot face the overdemand for spaces in london and the options open to them or move borough to live closer to what they consider to be more desirable schools.

There was a spate of these incidents a few years ago in my area - different makes of car - first cars being opened and rifled- then doors being damaged - then various parts being stolen. Eventually we had security fitted by Karklinic in Brockley Road.

Will do Silverfox - counting the weeks until I can give up the school-run but it's a national problem - James I looked up history of zig-zags - outside most schools the time restriction is just am and pm (even though most schools have a nursery now - what a relief for parents with nursery children when they can stop outside) - but for St.Anthony's it's an all day restriction. The problem really isn't exacerbated there either - many families walk/take scooters/ the bikes with 2/3 kids in tow are definately something I have only seen in Dulwich http://www.getbracknell.co.uk/news/education/s/2066692_time_to_act_over_school_parking I personally hate all the rushing and would rather arrive late than not at all!

Hello all I think the namecalling is appalling in this thread and should be removed by the moderator in every single instance. I am in my mid 40's - Over the years as a parent I have noticed many things with the daily event of getting my many kids to various nursery and primary schools. Firstly - those wonderful zig-zags I can honestly say that although they are hailed as places for people to cross safely they are not really used as such and perhaps the time has come to think of something more in keeping with modern living. Every school has this problem as now that we are a population who own cars we like to use them as we have forked out to buy/maintain/tax/ them I have noticed that around most schools the residents have drives if possible - they then realise that two to four times a day (if there is a nursery) they may find their access blocked.As a result they may stop using the drives on school days and park in the road - this takes up twice as much space as the car space and the drive access are now being used restricting access to an institution. How many staff work in schools and merrily arrive before school opening - check out any road with a school and at 7am it will have plenty of space to drop off children - by 8am there will be hardly anywhere nearby as the staff will have blocked it up - why not encourage all school staff to walk if possible - or park further away as there will be 250-420+ children trying to gain access. In the old days - children were sent into school - if they were late - they were late. There is a huge directive about attendance and timekeeping now - so people are less likely to be civil and give way - as depending on the school's management style they may well receive a written 'telling-off' For years I have suggested that the zig-zags should instead be a set down area - with hightly visible patrollers to assist children safely out of cars (big and small) so that parents are not forced to park up and take their children through. Also you must take into account that most schools now have nurseries - the children are younger and only stay for a few hours so that has doubled the congestion. Parents are told that they must accompany their children into the school playground and that the school is not responsible for the children before a certain time - an even more recent gimmick is 'wake and shake' where everyone is encouraged to jig around before the whistle goes - surely it would be better to do this when the children have been dropped off. So now you have a situation where every child is accompanied by an adult instead of a staff member at the gate just allowing the pupils in. As many have already pointed out - parents are reluctant to let their children walk to school on their own - some areas have implemented walking chains - but they expect parents to accompany as volunteers and with all the regulations about being CRB checked and concerns over insurance and liability etc etc it's easy to see why they are not a common sight. The corners mentioned in Etherow/Friern road should be marked with double yellow lines - i'm not sure if they are at the moment as it is tight for the buses to get around anyway. (edit: they are marked with double yellow lines) In my experience the behaviour around St.Anthony's is for the most part excellent - Cabrini is placed on a very dangerous bend and I pity any parents trying to safely navigate their way there daily for many years - there are certainly minor changes that could be made to improve the situation for everybody. This issue is not about the admission policy of the school or whether it is a faith school. It applies to all schools state, private and even little country schools. The posts about siblings getting places (do you imagine that parents can take their children to various schools at the same time / denying another elder child a place have amazed me - are you in favour of a one-child policy? Are others suggesting that parents should not be allowed to drive their children to school? As for ticketing - you have to remember that every year new 'customers' arrive at each school - so every year the problem starts all over again. Unless there is a heavy presence of parking wardens or police, then it's not very effective. ALso,there are many parents who neen to rush off to work particularly in London and expensive areas (to buy or rent) in order to keep a roof over their heads. Also with the huge demand for places and the fact that you cannot get a place unless you live nearby then it's not uncommon to read about people 'work the system' and move further away from schools when they have a place or have used false information to gain a place. I think the parents in this country need to be congratulated, the vast majority do their utmost to create safe environments for their children and there is no-one to speak up for them.