gm99

If you don't want something too big, have a look at the Honda FRV, which has 6 seats in 2 rows of 3. I believe you can get 3 isofix seats across the back.

Hi All, I would be really grateful if anyone can help answer a question about how the reserve system works. (I tried calling Southwark and am not confident that my question was understood.) It is conceivable that we live close enough to get a place at any of the nearest four primary schools to our house on the basis of distance (given what we know about where children who live very close to us go). The closest school is probably our least favourite of the four. I understand that in the event of being in the top 60 (they are all 2 form schools) at more than one school on April 16th we would be offered a place at the one we ranked highest on the application form. Can someone shed some light on how the reserve list process works in the scenario that we apply to all 4 and only get our 4th choice school in the first instance? Would our child go on the reserve list for all of our 1st, 2nd and 3rd choices, or just the 1st? (One snippit I did get from Southwark - if correct - was that you don't go on the reserve list for schools that you have ranked below the one offered initially.) One other thing: does anyone know if info about previous years' 'furthest distances' are available anywhere (Southwark only seem to make available the figures for last year)? Many thanks, gm99

For a more cost effective option, have a look at the Yale wireless systems, eg via Screwfix. No wiring needed, DIY installation, and some can eg be set up to alert you to the alarm being activated via your mobile.

Montpelier Rd, SE15 Dec 2013: ?450k http://www.rightmove.co.uk/house-prices/detailMatching.html?prop=45688139&sale=50666948&country=england Tarted up May 2014: asking ?800k http://www.woosterstock.co.uk/details/11765

One thought on all of this concerns the surveyors doing valuations for mortgage lenders - who should surely be the voice of reason when everyone else is losing their minds (or are all of these purchases primarily cash?). At what point does short-term market behaviour outstrip middle to long-term fundamentals and result in surveyors down-valuing? Any surveyors reading this and can offer an informed opinion?

House prices (and rents) across London have risen rapidly - it's not just an ED problem. The use of UK housing as a reserve currency could easily be addressed by policy changes. Incidentally, there was a very good programme about London on BBC2 at 9pm last night - called 'Mind the Gap' and presented by Evan Davis.

This might be of interest: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-26407415 Part of the complaint from residents interviewed on the news yesterday was that they are shelling out for the scaffolding while nothing happens (and indeed that renovations have taken much longer than new builds nearby). Looks like further evidence of gross incompetence at best.

Could I recommend this: http://www.theguardian.com/books/2014/mar/02/all-that-is-solid-review-house-prices-danny-dorling

Small brown bin for the front garden plus green waste (paper) bags free from the library for when you get the urge to do some gardening.

Should have said dial 101, which is the police non-emergency number (not 112 - sorry for the confusion).

The most effective 'police' are often members of the public, given that the formal police largely rely on public information to guide their activities. In the cases described above, it would, for example, almost certainly make a difference if everyone spotting suspicious activity reported it straight away (dial 101 if it's not an emergency). If you see someone acting suspiciously and can observe them without putting yourself at risk, specific details of clothing and shoes can be very useful to the police (and make sure that only the right people get stopped and asked to account for themselves). E.g. a case I know of, having done some work alongside the police in another part of London, where a rapist was initially identified as a suspect on the basis of his baseball cap, which was distinctive and had been reported earlier by a PCSO in an intelligence report. You may also find that calling the local Safer Neighbourhoods police team directly can be helpful, as they tend to be have the best local knowledge and be most responsive to local concerns - and you can generally talk to someone with a name and face rather than a more distant call centre. http://content.met.police.uk/Page/TeamFinder?scope_id=1257246764302

In our corner of SE5 asking prices for family homes are up something like 25-30% on last year and seem to have risen dramatically during the summer. E.g. one that was bought for ?600k in 2012 back on the market at ?875k and now under offer, without any significant alterations. Makes me wonder what surveyors doing valuations for the mortgage cos are going to say... I would imagine the latter are going to want to see some very large deposits. Don't know if anyone flicks through the estate agents'/private schools'/divorce solicitors' ad rag Living South before recycling it, but there was an interesting comment from a local estate agent recently about how much of their business used to be people living locally moving up the ladder, but few can now afford to do so and most [implication: house] sales are to people moving to the area for the first time. DV1: according to the financial press, the money markets have priced in a first interest rate rise in 2015-16 (the latter considered more likely).

Assuming you are the freeholder: if there's no development potential and it's not going to have a material impact on the amenity of your garden and therefore value of your house then it's worth somewhere between what you want and what they are willing to pay, factoring in neighbourly relations etc. If they want the extra garden to enable them e.g. to build an extension then it may be worth more to them than if it just for a veggie patch. I have heard figures around ?3-5k for around 20m2 of undevelopable garden (ie no access), but that may not be relevant to your case as it is only a small strip relative to the size of your garden. If you decide to sell, make sure that your neighbours pay your legal fees (including a survey for the purposes of land registry records) and if you have a mortgage check whether your mortgage co needs to be notified. Disclaimer: I'm not a legal professional - these thoughts are based on my own previous enquiries. gm

Thanks all for taking the time to share your views - very helpful. I tend to take what I see on visits as a best-case scenario, always usefully contextualised with the longer-term experience of others. The parent I referred to has two children who have attended The Villa in recent years, so is not easily dismissed.

Hello All, I would be interested to hear any first hand views of The Villa nursery, particularly since the expansion. I was chatting to a parent whose kids have been there relatively recently and got some slightly negative views citing turnover of heads and rather lacklustre staffing. Many thanks, gm

We used 50% more gas in the last six months than the previous year (based on actual readings, not estimates) and just got a massive bill. Ironically, this was after we had proper thermostatic/timer controls installed for our boiler/central heating - I think we were much more frugal when operating the system manually. But it has been (is it too soon to say was?) a long cold winter.

Yes, this is Virgin's cable service. The good news us that I have now been given a 50% refund on my broadband subscription, backdated to August 2012 when Virgin first identified the problem.

Hello All, Although I am just up the road in SE5 this problem - basically too many users on VM's infrastructure - apparently affects large parts of SE London and originates with some VM infrastructure at Lewisham. The result is severely decreased broadband speeds at peak times. In my case the first sign was iPlayer constantly buffering in the evening, and I have seen as low as 0.8Mbps on a 60Mbps service. The good news is that anyone affected can request a refund from Virgin. A couple of examples from VM's forums: http://community.virginmedia.com/t5/Up-to-60Mb-Speed/Unusable-broadband-in-South-East-London-VM-acknowledges-too-many/m-p/1528162/highlight/true#M5255 http://community.virginmedia.com/t5/Up-to-60Mb-Speed/F002125723-Speed-Issue-relating-to-network-congestion-contention/m-p/1753032/highlight/true#M17855

I'm having the same problem.

CPZ rejected. http://moderngov.southwark.gov.uk/documents/s35520/Appendix%201%20Peckham%20Road%20South%20consultation%20report.pdf

Pros: life is hellish without, should reduce certain types of parking (e.g. commuters) giving priority to residents and their visitors etc, improved road/pedestrian safety, Waitrose delivery van will find it easier to stop near your house, would mitigate need to move to Lambeth to find a parking space Cons: don't need it, you've got to pay for it irrespective of means or personal need = tax, some net reduction in parking capacity, no guarantee of a space outside your house, probably won't address situation if problem is lots of household-owned cars, could possibly impact on local businesses, risk of fines arising from enforcement, it's all a Council conspiracy anyway Trade insults. Repeat to fade.

Both Southwark and Lambeth have CPZs called 'Herne Hill'. The Lambeth CPZ map shows 12-2pm.

I have seen the ELL trains at PR using platforms 1 and 2 (during testing). This makes sense as the new line joins the existing PR - London Bridge route between Queen's Road Peckham and South Bermondsey.

The Council's parking account currently (2011/12) runs a ?1.8m annual surplus (by law any profit has to be reinvested in roads - maintenance etc), so there is some wriggle room. Southwark permits are ?125/yr if bought for a full year. As things currently stand, CPZs generally operate below capacity. E.g. the Lucas Gardens CPZ near me, which has much higher permit takeup than average, has around 60% occupancy during the day. So - as you assume - commuter permits would be in addition to residents, not instead. So to use your figures: 100 permits @ ?125 = ?12500 100 permits @ ?40 = ?4000 Shortfall: ?8500 = 15 permits @ ?570 (?2.20 per weekday, not accounting for bank hols etc). I have just found the figure for the council car park at Stead St E17, where there are annual permits: ?591/yr. The cost of daily visitors' permits would vary depending on CPZ hours, so across the borough this hit wouldn't be as big as your figures indicate (most Southwark CPZs are around 10 hours), but everyone would see their costs reduced so there would (all else being equal) be a reduction in revenue. As the system currently operates, a visitors' permit in a 2 hour CPZ costs the same as in a 10 hour CPZ. I suspect that if residents' and visitors' permit costs fell there would be an increase in permit takeup. Clearly there are also lots of 'what ifs', and there would be start-up, advertising etc costs.

Sorry - my mistake. OP said 10-2. Still don't know where that would be - nothing on Southwark's parking maps: http://maps.southwark.gov.uk/connect/index.jsp?tooltip=yes Nor Lambeth: http://www.lambeth.gov.uk/NR/rdonlyres/6459205B-8312-4751-8403-B9293794DC5E/0/NEWBOROMAP_120510.pdf