kjet2

Not sure whether distraction is the right term, but this morning I witnessed and tried to prevent the theft of a card being used in the cashpoint on the Tesco forecourt on East Dulwich Road. The two young men had deliberately targetted the elderly gentleman; one come very close to him, said something loudly about not using the cashpoint and then as the gentleman turned round, the young man grabbed the card and moved quickly away. I was coming out of the shop, saw this and shouted at him and was confronted by his accomplice who started uttering gibberish to take my attention away from what was happening, whilst all of the time jiggling his hand in the pocket of his hoodie to indicate that he had a knife or other weapon. They quickly scampered into Fenwick Road, where I later understood that a third person had been waiting in a black Audi Q3 17 or 18 reg and all drove off. The gentleman was shaken, but not too concerned as this was a prepaid card with ?140 on it; he was simply checking his balance at the time. Police arrived and took his statement. I later checked with Tesco and the monitor in the store to verify CCTV is not working. Police have not contacted me for a statement, even though I provided them with my details, but did at the time emphasise how seriously they take this type of crime....hmmm. Just to say, be careful out there. It all happens so quickly!

Hi, my wife, Sarah Jettoo is running a free online (Zoom) lesson on Tuesday 19th May at 6.15 pm focusing on perfecting the headstand. She is a student-teacher of Feldenkrais, a gentle exploratory movement technique to improve posture and the efficiency of mobility. In this lesson, she will be exploring the neck, its connections and strengthening musculature for the safe practice of headstands. Register at sarahjettoo.com

I would also recommend doing the Met Police's Bike Safe course. Best ?45 I ever spent! I first did the training with a 125cc and have repeated the course on a 650cc and the training you receive and the awareness you develop are second to none. Morning spent in classroom situation and the afternoon out on the road - 2 course attendees to one police rider. Stops for feedback along the way and lunch is included and you will develop the skills that are life saving.

Hi Sue, he'll be out of hospital in a few days. Was very close though. I don't think it's appropriate to go into all the details, but the police caught two or more people soon after (they are alleged to have also mugged people in Denmark Hill and Peckham earlier that evening). I just hope they get their just comeuppance.

I agree se22cat and smieste2002. This was serious! The road was cordoned off as a result of a mugging of one of the street's residents in which he was also stabbed. All neighbours are deeply shocked and our thoughts are with his young family.

My wife, Sarah Jettoo, who has delivered yoga classes in the Dulwich/Peckham area for the past 18 or so years is running sessions at the Albrighton Center aimed specifically at teenagers who may be going through a period of anxiety, panic attacks or depression; especially pertinent in this intense exam period. The classes are aimed at leaving teenagers with a positive mental perspective and incorporate yoga, Feldenkrais and tools to release stress. There is no charge and the sessions are on a Tuesday 17:00 to 18:00. Please PM me and I will pass on her contact details.

Hello Eileen,this is hardly scientific, but we had people last night who need their cars to commute to their places of work; generally outside London - this included teachers who would otherwise need to travel by public transport for up to 2.5 hours for a distance of 14 miles; thereby freeing space during the day. Otherwise, I would urge people thinking of supporting this measure (and we had people last night asking whether objections are simply related to a question of money(!) or those that wanted to just be able to park in front of their homes), to think of those who need to commute into the area as well; teachers at Bellenden or St Johns or the various children's nurseries in the area who would be impacted severely by the introduction of a CPZ. Yes, it's all too easy to say people should just travel by public transport and forego cars etc, and I realise that this statement may well stir a hornet's nest here, but we need to just get real here and put ourselves in others' shoes. Sometimes getting to work by car as opposed to using public transport is just what one has to do to be able to commute with a reasonable chance of balancing work/time/family and life.

A group of residents of Gowlett Road and Amott Road met last night at the Gowlett Arms. The consensus was that the introduction of a CPZ on these roads would have limited impact on the availability of parking spaces for residents as the most significant pressures affecting parking spaces are not during "working" hours but in the evenings, when the CPZ would not apply. Yes, a couple of residents were concerned by commuters leaving their cars and then catching the train from Peckham Rye or East Dulwich, but there is very little evidence that this adversely affects availability of spaces to any great degree; again space is harder to find in the evenings. Others mentioned the introduction of the double yellow lines alongside dropped curbs. These have effectively removed some 6-8 parking spaces along Gowlett Road alone. There is a clear recognition of the need to enhance the protection of pedestrians and other road users, but reducing available space with additional (paying) cycle hangars, so called parklets etc will only compound the problem, forcing residents of the street to park in adjoining streets. Add to this the proposed new paid parking area the entire length of one side of Gowlett Road from East Dulwich Road to Hinckley Road and one can only imagine the mess this will cause. Linked to the last point, someone brought up about the issue of the so called "death of the high street"; the Council is proposing to charge business users some ?575+, where's the logic in that? Things are already tough enough without 1. the additional charges and 2. the potential reduction in trade from users put off by the parking charges. Many of us remember the short period when the Gowlett Arms was closed and the loss felt at the time, I fear a return to that period, but this time with a permanent loss. Others in this thread have noted that clear line of sight facilitates speeding, which contradicts the Council's stated aim of this exercise as one to promote healthy and safer streets. The issue clearly is if a few streets in the so called Peckham West area give into this, neighbouring streets will bear the brunt of relocated cars. Let's hope common sense prevails.

Gowlett Road is having its 6th Big Lunch on the 12th of June

All sorted. Manager apologised for his behaviour. Accepted the apology as well as the full refund and reprint at no cost. Thanks to all for your support.

Hello Pommie, I contacted their head office this morning and my wife or I will accompany my daughter to the shop this afternoon. I don't want to escalate this thing into some big confrontation, but the man clearly has issues if he thinks he can bully, intimidate and reduce to tears a 16 year old girl. I think that an apology is due and that's all we will be seeking.

Thanks for the recommendation Huggers. I will suggest she goes there.

Thank you bkkmei. Sorry about your experience. It is indeed a franchise. Customer service is only a phone line and I will be calling them first thing in the morning. Grown men who act as bullies like this should not be allowed to get away with this sort of behaviour. I know that my daughter can be tough when pushed but this was unacceptable.