Whittler

... it seems it's likely that plastic waste from Britain is ending up in the ocean... Reduce, reuse and ummm, try to keep it to an absolute minimum for recycling. https://www.independent.co.uk/environment/uk-plastic-pollution-oceans-recycling-export-waste-malaysia-vietnam-thailand-a8400761.html Aga and Anna (of Aga's Little Deli, Dartmouth Rd) are indeed opening a zero-waste greengrocer just a bit further along from the deli/cafe on Dartmouth Rd at the start of next year. Very exciting, as I know they are researching and sourcing a lot of great products for the shop.

Farr & Wyde in Forest Hill (Dartmouth Rd) have fantastic mid-century, 60's, 70's furniture and all sorts of unusual decorative stuff. Great cards and candles too. Check our their instagram which has updates on available products @farrandwyde

Another recommendation for Dave from 'Down the Drain' - what a fantastic guy. Called to ask if he could come earlier to our appointment then inspected and advised on a course of action. Same as a previous post, we have a shared drain and the blockage was severe (a raw sewage flood!) so Dave stayed and spoke to Thames Water to explain the problem and to ensure that they would come out to fix it as an emergency. I certainly wasn't aware before this that shared drains were TW's responsibility and that work can be carried out by them for free. Lots of drain companies probably do take advantage of the fact that people don't know this... Dave's honesty and calm and straightforward approach in a stressful situation was greatly appreciated and i fully recommend him. He's in my very own 'trusted trader' address book now! David Alldis www.down-the-drain.co.uk 020 8314 5244

Can't add anything about a finished project here yet, but interested to hear that jimbo1964, as we are in the process of using London Door Co to make a new back door (with very specific design and security requirements)and two interior doors... expensive, yes, but so far we are very pleased with how the survey and design stage is progressing and with the incredible attention to detail and time spent on making sure everything is taken into account. Having tried to get a quote from a few local joiners (one of whom told me he wasn't interested..charming)we decided to go with the London Door Co on the recommendation of someone we know, and in the knowledge that they are at the 'premium' end of the scale. Feel confident we've made the right choice so far...

As singalto says, it may be a health and safety issue to do with how many bags of donations the volunteers can take and sort in one day. If their 'sorting and pricing' area becomes clogged and overloaded with bags of donations waiting for sorting, it poses a H&S risk to volunteers. It's a balancing act for volunteers who may be deluged with donations at particular times - as someone has already pointed out, holidays are prime times for people to have a clear out - and they have to make sure there are enough people to sort and price and manage the shop floor. I doubt very much that it was a case of shunning your donation for no good reason, and perhaps next time if you have a lot of stuff it may be better to divide it and take it to a couple of charity shops that are close to each other to spread the love!

Just for interest, it's a well researched fact that culling of urban foxes just does not work. It has been found to lead to increased numbers, if anything, as fox populations are self-regulating and the breeding rate will inevitably increase in areas where there is a smaller fox population. Mange is more of a natural threat to the urban fox population, and recent theories as to why it seems more prevalent in urban rather than rural foxes have looked at the poor diet (discarded fried chicken bones and the remains of takeaways etc) of the city dwelling fox, which means they are not getting their vitamins! Interesting article here: https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn23167-culling-urban-foxes-just-doesnt-work/ Hope you find a good (and humane) solution to your particular fox-related problem, katgod...a 'safe box' where the delivery can be left securely seems the best option.

https://www.yell.com/biz/trees-r-us-london-6518593/ I can highly recommend George Nelson of Trees R Us - fully qualified tree surgeon, he's fantastic, knowledgeable and thorough and is very reasonable with his prices. Always does a great job, in my experience.

"And are extremely expensive." I disagree. It depends on whether you value quality or not.... it is not expensive if you consider how the meat is sourced, prepared and retailed and the care and attention with which all of this is all done. http://thebutcheryltd.com/index.html Nathan and Ruth (and their fantastic team) will be able to tell you exactly where their meat is from, what breed it is and if necessary, how to cook each cut and as they are 'whole carcass' butchers (meaning that they buy and butcher every single bit of the animal) it's perfectly possible to get cheaper and more economical cuts from them, as i often do, for stewing and slow cooking etc...something you generally can't get from cheaper butchers/supermarkets. Wouldn't get my meat form anywhere else, personally, and i'm a butchers daughter!

And neighbour borough Lewisham is also a smoke control area. Lewisham has consolidated it's 'smoke control order' and it's pretty clear what you can't, or shouldn't, do as the gov website link posted above shows. https://www.lewisham.gov.uk/myservices/environment/air-pollution/Documents/SmokeControlOrder2010.pdf I had a woodburner fitted, like a lot of people have done, purely to be able to burn logs, but it's obvious that lots more people are burning wood in open fireplaces now. Might be worth thinking of the potential ?1,000+ fine for doing so as part of the cost of fitting a woodburner, which is a good investment if you want a nice log fire in the winter and keeps you within the law.

These guys deliver great, well seasoned logs http://thelondonlogcompany.blogspot.co.uk/p/free-delivery.html ..and i can also recommend this lot http://www.greatnorwoodlogs.co.uk/

We all know (or should know!)that flytipping is illegal and anti-social, so if you do have quantities of waste to dispose of after small building jobs or garden clearances etc PLEASE use a registered and licensed carrier to remove it if you cannot take it to a recycling centre yourself. There are no cheap shortcuts to disposing of waste which don't involve that waste being illegally dumped or it being generally not disposed of properly and responsibly. It seems that a lot of fly-tipping now does relate to short term rental and tenancy agreements, so the more civic minded folk out there that can 'do the right thing' when disposing of those few bags of rubble, odd bits of broken furniture or that big mound of garden waste, the better. Or as people have said, use the Councils collection service if you can, and yes, you will have to pay for it. If you have a recommendation for a 'man and a van' or have found a company that you wish to use to remove waste, you can check the registration of licensed waste carriers here: https://environment.data.gov.uk/public-register/view/index

If you haven't found someone to fix this already, Dave the Cooker Man is fantastic - details here https://www.yell.com/biz/pegasus-domestic-appliance-repair-ltd-bromley-7853745/ and he has recommendations on this forum if you do a search.

Shannons is well worth a visit, as has been already been mentioned, as is Alexandra Nurseries in Penge

Dave the cooker man is the chap to fix it - look on the forum for recommendations, he has many! His number 07506104882 (http://www.pegasusrepair.com/contact-us.html)

This has been discussed a lot here https://sydenham.org.uk/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=13543&p=129217&hilit=quad+bikes&sid=1c80f80e5a16b8908cb399a08f18754f#p129217

Umm, bumpy, unfortunately as a charity the Estate have to ask the 'market rate' for their rents etc. Or at least that is what they will probably tell you. By law, they cannot offer special or reduced terms as this is against the Charities Commission rules on charitable status. I'm absolutely not saying this to excuse the Estate, and i can see how this position really does not help to support businesses who may need more flexible terms etc and is actually punitive in its application. Sincerely, i do wish you the best of luck, and i'll be watching with interest to see if anything does change in the rather rigid and inflexible stance that the Estate takes with its tenants on rent issues as a result of your petition.... sadly, i won't be holding my breath...

twofourseven, please make sure that you do choose a reputable company that carries a valid license to remove waste and correctly dispose of it... The companies suggested here look decent, but there are also a lot of dodgy folks out there claiming to remove waste for a bargain price that then ends up being fly-tipped a couple of miles away... Just something to consider.

http://www.thebutcheryltd.com/locations.html I would call The Butchery (numbers for the Forest Hill shop and their Bermondsey base in the link), as they'll probably be able to get it for you on order.

I'm over the border in Lewisham and we don't have a food waste collection (think yourselves lucky) but i compost as much as i can by taking it to my allotment .....thinking of getting one of these beauties http://www.hotbincomposting.com/compost-bins/hotbin-composting-extra.html so that i can even include meat, bones etc which you can't put in a normal compost bin due to it attracting vermin, as someone quite rightly pointed out in an earlier post. This system is closed though, with everything sealed inside, and it produces good compost at an alarmingly quick rate - really good if you have a garden and/or allotment. It's not cheap, but if i added up all the dosh i spend a year in bagged compost and well-rotted horse sh*t for the 'lotty, this'll pay for itself pretty quickly, i reckon, and all from my own recycled food waste! Wish i'd invented it!

It's a shame you lost some money over this, ali2007, and i'm sorry about that, but just to echo an earlier post PLEASE remember that it is essential to use only licensed waste carriers if you have large items that cannot easily be taken to the council dump/recycling centres or collected by the council themselves. It is your legal responsibility to dispose of any waste properly. I happen to live on a road where we've had a perennial problem with flytipping over the years and it is always builders waste from garden or house refurbs ie decking, rubble, wood etc These guys are good http://www.anyrubbish.co.uk/ i've used them in the past as i don't drive and also have difficulty - on the rare occasions when i can't recycle/repurpose something - of getting rid of stuff that the council won't collect. Yes, it will cost you some money, but please, do the responsible thing and don't get ripped off by flytippers.

The Perryvale bar and bistro, as the post above mentions, is absolutely superb, and a great addition to Forest Hill - website here http://www.theperryvale.com/

I can highly recommend Lewisham Hopsital Physio Dept - they do private consultations and you can self refer. https://www.lewishamandgreenwich.nhs.uk/private-fitness-and-wellbeing-clinic I have been to Crystal Palace in the past and while good, i think it is expensive. After several sessions there, i ended up having to go back to my GP as the problem was persistent and then i got an NHS referral to Lewisham. 3 sessions later (2 weeks between sessions and the same person each time) and the propbelm was solved. Andrew McCarter is especially good and i was really impressed.

Have a look at the Friends of the Earth map https://www.foe.co.uk/campaigns/climate/issues/uk_fracking_map_41274 A company (Northdown Energy) has already applied for a licence for the areas in question in SE London/Kent and there is plenty of information about this proposal elsewhere....Boris is adamant that London should be fracked if there is found to be shale gas in order to 'keep the lights on'...

OOoh, you can't beat a nice bit of well rotted leaf mould as a soil conditioner, i'm with you there! The leaf mould bay in my compost area at the 'lotty is an essential part of my veg growing regime! As Iain suggests, Lewisham will collect green waste if you use the special bags (see below), all good as they use it to make compost for the council parks etc... http://www.lewisham.gov.uk/myservices/wasterecycle/Garden-waste/Pages/garden-waste-collection-service.aspx

Stag and Bow, Forest Hill? http://stagandbow.com/