bawdy-nan

Hello Sarnge I'm a cyclist (not usually in Peckham Rye) and I find the bicyle bell thing a bit of a conundrum. I worry if it seems like I'm trying to get people to get out of my way rather than just alert pedestrians to my presence. I tend to try to ring it gently (!) slow down and call out "Excuse me and thank you" like a mad, old lady from the 1950's

you can download all the papers about the cuts from Southwark Council website

What I;ve used with some success is a padlock with an extra long loop (you can get them from the lock place in ED near to AJ Farmers) or an ordinary D-lock - quite tricky but you can just about get it through the bit where the front wheels attach to the main body. Have now just got hold of a ruck sack long metal cord padlock which will thread through a couple of scooters. Sadly all this info rather useless now as we had one of ours stolen through leaving it unlocke outside our front door doh!

Not sure the household insurance would go for the "left outside the front door" aspect of the whole debacle.

That's what my daughter wondered actually (about someone thinking they were unwanted) as its something of a convention. The thing is we live up a dead end so there's no passing trade. Anyway - that's what we'll stick with.

I don't think my children are stupid. The action of leaving a loved thing outside in a city where everything is up for grabs is, objectively and taking the age of the child out of it, a pretty stupid thing to do - ie not well thought through, obviously going to have a bad outcome. I don't expect they'll do it again. I mentioned the word "stupid" because I assumed if I didn't some "kindly" soul would. It was a pre-emptive acknowledgement. As for the cost of the scooters my daughter saved up her birthday, Christmas and pocket money to buy it herself and the other was my son's one gift for his birthday (as he keeps sobbingly pointing out). They're actually very good and easy to manage and easy to ride for my son who has balance problems and has difficulties using a two wheeler and riding a bike. We've had other scooters in the past (cheaper ones) and they've fallen to bits. At school we use locks.

only one gone as it turns out - it's a black micro maxi with red elastic bands on it - 6 year old's birthday present.

My kids stupidly left their scooters outside the house last night. They were birthday presents and yes, it was utterly stupid of us to leave them outside. They were stolen and now they are hwoling the house down. Clearly a lesson learned but I'd like to kick you in the shins.

I wonder if its simply the case here that its the less experienced, newer parents who seem to be the most worried and it's the ones with more / older children and more experience that seem to be a bit more sanguine. I don't know if that is the case but, scanning the thread, it seems to be. It is absolutely understandable. It seems to me that when your child is 2 its almost impossible to imagine what they might be like as an older child, learning how to deal with powerful emotions, rising hormones, will, etc etc. Most kids and most parents, in my experience, are usually pretty ok. Some are rude and seem mean. Most children don't progress in a uniform way: physically, emoltionally academically. Childhood's something of a ramshackle business and children aren't (whisper) "nice". They're just humans learning how to be. They're a mix of mean and kind and rough and gentle but tend to be a bit leakier and less in control of themselves. It IS horrible when things go wrong but I think its absolutely wrong to assume its crappy parenting. For the record, I think you should intervene but remember that you're the grown up!

Oh I;m totally with KK on this. I can kind of understand a problem with the constantly running engine but, rs, you seem really cross about this and beyond the practical annoyances you might be experiencing. Goodness knows why they're there with their 2 vehicle audacity but you could have all kinds of stabs at their story. Who knows how they arrived at that situation - maybe it is choice or necessity. If it is necessity then there but for the grace of god go anyone of us and well done them for sorting themselves out. How do you know they don\t pay taxes? And come to that there are all kinds of people who manage their lives and finances in such a way that they don't pay their fair share. Surely there are bigger, more important things to be pissed off about when it comes to unfairness.

Combing, combing, combing. You need to do it wet (with some conditioner for ease) and witha decent comb. My absolute favourite one is "nitty gritty". Pciked mine up at SAinsburys - its a bit more expensive but seems to also get the eggs whichis half your battle. Basically if you find an egg or a louse you need to comb every other day until you don't find anything and then keep combing every three days for a bit after that. Sometimes you think you've got everything and then just one stray egg can set it all off again. Its dull but I find an audio book or a film helps for the child. There's a weirdly satisying pleasure for the person doing the combing. Maddeningly I think we're going to be doing it for years as there never seems to be a point when noone at school doesn't have them. I've become the kind of mum who casually rakes through my child's hair with the trained eagle eye of the provfessional nit-picker - at bus-stops, in shops - basically anytime I;ve access and my chidl is still. Good luck!

Congratulations! I liked What to Expect an also the Rough Guide to Pregnancy. I also read some Sheila Kitzinger (quite hippyish but very good) and the Active birth website was useful too. I had two homebirths - planned that way at first because I wanted consistency of care and then because it was just brilliant being in my own space. Felt the least stressful way of going about it. (I hadn't enjoyed the rigours and rules of hospital when I'd visited for scans etc). The distractions were minimal and I was lucky enough to have two straightforward births using a tens machine and water for pain relief. I know that lots of people do indeed have a difficult time during labour but mine were both very positive experiences - exciting and extraordinary. Which is to say that it isn't necessarily going to be awful. I didn't go to any NCT classes but did a yoga course with Janet Balaskas which was really helpful. I did a yoga class with Sitaram at Kings for my second child and I;d really recommend it. I felt very well prepared and confident going in to labour and had lots of relaxation and breathing techniques ingrained in my body (still use them now at the dentist!). If I were to do it again however I'd def join NCT for the ready made group rather than the info.

A chance for big society in action, James? Disregard the council and put up our own signs? I'd like to see more of the stencils on the pavement myself.

I'd agree with the maternity notes thing. When I had my second child I was able to see what they had recorded about my first birth. It was utterly wrong in so many ways and I don't mena in terms of interpretation. For example, they had recorded that I had given birth at Mayday hospital in Croydon when I actually had a very starighhtforward home birth in East Dulwich with Brierley midwives ... certianly a worry if they are making decisons based on your previous medical history and the medical history is innaccurate.

Have you been to The Ivy House before? - YES Have you been to The Ivy House for other events other than comedy? YES Have you ever been to The Ivy House just to have a drink? How often? NO How aware are you of The Ivy House's reputation as a live music venue of note in the late sixties and early/mid seventies, when it was known as The Newlands Tavern? - YES Is The Ivy House the nearest pub to your house? NO Have you ever been there YES (how often? 4 times) If not, why not? Does the pub feel inviting from the outside? ISH - probably wouldn\t just stroll in (Briefly explain) Does the pub feel inviting inside? YES - I LOVED IT - LOVEKY MIX OF PROPER PUB AND FABULOUS FADED GLAMOUR (Briefly explain) What changes would make you more likely to use the pub? - JUST KNWING WHAT's ON (ie there needs to be events for me to make the trip,) FOOD that's cheap

I think the idea is that private providers take up the slack (at increased cost). this is at the same time as working tax credit childcare subsidy is reduced, many families on lower incomes are excluded from tax credits altogether (so will have no subsidy for childcare as those very costs increase), and women are required to work. Really hard to see how it adds up to make work pay. I was so grateful to tax credits when my children were very small. Without the subsidy to childcare I would have found keeping working a real struggle and would have been out of tbd jobs market for 7 years.

top tree - that's clearly absurd - have a look at the figures

hi James - I will have a proper look when I've recovered from data fatigue... re the hamlet and fsm - it says pretty clearly that the fsm extension will be to all children in *maintained* schools which I took to mean schools under the southwark umbrella - (academy status for the hamlet would mean they're out of that umbrella surely - so would cost hamlet parents 500 pounds a year more than if they went to another primary in southwark ...???? (do correct if that's wrong)

In respect of whether the council are cutting hard than they need to - James B, who provided this "information", is, as he acknowledges, political and it is of course what he'd like us to think ... (can't blame you for trying James!)

There's an awful lot of picking through to be done. but in terms of what the differences to East Dulwich in particular might be am I right in thinking: IN: Free school meals for all primary school children in all maintained schools (ie not dulwich hamlet if they choose to opt out) cuts in subsidies to community nurseries (eg Gumboots) which may result in some closures, withdrawing subsidy for after school and out of hours (ie holiday) clubs withdrawing "extra" support for failing schools and those seeking improvement cuts to shared services amongst schools (increased thretas because of the academies - eg dulwich hamlet -programme taking more money from shared services) fewer community wardens (prob none in ED as far as I can make out) libraries "under review", cessation of mobile and housebound library services; reduction of days the noise nuisance teans available cuts to support for disabled and older people (though hard to quantify exactly what the impact will be) increase in charges for council provided services (social care) where payments are made, increase in fees for parking, cemetries and licensing, no increase in council tax obviously, there are wider and deeper implications in terms of cuts across services and how people will be affected

Thanks so much for this james. I can see how it's tricky for you to respond straightforwardly (I mean - I can see its deeply political) but your post is really helpful. many thanks

I notice that the budget for next year was approved last night. On the website its really hard to tell what the cuts actually mean without sifting through the Equality Impact Assessments. (link) So far what I can make out is that there will be: Cuts to lollipop folk (at crossings where there are lights) Discontinuation of mobile library service (the one that goes to schools and the one that takes books to disabled people). Its extremely hard to tell from the data published what the impact on the other libraries on teh borough might be. as far as I can tell there is a "review" taking place which measn they cna't be precise. I have to say this looks like a careful cop out and obfuscation. James - you must be a bit more on top of this - can you give us a headline assessment of what the impact might be in the first year or point us to a document that sets this out. (I don't just mean libaries etc I was looking at what I was interested in first)

I have to say I'm pretty satisfied - on the plus side - the parks are good and very well cared for, the libraries aren't closed (yet, I too LOVE the free bulky items collection service, I;ve never had any problems with refuse collection and the one time the recyling van left a dreadful mess one call had it cleared uo within 24 hours, school admissions has had a bad reputation and they seem to have been more than a bit rubbish on their schools places planning but my experience of dealing with them was good: pleasant, humane and efficient. I hated the way they dealt with the Livesey Museum but on the whole, from an entirely subjective perspective, I;d say they're pretty good

As I understand it (very open to correction if I have misunderstood this), The school stops being a community school and becomes a company limited by guarantee with charitable status. There are 3 members of the company (current chair, deputy chair and head ofthe finance committee). They delegate responsibility for management to the governors (currently 18) who delegate to the head etc. Governors cannot be paid for their services as governors The school has to comply with a "funding agreement" and is bound by the Academies Act 2010 (sets out rules on admissions and SEN responsibilities etc). Funds are from the government via the new "Education Funding Agency" (a new body replacing the Young People's Learning Agency and which will also distribute money to Local Authorities for Schools) (so much for less admin!). As a company the school will have to submit accounts to companies house. Despite being a charity they will not be subject to the same monitoring as other charities because they are "exempt charities". OFSTED no longer assessses performance. Complaints by parents would be to the school, them governors via a complaints procedure then, I assume directly to Michael Gove ... (not sure what regulatory role the new Education Funding Agency has).

Otto - I would utterly agree that the present governors seem to be thoroughly good and thoughtful, amazingly committed and experienced. But I disagree that the case has been made. On the contrary, last night they seemed to be saying that we shouldn't worry because there will be no real change, that ALL schools will be getting more autonomy in the future, that they did not have precise costs, that there was no guarantee of longer term financial advantage (as the amount retained by the la will decrease). The financial consultant seemed to say that the main reason for becoming an academy was to take advantage of a window of opportunity when the money to be "saved" by the la not retaining their current percentage was a significant sum - but given that the costings weren't precise this figure wasn't clear. nevertheless, it was a significant sum. I wish they could have sold it more strongly as a brilliant idea.