Pugwash

Daughter in Worthing goes to a specialist Children's hair dresser - they have rockets/cars etc to sit the kids in. Pays ?10 for each child (2 and 4) say it is more expensive than local hairdresser who charges around ?6 but the extra is worth it as kids tend to sit quietly and do not moan/cry etc.

Look up in the 'Which' magazines - they regularly test kettles for noise. We have a Phillips - a little noisy but not too bad.

Having Auburn hair, my eldest daughter, when at university dyed her hair black, it did not suit her, went to a hair dresser to get the dye out some time later. Hair never returned to the beautiful auburn colour and went and stayed at non descript brown. Her daughter, a strawberry blond, did the same but did not use a permanent dye, so her hair returned to a pale ginger colour - she now uses mainly red semi permanent dyes of different shades. Youngest daughter with very dark brown hair had no desire throughout her teenage and university years to change colouring. Now a mum of 2 is currently red, previously aubergine. I suggest highlights or low lights as a compromise for a full head colouring. Ward of warning - schools can come down heavily on changes in hair colouring.

I am afraid it is not as easy as you think, GPs have catchment areas and if you are outside these areas you will not be permitted to join that surgery. Many years ago our family were not happy with the surgery we were registered with. ( I had been with the same GP surgery for most of my life but when the senior partner died suddenly the practice went downhill) We eventually registered with The Gardens. However, their catchment area has now changed and our road is outside the area, whilst we can still use the surgery, a relative who moved in in December has to go to another practice.

Whilst I have no problems with boards etc on businesses own 'land' it is sometimes difficult to tell which is 'public pavement' and which is 'business' . Some shops you can see this clearly as the composition of the pavement is different. I vaguely remember something on the forum last year which states that permission has to be sought from the council as to the number of chairs and tables permitted outside establishments and that a charge is made by the council per table/chair. Cam anyone else remember this or is it a figment of my imagination? Especially at weekends when more people are about, I think businesses need to rethink where their boards are placed. Having pushed a wheelchair in LL at weekend, avoiding boards, broken pavements, tree stumps etc as well has people with prams stopping to chat mid pavement, can be a nightmare. You must also think of those who are visually impaired and boards may constitute a trip[ hazard.

We have had cats for many years, all but 2 have been 'rehomed'. 2 were because new private landlord did not allow pets and family were also on the 3 rd floor of converted house. 1 was due to a relationship breakdown, 1 was due to the death of it's elderly owner (he had arranged with us before his death that we would take her). Another cat was rescued from an abusive owner by a friend, but did not get on with her other cats so asked us to take her. We currently have 3 female cats. All use the cat flap and rarely go further than 2 houses each side and the houses adjoining the back of house. Many people will take on a cat from the Forum if the owner needs genuinely to rehome.

Some schools will not allow a day off for family funerals - our grandson had to go 'sick' in order to attend his great grandfather's funeral in Sussex.

Just been informed that table Tennis can be played between 12.30 and 2 pm on a Thursday

Anyone can go - it starts around 12ish for a couple of hours - check with the ladies in the Caf? - they will give you the correct times. Only one table and it does not offer training. bring your own bat and balls. At the moment has around 6 regular attendees ( although today there was only 4).

Many thanks for all suggestions - Crystal Palace will require 2 bus journeys, as would Brockwell Park. Hornimans, Goose Green and Ceramic place only one bus. I do not think she has ever been on a bus as living out in Sussex, her family have to use cars to get to local supermarkets as buses do not go near these. I gather she went this week to Marvells Zoo ? just outside Portsmouth and was excited by the big cats!

It seems that multi occupied houses are particularly vulnerable as the front door does not have appropriate locks (mainly as landlords do not see security of communal areas as a priority)also tenants/leaseholders do not always double lock the main door. Once the burglars are in, they can easily access all rooms/flats in the building.

On Thursday Afternoons in the back hall at Christ Church Barry Road- there is a table tennis session as part of the Bits and Pieces Group that meets there. It is held around lunch time. My husband and son in law play each week, and there is often 3 or 4 others joining in.

In some areas (not London) car owning residents are issued with free 'residents parking stickers' with car registration details listed on them. Would this be cheaper than introducing a CPZ ?- any vehicle without these stickers would be subject to parking fines.

Tesco and Asda good for school uniform or try Sainsbury's at Bell Green

Many thanks for all the suggestions - I have used the ceramic painting place by Goose Green playground before when our other grandchildren were younger and had thought of this. I cannot remember whether she is currently 'anti swimming' as blows hot and cold re this activity ( her Mum was taking her to the local pool since she was 4 months old) and currently the water in the leisure centre is on the cold side. (she is also just getting over Chicken pox) Hopefully one day will be the ceramic painting followed by a short play in the playground and maybe an ice cream at Ooddono's. next day at Hornimans and quiet play/activity at home with glitter/glue etc. Thanks for the edtots website that was extremely useful. We did think of the cinema but she likes to be on the go all the time and unlikely to sit still for length of film. However will spend 2 - 3 hours drawing and colouring!

With regards to mobility - the criteria for a Blue Badge or a designated disabled bay is quite strict, People who may be able to walk for say 10 minutes at a time and cover a short distance i.e, Dulwich Library - top of Crystal Palace Road, are unlikely to be eligible for either of the above. My family when they visit usually end up parking 2 streets away (evenings and weekends) but they do not have mobility issues.

My youngest daughter went to university in Brighton, her and then fianc? were renting but decided to look for a flat to buy. In July when they looked a 1 bed flat was from around ?75,000 by the September prices rose to over ?100,000. They looked in Hove, even more expensive, and gradually worked their way down the coast to Worthing and finally got a 3 bed house in Goring on Sea for ?125,000 on a former council estate. This was about 8/10 years ago Brighton is very crowded and with 2 universities and a language school, rented property is very hard to find at a reasonable rent. (daughter paid ?650 pm for 1 bed flat in 2007/8 - the cheapest they could find) Transport costs are comparable to London and council tax about the same. Refuse collection is poor with limited recycling facilities. Child care costs are high. Food costs slightly more expensive than London unless you go to the big supermarkets outside town. Employment is hard to find and generally wages are just above minimum wage ( but this depends obviously on type of work and if you have professional qualifications etc) Despite all the negatives, my daughter states that she would never return to live in London, she has the beach under 2 miles a way, within a 15 minute drive they can be on the South Downs. Supermarkets are also within a 15 minute drive - with plenty of parking. She has a row of local shops within a 20 minute walk for basic essentials including a very good butchers. However, her work involves a 15 mile drive each way journey across country as no public transport (nearest station some 3/4 miles away).

We are having our 4 year old grand daughter staying for 3 days from 9th April. She has not stayed with us without her parents before. so a new experience for all of us. She is a very lively child and apart from Hornimans, can anyone suggest other local places to visit or activities? we are both arthritic pensioners who find walking around for long periods very tiring (even getting to Dulwich Park can be difficult at times) Is there any ball pits in pubs around here? Children's activities where you can just drop in and not having to book. We will be using buses to get around (she has never been on a bus). Since our other grandchildren are in their teens we are out of touch with pre school age activities.

Hubby went to Leisure Centre today and found it was closed as boiler had broken down and no hot water.

The way forward surely would be to try and negotiate with Sainsbury's that part of their car park be sectioned off as a general car park with daily or hourly charges. I am thinking the part near where all the recycling bins used to be - whenever I go to Sainsburys - I see very few cars parked down that end. Commutors could be encouraged to park here. CPZ - can understand the need for this - my daughter used to live near Worthing station and when not working had to remember to move her care else where between 12 - 2 pm as the CPZ came into force Mon - Friday during those times

My grand kids secondary school - you pay a month up front and it is a card system (like an Oyster card you touch a screen) money is deducted from the monthly amount and days not having school meals, are 'carried over' to next month. Grand daughter used to spend around ?1.30 per meal, but on odd days decided to spend more as she had not used up the month's allowance.

Hubby (over 65) got an email reminder re annual membership ?160 and asked at the Leisure Centre why this had increased from ?3 pa and was advised to ignore it - was meant for those under pension age.

One of our relatives is on benefit and although she has her money paid into the bank, she has been refused a card because of poor credit rating as ran up a large overdraft by paying everything by card initially.

I had a weird thing last month, severe pains in legs and hip, nausea, shivering, dizziness, unable to stand more than a few seconds, loss of appetite. It came on hours after I had a burger at a local restaurant ( I think this was coincidental) Husband got me an emergency appointment at GP who tested urine, heart, blood pressure, blood sugars and was perplexed as all were normal. Sent me off for blood tests and rang me back a couple of days later to say I had a bladder infection and was giving me antibiotics. Had to go for a further blood test a week later which discovered that infection was gradually improving. Took me around 3 weeks to get back to 'normal'

My memories of Woolworths also go back to the 1950s. If you can find a Kellys Directory for the late 1940s (should be in reference library) you can look up Lordship Lane and find all the shops/businesses listed.