sedm

My two favourite food haunts are the Blue Brick cafe (it's veggie but I'm a meat eater and the food is great) and the Thai on Northcross Road Both have lovely food and relaxed atmosphere

The fact that Lord Harris has donated to David Cameron is, I feel, a red herring. He set up his first academies under Labour with their backing. It's pretty clear that the reason the Gvt is supportive of Harris academy chain is that they are bloody successful - often in tough areas.

The Harris schools that I have experience of are exceptional schools which give real opportunities to children in south london.

I've had the same experience with Winkworth, despite asking them numerous times...

We've recently had a damp proof course done on a converted Victorian flat by Kenwood, who I wouldn't necessarily recommend. The one thing they did discover that may be of use to you, is that there were two blocked in chimneys which hadn't been properly vented. I wouldn't have realised they were there, but they were located quite close to the two worst damp patches. They are easy to fix because you just have to put vents in the top and bottom of the chimneys, and I think probably quite prevalent in Victorian houses.

I love Lordship Lane as it is... but... would love a sushi place (which does takeaway) plus cheap n cheerful Italian restaurant Other than that, I'm happy (and I love all the coffee places!)

As someone who has recently moved to East Dulwich, I will definitely try and do my Christmas shopping from local shops. The stories about big multi national companies avoiding paying UK tax (Amazon and the like) has really spurred me on to support the high street!

Thanks James, that's very helpful. I think there are two leasehold flats and two freehold - I will definitely consider buying the freehold in the future. If you have a freehold in the block, does that mean you don't have to contribute to communal costs?

Thanks so much for the replies. All very helpful - I will definitely join the Leaseholders Association. I've just had quite a helpful conversation with someone at Southwark Council, who has said that they haven't inspected my property yet so can't say exactly what will be needed. But they confirmed electrical/boiler/insulation works won't apply to me as a leaseholder. He said that they will check the windows, roof etc to see if there is a problem but if the condition is ok then I won't have to pay anything, although if they do decide to replace the windows the cost will be ?3-4000 plus fees etc. And he also said it's unlikely there will be any other major works within a 10 year period. So that's put my mind at rest somewhat... although of course it's still a risk because if they do, for instance, find a problem in the roof I could be stung. Also, interestingly, I found out there's only two leaseholdes in my block which makes me think I might try and buy the actual freehold in the future.

Thanks for the reply. It's a large house on a residential street that has been divided up into four flats. So not a council block... I've got access to the last couple of years of service charges which are all in the ?200 region but clearly the major works are going to be far greater than that...

Hello, I am on the verge of buying a property in East Dulwich, Southwark Council is the landlord. Everything is going well so far, but it has just been flagged up to me that the Council is planning major works "for boiler/insulation works/ electrical works and window works scheduled for the year 2014/2015." I've heard some horror stories about people being hit for bills worth tens of thousands of pounds... plus the previous owners of the flats have put in new windows & electrical works in the last few years so I don't understand why this is needed. Should I be worried? Does anyone have any similar experiences about being hit for costs for works and do you know roughly how much I could be shelling out? Or whether I could get out of paying? Thanks!