intexasatthe moment

e- dealer The building's internal accomodation exceeds current standards for 900 pupils. Not doubting the vaiidity of your comment but I would be interested in more details ,have you a link giving current standards ? And some idea of the Academy's internal specification to make a comparison ?

Well actually the generator that was disturbing my sleep went last Friday. Maybe something else is cause of your problem. Sympathy anyway.

James - bit of cross posting with your Can I help Thread ,I think. My ongoing concern is with Southwark Secondary Schools and I have been querying with you the assertion that Caroline Pidgeon had negotiated a common entrance policy. You think that common entrance application form = common entrance policy and I disagree. You have responded to both me and Steveo - I think we should be allowed to keep posting if we are not happy with your reply or feel that it doesn't answer our concern without sarcastic remarks about " being the councillor solely for Steveo ".

James - as far as I am aware Lib Dems supported central gov policy to create Academies. I read your comment we bit our tongues to ensure the best for our Southwark kids in these central government led circumstances. as disengenous. As far as school admissions are concerned - Southwark Secondaries do not have a common entrance policy ,they all control their own admissions criteria and they vary hugely. A common entrance application form ( as negotiated by Caroline Pidgeon ) is not the same thing as as a common entrance policy.

James - as far as I can see Steveo has asked about the cost of producing Southwark Life and resurfacing roads. It's true that he has persisted with his enquiries in an effort to get an answer. Is that wrong ? You seem to be implying that he is monopolising your services . I'm trying to answer your queries without becoming the councillor solely for Steveo

James - I don't really have anything to add to my post My enquiry was initially prompted by your remarks about Caroline Pidgeon securing a common admissions policy . I agree ,we do now have a system that uses a common application form ,it's just the admissions criteria that vary so much. With a child who went through secondary transfer prior to 2002 ,I don't recognise the situation you describe - yes ,individual application forms ,but state schools weren't all asking year 6 to take tests. I note your remark that you don't approve of Academies in principle and that it's the Governments choice that this is the " only show in town ". But didn't Lib Dems support the Academy movement until recently http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6008298 ? Isn't it a bit disengenous to distance yourself from the fact that Southwark now have so many schools that control their admissions policies and are not accountable to parents or Southwark I don't know what words I can use ( PM or not ) to make it clear that I am unhappy because you said that Caroline Pidgeon had secured a " common admissions policy " for Southwark Secondary Schools. You ignore all my comments about the different admissions criteria now required by Southwark Secondary Schools - which in my book means that no commons admissions policy exists ,and start talking about school application forms. To crown it all you try to shift the responsibilty for this situation by saying I guess this is another downside to the Governments answer to secondary school places being Acadamies. And yes I am against them on principal but it is the 'only show in town'. As far as I know ,Lib Dems supported the Academy movement until they did a U turn a few weeks ago. This kind of exchange is pointless and is not you trying to be helpful ,it is you ignoring the question and trying to score a political point.

Oh Hal ,fascinating link .Thank you ! But sorry - the pedant in me can still only regard " as a quotation mark. ' is an apostrophe.

Uniforms are great aren't they ? I wonder why we don't all wear uniforms as adults ? Employers could specify colours and style for employees and the state could issue regulations for all those unwaged. How sad - apart from jobs where it seems to be important that the public can identify employees -in this country the wearing of uniform ( and all its many advantages )seems to be lost when people become 16 or ,increasingly ,18.

What's the name of the new brand you started on Weds ?

Admin ,quick lock this thread . Over in Family Room ,they're trying to put it all behind them.

Lady muck - it was to do with quotation "marks " and double quotation ""marks "".

Stevo - I'm grateful that you are persuing issues with JB. I can't take up the cudgels but would like to thank and support you for your questions.( which I notice are never really answered ). I too persisted with an enquiry re common applications for Southwark secondary schools only to be ,eventually, fobbed off with a reply which completely ignored the main issues. So be it . I don't have the intellect /time /energy to play debating games. In a few years time people will wake up and realise what's happened. As for priorities for roads to be resurfaced,my view is the opposite to Horsebox.Is he/she really cycling up the same road as me ? And James -Residents in each community council area were asked to comment on roads that needed renewing. - could you explain how they were asked ?

I thought opening another entrance rather a good idea . Actually ,come to think of it ,when my offspring went there a decade ago ,more than one entrance was open. No doubt some security reason as to why no longer possible ( if in fact only one entrance now in use ).

Wouldn't have thought any discussion was necessary .

Well if it's the contractors working on the ex Dulwich Van Hire site ( and from the road nos it sounds very near them ) they get no sympathy from me. I rarely use the adjacent bus stop ,but was horrified a couple months ago to see large lorry off loading something by hoist - heavy load swinging across pavement ,off side wheels of delivery vehicle lifting from road and no one oversseing pedestrian safety . I couldn't understand why lorry didn't pull on to site ,but if it couldn't why was no one keeping an eye out for people ( family groups at bus stop ) to warn to keep away from this stretch ? and the pavement was certainely cracked and messed up. And yes I should have spoken to someone /reported it - but didn't, other things got in the way.

Yes of course ,they're carrying out work to the road - they must be either skiving or thieving materials and ripping off vulnerable people.

edited to remove traces of fit of pedantry

Not in any way defending selfish /illegal parking ,but I think often it's not so much that parents are using their cars to drive children to school ,but that they are on their way to work and drop children off before continuing their journey.

I think I'd like to see these sinusoidal humps - even if they only reduce the jarring that would be a result. Are there any around here ?

Thanks James . Sorry for not taking this into account . I thought the bend and the bendy buses exiting Etherow St slowed traffic down - but first to admit I'm no expert . I'm still not comvinced that it's sensible to have 2 different speed restrictions on this road.

James - re 20 mph limits Thanks for reply . But I don't really follow - understand you are frustrated at police not agreeing to trial average speed cameras. - don't understand much of the reasoning from police - has to involve trial runs of cars going at 100mph ? Presume this restricts average speed cameras to non residential roads ,maybe only motorways ? Northern end of Barry Rd has 40mph speed ? Which bit is that ? Gosh it's hard to know what the speed limits are on roads ! - don't understand why you are frustrated that Barry Rd currently has 30mph restriction throughout ? You haven't helped me at all in my struggle to understand why it might be sensible to have, as proposed, these two different speed limits on Barry Rd .Is the section to the south of Underhill Rd different in character from the bit to the north ?

What a shame that your expectations weren't met. Archive: Sinusiodal humps September 2nd, 2009 by James Barber However, one type of hump doesn?t seem to have this problem - sinusoidal humps. They?re curved like a wave. Not quite as effective at traffic calming as regular ?round topped? humps but boy are they more comfortable for vehicle occupants and safer for cyclists. With the executive councillor Paul Kyriacou agreement it is now Southwark Council policy that all new humps will be sinusoidal. I also expect when old humps get replaced during maintenance that they?ll be replaced with sinusoidal humps.

Can you post a link ?

Hi James - not really expecting you to understand my concerns on this but - 20mph consultation showed part of Barry Rd as already having a restriction - on stretch going north from junction with Underhill. I couldn't recall any speed signs here so queried it . Response confirmed that no 20mph limit is currently in place . The whole length of Barry Road is 30mph limit at present. The proposal includes introducing a 20mph speed limit on Barry Road from its junction with Lordship Lane to its junction with Underhill/Whateley Road .I do apologise for the confusion on the drawing. This seems odd ;I personally think Barry Rd should stay at 30mph ,but if there is to be a change ( and we all know that consultations aren't about acting on views expressed ) why change only a section of this road? And if you read the documentation sent you will be under the impression that the proposed change is to rectify a situation where Barry Rd is part 20mph and part 30 mph - you won't realise that in fact it's introducing this scenario. You're driving along at 30mph and when you reach the Underhill junction you suddenly switch to 20mph ? ( or vice versa ) . Can you make sense of this part of the proposal ? ( I know you've said that you've spent hours discussing this .) Incidentally I thought that Barry Rd looked as though it had a relatively low level of accidents,when compared to other roads , on the map that you posted . I could well be wrong - I found it hard to read ,so you may need to correct me .

Right ,ok ,here's the answer The whole length of Barry Road is 30mph limit at present. The proposal includes introducing a 20mph speed limit on Barry Road from its junction with Lordship Lane to its junction with Underhill/Whateley Road .I do apologise for the confusion on the drawing. Which then raises the question - what's the rationale behind a speed limit of 20mph on only part of Barry Rd. You're driving along at 30mph and when you reach the Underhill junction you suddenly switch to 20mph ? ( or vice versa ) And if you've not all dozed off yet - personally I think Barry Rd should be left at 30mph .