intexasatthe moment

Snow boots ? Or any of these Decathalon ones ? http://www.decathlon.co.uk/C-309935-hiking-shoes

Anchor has sheltered housing to rent in all London boroughs ,several in Lambeth - Henry Twining Court in Clapham ,one in South Island Place near Stockwell ,Manor Court in Brixton ,one in /near Knatchbull Rd near Camberwell Green . Sorry ,I'm being a bore . Just amazed that some of memory is still there !

Well done snowboarder ! Can you deflate the kids airbeds slightly ? To lessen rolling off ?

I used to clean for a resident at Dulwich Mead . There were key safes at the entrance for carers to gain access so I don't think this need be a problem . I used to work for Anchor Housing several decades ago and at the time with many of their sheltered properties it was possible for an elderly person to move to be near a relative .So an elderly person in say Horsham who had a daughter living in the borough of Southwark could apply for a vacany in Clifton Court ( rented sheltered housing in Peckham http://www.housingcare.org/downloads/facilities/generated-brochures/10464-clifton-court-peckham-england.pdf I can't find requirements quoted in current on line stuff for Anchor . They will vary according to scheme ,location ,local authority and popularity . Back in the day priority used to be given to people with low incomes ,little assets . A lot of the sheltered property was built in the 70's and consisted of bedsits/studio apartments and may be less sought after now with people wanting seperate bedrooms . Anchor is a national ,very large ,very reputable organisation . There are a number of organisations with charitable foundations providing sheltered housing - I've seen the City Of LOndon advertise for tenants for their Sydenham Hill estate a few times ,as I recall they had quite loose requirements regarding residential connections .Might be worth considering http://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/services/housing-and-council-tax/supported-and-sheltered-housing/sheltered-housing-for-older-people/Pages/Mais-House-.aspx Much will depend on your relatives wishes and health of course . There are many things that I know would improve my mothers safety ,health and happiness . But will she entertain them ? Will she hell . If your relative is showing signs of dementia ,and IME people can normally hide this quite well for some time ,this is a big factor . Depending on the diagnosis and prognosis you may need to be considering care homes as opposed to retirement housing . Good luck with it all .

Thanks sdrs . Excellent result I think !

sdrs - has Southwark said they are not going to remove the tree ? Will preserving depend on Southwark being able to build out around it to provide access for wheelchairs and pushchairs ? If Southwark decide this is not feasible for some reason - traffic management ,cost - will they go ahead and fell the tree ?

Mmm - so damage by removal of tree and heave could be more significant than any existing damage currently attributed to the tree ?

I always take hot water bottles . And a really warm jacket + blanket for sitting outside at night . You'll have a lovely time ,I'm envious .

My partner is refusing to believe that Roche's is closed . He had his hair cut there as usual last week . He's in denial I think .

Thank you SO SO much Renata ,that's fantastic news . Well done sdrs , ellabrunswick ,and everyone else . I do so hope that people will respond in favour of keeping the tree and that Southwark will change their minds . After all a consultation hardly differs from a way of keeping people informed about some pre determined plan of action . KK there's a picture up thread showing the location of the tree and the OP has explained that it is a considerable distance from the house itself .

I guess we need a special hustings thread but....while we're at it ,how many new council homes were built under LibDems in Southwark ?

I'm reading these last 2 posts and squirming . I looked carefully along CPR ,up from the Actress to Slyvester Rd and didn't see a box .Kicking myself .

I will be getting some quotes for decorating exterior of window frames and know that scaffolding will be required . The plan is to have some additional work carried out ( downstairs neighbour is keen to do this himself ) also utilsing the scaffolding . Sooo....do I get scaffolding quotes and redocating windows quotes seperately ? Or let windows people provide scaffolding but ask them to itemise it seperately ? Thinking neighbour will require scaffolding for longer period than the redecorators . Please help . My head hurts thinking about this .

Just back from a skirt round carebear but sadly no sighting . Maybe someone has picked them up and will see your post ? Fingers crossed for you . PS Could you have driven off with them on the roof ? Might be further afield ??

DuncanW and samstopit - good on you for responding . Can't promise no further posts at all from me ,but do feel I've got dragged into an endless back and forth debate with LondonMix which I'm not sure is very illuminating for many . Though I guess I think some of the finer points regarding admissions are worth airing so that people don't aren't surprised with what they end up with . But I'll desist . By the way - I too have a vested interest in secondary schools in Southwark and echo the sentiment that either Habs or Charter would be fine to run a school .

" And the council doesn't have 55,000 properties. It has 55,000 freehold properties but 13,500 of those are leasehold properties and not for the council to sell." James could you explain this a bit more ? Did you mean that of the 55,000 properties that Southwark own ,13,500 are leasehold ? Is southwark leasing 13,500 properties from other freeholders ?

I agree with an awful lot of what you say LondonMix - I agree that someone or some organisation should have tried to resolve the admissions difficulties at the Charter many years ago .It continued to remain unaddressed under old regulations ,school status and new . The fact that the only way the issue was resolved was for parents to take action 2 years ago makes me think that both the old regulations and the new were able to be disregarded by the powers that be - Southwark LA and the admissions forum - makes me think that there existed and still exists an inadequacy . It doesn't lead me to think that the current rules and laws are now sufficient to prevent similar things happening . The fact that Habs are not onside with the Lewisham wide method of banding is just that . It's not a criticiscm of Habs ( I've already said that they may have perfectly good reasons for opting for the test they use ) or of Lewisham . But it is of interest because - to me anyway - it demonstrates that they have a certain independence of policy and because I wonder what the implications are if they sponsor a new school in Southwark . I think many people think banding is a simple way of achieving a comprehensive intake for a school and perhaps don't realise that different forms of banding are used with differing effects on an intake . Personally I struggle getting my head round banding and always feel I'm missing something . Schools give very little information about banding on their websites and I think they could be more specific ,explain more . This ,from the schools admission code ,is fairly clear I think Banding 1.25 Pupil ability banding is a permitted form of selection29 used by some admission authorities to ensure that the intake for a school includes a proportionate spread of children of different abilities. Banding can be used to produce an intake that is representative of: a) the full range of ability of applicants for the school(s); b) the range of ability of children in the local area; or c) the national ability range. I'm thinking that Lewisham are going for type b and that Habs are going for type a . Is that what you think LondonMix or am I barking up the wrong tree ? ( I also think that Harris go for c but that's just my reading ) Perhaps I'm overthinking things ,being pedantic . Perhaps it doesn't make much difference what type of banding is used or whether different types of banding co exist in an area . I think only someone with considerably greater numeracy skills than me would know . And even if they explained I probably still wouldn't understand . I just feel that organisations like Harris don't decide on a type of banding by chance * ,I'm sure it's a well researched decision and that it's chosen not just to achieve a mixed intake but also to increase the potential for good exam results . I'd love to hear people's views - even if it's to say " yes ,we think you're being pedantic ,now shut up " ! * anymore than the colour co ordination on the front cover of Southwark's secondary school admission brochure ! http://www.southwark.gov.uk/downloads/download/2484/secondary_school_admissions

Hi LondonMix - I really do think you and I are mainly having a conversation that no one else is interested in and that some of what we are discussing would be better dealt with by PM . If anyone wants to endorse this sentiment please feel free ! Until then - it's obviously a shame that the current code puts less/no emphasis on schools co operating in an effort to have children in an area take only one banding test . I'm sure we all want as little stress as poss for the secondary transfer . I guess it was envisaged that this was the kind of issue that an Admissions Forum could try and resolve . I suppose with Free Schools and the increasing variety of admission policies we shouldn't be surprised that there is a lessening of attempt at coherence/unity - can't think of the right word . I do see what are you saying about Southwark ( both the LA and the admissions forum ) regarding the safe walking distance debacle .You clearly attribute their lack of action not as weakness but a desire to support the school - hope I've got your view right . We don't know what the reasons were behind the failure to refer the matter ,but does it really matter ? Weak or determined it meant that a group of parents had to mount an exhausting campaign to get the school to correctly implement it's admission policy . Habs unwillingness to fully embrace Lewishams banding system ,the fact that parents had to mount their own challenge in Southwark demonstrate how much power schools now have - despite what is specified ,advised or mandated in various codes . The odds seem stacked against the parent if the recourse to failure to respect the code or use the power granted is for parents to have to mount a challenge themselves . I see that you too are now asking for information about the admission forum for Southwark . It would be good to know if one will continue to exist and what it considers its remit to be . ( As distinct from what is laid down by Parliament ) And like you I'd be interested to know more about the type of admissions policies that The Charter and Habs suggested they'd use when having discussions with the steering group .

"I just posted links with the information you asked for- " I didn't ask for a link to gov guidance on Admissions Forums ,I've already read this . My problem is relating that guidance to the reality ,which is why I posed the question to James . He's a local politician ,campaigning for a new school and I hoped he could tell me how in practice the Admission Forum works . I also wasn't asking for any information about the issues regarding the safe walking distance policy at The Charter . I read all this at the time . Have to confess though that your conclusion that it "was not a case of a hapless LA not being able to influence or change policy they didn?t like?they were supportive of Charter?s position ." differs from my reading of the document .

" You so realise it is Lewisham council that set the admission policy.." " what exactly are you trying to add to this discussion about a new school in the area and the choice between Charter and Hatcham? " " Do you think this means they aren't inclusive, are a poor choice for this area? " "Therefore complaining about Hatcham's admissions policy and wishing the council could set it, in this specific instance is totally illogical. " Last was not a question but as it referred to a complaint I hadn't made and used it to conclude that I was being totally illogical I felt the need to respond -)

Samstopit - as I understand it only part of the Dulwich Hospital site is to be used for the proposed school .

LondonMix - I have read the info in both your links before . The latter when I was attempting to understand what Admissions Forums do and are supposed to do . Having looked again at both links it seems to me that Admissions Forums have various obligations - some that they must follow and some that they should . They play an important role "in ensuring that school admission arrangements are fair and comply with admission law and the requirements of this Code " . But I'm not sure that the Southwark Admissions Forum has done this - though I could be wrong . Don't year 6 pupils have to sit banding tests at more than one school - Kingsdale and Harris for example ? ( I could be wrong ) The code says this "Where a number of schools in an area band, they must use a common test, such as the results of QCA Year 5 optional tests conducted in primary schools, to ensure that children are not required to take more than one test." Also it seems clear that the Admissions Forum should have taken action over how The Charter were implementing their admissions policy . " Enforcing the Code 9. the Admission Forum have important powers under Section 90 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 to refer the admission arrangements to the Adjudicator where the admission authority concerned fails to comply with the mandatory provisions of this Code, or where they fail to follow its guidelines " You say "As you can read in the official document below, the Southwark LA actually formally supported Charter?s policy " . This may be so ,and is worrying ,but the only reference to Southwark's position in the link you posted was this The LA's response indicated that it did not consider the School was in breach of the code .Southwark is not the admissions authority for any secondary school in the area and ,for it's primary school's ,uses the " straight line " method of calculating proximity .It is , therefore not in a good position to comment on the technical aspects of the case ." But maybe you're referring to other documents or I've missed something . However with the possibilty of another school in the area with banding as an admissions policy and with a history of what seems to me an Admissions Forum that wasn't quite on top of it's game ( as presumably the Lewisham one wasn't either ,hence them having Habs not using the same banding exam as other Lewisham schools ) it would be good to have clarification on how the Southwark Admission forum sees its role . I thought James as a key person in this campaign might provide this information . Finally ,as I seem now to be responding to your individual queries LondonMix and as I detect a somewhat hostile tone towards me in your posts - would it be better to continue trying to justify myself to you by PM ?

Hi - some info about ( rented ) Southwark sheltered housing here . http://www.southwark.gov.uk/a_to_z/service/84/sheltered_housing Or there are leasehold schemes you can buy into and pay a service charge for extra facilties . There is one in Herne Hill for example http://www.housingcare.org/housing-care/facility-info-17255-dulwich-mead-dulwich-england.aspx I guess it's pretty crucial to work out the level of support your relative needs/wants . There are some extra care sheltered housing schemes ( Anchor Housing ) which bridge the gap a little between sheltered and care homes . McCarthy and Stone do a lot of retirement homes for sale . Anchor Housing do rented sheltered housing ,leasehold for sale ,care homes etc and are well established and respected http://www.anchor.org.uk/ Age UK are good for advice and have loads of fact sheets http://www.ageuk.org.uk/home-and-care/housing-choices/sheltered-housing Good luck .

More to the point I guess - do you know what role the Southwark Admissions Forum plays in schools admissions policies ? My understanding is that LA's have admissions forums but I'm not really clear on their remit or actual influence . Is it just a talking shop attended by some/all reps from Southwark schools ( I'm interested in secondary schools here ) ? Does Southwark have one ,what does it do ? There didn't seem to be much involvement in the 12 year wrangle over exactly what defined a safe walking route in The Charter's admission policy so I'm assuming that their role in overseeing how stated policies operate in practice is limited ? Perhaps this should be a subject for a seperate thread ,but I'm raising it here because I think there is a tendency when discussing individual schools or potential schools to focus narrowly on that school and not to be aware of the wider implications -on public spending ,other schools ,longer term effects ,and the effect on families now and in the future who are applying for secondary school places .

" Hi ITATM, All our local secondary schools operate banding except The Charter School. So it would be odd for a new secondary school to not operate banding. " Thanks James - well aware of that . That's why I'm suggesting that the new school operate the same banding system as the one used by Harris who have a large number of secondary schools in the area . Oh ,and before you point it out - yes I do realise that Kingsdale have their own banding system . Which as it operates scholarships perhaps has more in common with Habs .