mattH

Hi all, I would just like to give a recommendation for Rhys Owen of Pensaer architecture: https://www.pensaer.london/ [email protected] As builders we have worked on a number of Pensaer projects. What we like is the design touches that make for interesting projects. From Bathrooms and Garden makeovers with a wow factor to extensions. Our most recent project with Pensaer was a low carbon build where we swapped out high carbon items for low impact alternatives. (concrete and Steel for 80% lower carbon footings and GluLam. Structural block walls swapped for structural timber for a 2 story extension... Rhys and his team are really nice people and attentive when there are issues to be resolved - which of course there always are! I thoroughly recommend them as a firm.

Dear?EastDulwich001 I am truly sorry for the experience you had. I completely?accept that the work was well below our standard.?Due to too much work I passed this job onto a?subcontractor.?A decision I deeply regret and take full responsibility for. I know how difficult?it is to find someone you can trust to work on your home?and?I have spent years developing a capable and experienced team so as to minimise?potential?complications. Unfortunately, sometimes things do?go wrong and, if this happens,?we always want to put them right. I?did offer?to rectify this work at my own expense, which you declined. I understand and respect that choice as your bad?experience broke the trust you had in us. I do feel professionally frustrated?that we weren?t able to resolve?this. In response to this experience we no longer use subcontractors and have reduced our workload so as to be able to maintain standards. This obviously doesn?t resolve things for you and?I apologise unreservedly to you for the stress that this must have caused. The offer is still open...

Dear all, East Dulwich Forum Legal Hive mind...... If a company is contracted out to do works, can a resident refuse to allow them to continue - where that resident has not made the contract? Details: A friend of mine is a leaseholder and has been presented with a charge for maintenance and renovation works.... The contract for the works is between a social housing management company and the contractor. I am a builder and the charges he mentioned I know to be ?500% above competitive market rates on average. The charge Flat roof repair using a fibreglass system is 800% more than market rates... So, Both the Leaseholders and the social housing company will have to pay massively over the odds if the works continue. I have flagged this with officers in the department, flagged it with various councillors. Question for the Hive mind: Is there a legal way a tenant or leaseholder can refuse to let third party contractors onto their property? Second. Where the faulty works have caused water damage, can this be grounds for tenants refusing to let contractors on their premises?

Hello all, many thanks for the replies and the PM's. Much appreciated!! I went for A frog bike for my eldest. (7y old) and an isla bike for my youngest. Both great bikes and they are happily wizzing about!! After purchase i saw a 5y old sppeding about in Peckham Rye park on a very smart looking bike. His father told me it about it. Early rider pedal bike - see link. Very smart looking machine!! Worth checking out i think.. http://www.springsandthingscycles.co.uk/bikes-c1/childrens-bikes-c16/early-rider-early-rider-belter-16-belt-drive-pedal-bike-p1012/s1014?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_term=early-rider-belter-16-quot-belt-drive-pedal-bike-erbr16&utm_campaign=product%2Blisting%2Bads&gclid=Cj0KEQjwiN6sBRDK2vOO_vaRs5cBEiQAfsnJCa0WKmICWHhyiaWNAsxnZyD-Xvl67azSn_SaLO4Q_2oaAuFV8P8HAQ

Ok i know.. I should call a solicitor! I have a friend who is in the process of applying to the family court for access rights for his daughter. She is used to a regular rhythm of contact amounting to 1/3rd of a year. This was stopped and the fathers contact reduced to 1 hour a week in a contact centre. He applied to court. the ruling was that the contact centre meetinging would continue.. The father - from the tone of the recent E-mails believes the mother wants to allow contact outside the centre... Does anyone know if she is allowed to do this legally with the courts ruling? My Friend's English is not so good so i have offered to do the research for him. Best, MattH

To Good Liz and etta166, thanks for your thoughts.. that's a great help. Ill check out the Dawes version. Frog bikes also look good. At present i want something they want to get on and muck about on outside of the school/park run - enough to get us up to sydenam hill woods from crofton park for instance... In truth all the decent childrens bikes i have found that may be good are all fairly pricey.. I guess this is a good sign. Quality holding value.

Hello, I have a islabike balance bike for my son... I keep looking at him speeding along and think... Son you are ready for pedal power. Ideally I'd like another Islabike. However they are expensive even second hand. For good reason of course, they are a high quality piece of kit!! I thought i'd ask here if anyone can recommend any other kids bikes before i leap once more into Isla world... Light weight, easy to ride, functional brakes that are easy to use.. I think that's it.. Any advice greatfully received! Best, Matthew

You may be able to get quotes yourself for the works - In my experience councils massively overcharge for this kind of stuff. you may - I don't know, be able to set up what's called a RTM - it's a management company set up by the freeholders. you then organise works yourselves. It's a simple process that will save you thousands if you can do it. Call me and I'll talk you through it. Matthew 07939530699

I would not recommend seeing what happens. This is not a good idea at all. The gas saftey cert you have has fairly obviously been signed by someone for ?40 in the pub. Or some other equivalent situation. The guy that installed/fixed the boiler couldn't correctly give you a cert there and then, because he wasn't legally allowed to install/fix the problem. A gas safety check will set you back ?60-90. My advice would be just to pay it. Then, you may be out of pocket by ?60-90, but you will have peace of mind. I'd be very happy to help write a letter to your landlord that might persuade them to refund you. I'm quite good at things like that. Then, Get out of renting from this landlord as quickly as possible. If she is prepared to send around an UNREGISTERED man/woman to install a boiler who has then arrange for someone else to sign off the boiler as safe without even seeing it. You should get out ASAP. You could do potential tenants a favour and warn them off renting from her. Penny pinching is not how I'd describe that kind of behaviour. That's just plain wrong.

Thanks a lot for these replies, I'm feeling more settled about it now... I just had a conversation with a teacher - I'm quoting for work in his home and he told me the thing to look for in a school is the "contextual value added" score. He explained it as being a good indicator or how well the school is really doing with the particular intake of students it has... Very interesting. Worth a bit of internet searching for more info me thinks.

Bring him in the bed with you. all my sons stayed in the bed with us - they still wake up but.. your there. sorry this is probably crap advice from a man and i can't say how our nights would have been if they were in their own bed. I wish you all the luck and wisdom in the world.

All good points. It's very useful to have your thoughts.... I should have done all this a long time ago. It feels a very important decision, especially as my two sons are so different in Character, temperament and the way their intelligence expresses itself. I guess i shouldn't worry so much - the majority of my confusion was and is about how to choose from 4 very good schools.... Each good in a different way.. I appreciate the time you've taken for replying.. Best, Matthew P.S. @ silly woman, you should change your EDF name. your not so silly.

sensible. Thank you.

Hello, My partner and myself have visited all the local schools for our son. We live in Honor Oak Park. Felix - son said he likes kilmorie - two children came across the nursery to hang out with him when we visited and all looked relaxed with each other. Lots of space, all the kids looked happy - the head - a sense of vagueness, underwhelmed me... Rathfren's new head is passionate about giving children the skills and desire and confidence to learn. She is a self-assured head now running a top class school - other schools are consulting to follow their lead. All the teachers that I saw - all of them looked confident as teachers, calm classes attentive comprehending students, Dalmain - has a fantastic provision for arts and music really great. Gordonbrook seemed to be a mix of Rathfern and kilmorie Brockley School was in special measures, new head, new staff, up and coming, great art provision... quite impressed All good, our son will be fine at any of them. He would choose kilmorie, but I'm his dad and have to think of him over the next few years and his adjustment to secondary. These schools are in Lewisham. So question for you... For those of you who want your children to be well adjusted, self confident and successful (as a street cleaner, scientist shop assistant, politician, gardener or whatever) (for me above all Happy).... do I go for the school my son has chosen or the one with the fantastic teaching team - maybe with less focus on all round learning.... or maybe another.. do i go with what my heart, head or guts tell me? or what..... any thoughts greatly appreciated...