espelli

Knights Academy opened in 2005. http://www.haaf.org.uk/CEOs-Welcome Malory was a tough school and in some ways it is reassuring that Askes didn't use the methods for dramatically improving schools that some academy chains are reported to use but I would think that they would be putting all their energies into improving a school they have run for almost ten years and making sure that the re build of the old Monson Primary site opens so that those children can move out of their temp accommodation on the Hatcham site.

I had glue ear in both ears followed by burst eardrums last year and really empathise with your son at school Belle. I'm a teacher and the classroom (Year 1) was almost unbearable at times. I couldn't tell where sounds were coming from and often could see that someone right in front of me was talking to me but I could only only hear the general noise in the room. It was very frustrating. I don't know how much hearing I lost at the time but it felt significant in the difference it made to normal life. I work in a Victorian building and the stairs were the worst in terms of noise affecting me. The sound of feet and voices bouncing around left me feeling jangled for a while afterwards so I can understand how children struggle to concentrate in lessons and sometimes have a dip in their behaviour. We have made a rule for silence on the stairs at my school now and it has made a massive difference to the children - not just the ones we knew had hearing issues/glue ear.

I also saw Teresa Arias at Kings for a debrief and found my session with her was really helpful. I was also concerned that my experience with my son would be repeated in any future pregnancy(he was born at 32 weeks by EMCS after a scan showed he was in difficulty)I was put in contact with Teresa after I went into the PALS office at Kings when I was there for something else and at the time my son was about 18 months old so don't worry about the amount of time that has elapsed!

I had some done at JH Skincare who are now over the hill in Sydenham. http://www.jhskincareclinic.co.uk/treatments/minor-cosmetic-treatments/ It was a few years ago but would recommend them for really good treatment and aftercare.

I would echo what buggie said, my baby was prem and while I was desperate to get breastfeeding going as I was having trouble expressing, my son was just not strong enough or old enough to latch properly until he was around 34 weeks. I did go on to breastfeed even though he was tube fed for the first few weeks. The best support for breastfeeding I got was from one of the scbu nurses, but she didn't intervene to begin with until my son was showing definite rooting actions when put to the breast. It seemed to take an age to all kick in though!

Can you ask the receptionist for a copy of the complaints procedure? It will probably say that if you are unhappy with the response from the head you can make a formal complaint to the chair of governors. As the head hasn't replied to you, you could include that in your complaint! The Local Authority have no control over Academies. Beyond that you could take it to the CEO of the academy chain.

We have a John Lewis own brand washer dryer and I love it. We have had it almost 4 years and got it secondhand from someone on here so I don't know what their current model is like. I hope I'm not going to jinx anything but its still going strong!

I would also contact southwark duty team. Buggie makes a really good point - your information could be really important in helping with an assessment of what the family might need. I have been involved in several child protection conferences (part of my job in a primary school) where the key information has come from neighbours and has enabled the right level of support to be put in place. If you were at all worried that the baby may be in danger then you could call 999 and the police would do a welfare check. Pre-mobile babies are particularly vulnerable. It's very unsettling to call social services and as Buggie says, it never gets any easier. I still feel sick every time I make a referral but it has to be done.

If you have boys this may be useful to you. A friend of mine has worked with this project and rates it very highly. http://www.boysdevelopmentproject.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Discipline-and-Boys-under-5-booklet-pdf.pdf

Strawbs, I'm really sorry if I came across as condescending I really didn't mean to be. I also didn't mean that your expectations of your son needed shifting, I had meant the expectations of the wider public and it was responding to posters here who said they have found it upsetting when others have made comments. I didn't explain myself very well and I should probably have thought twice about posting late at night! Getting into the woods - there is a gate opposite the Harvester but their car park is closed off now. There is also one on Sydenham Hill (near the roundabout with Kirkdale) opposite Castle Bar nursing home and there is free parking around there. There is also a gate on Crescent Wood Road and there is parking there too. http://www.wildlifetrusts.org/reserves/sydenham-hill-wood-and-coxs-walk

I have been reading this thread with interest. My 20 month old is also on the go all the time and we spend a lot of time at the park so that he can run around. I haven't met your children and I apologise if I am misunderstanding things but reading the posts here has made me wonder whether our expectations are maybe the thing that needs a subtle shift? There was an article on the BBC news site the other day about how 50% of children need to be more active at the age of 7 and that, combined by the number of people posting here about their children's energy levels and exploits makes me wonder whether your children have got it right and its the culture of classes for very small children that expects them to sit still and listen and follow complex rules that needs questioning? They will get plenty of that when thay are at school and aren't able to roam around the park exploring for much of the day. Some children will enjoy different group activities at a young age, but others are too busy exploring their world to be constrained by someone else's rules. I would try the woods - I have taken children who were school age and who had a certain level of wild behaviour (including some with diagnoses of ADHD and ASD - although I am not suggesting that any of your children would have) and whether it is the all encompassing nature of the woods or that the sounds are different or the fact that there is so much to see and focus on (but it is all fairly close as your field of vision is limited by the trees) and it is all open ended and available to any imagination it can have a profoundly calming effect on many children. The woods - in the same way as the parks - are available to each child to interact with at their own pace and interest level.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Cant-You-Sleep-Little-Bear/dp/1844284913/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1376215025&sr=1-1&keywords=cant+you+sleep+little+bear Can't you sleep little bear is lovely http://www.amazon.co.uk/Peepo-Board-Book-Janet-Ahlberg/dp/0141337427/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1376215100&sr=1-1&keywords=peepo+board+book and Peepo is a favourite here too.

He will only become eligible for the 15 hours the term after he turns three, which will be in January. Some school nurseries may take children in January as well as September so it may be worth checking with your nearest schools to see if this is an option for this January so that you only need to move him once.

Jojo Maman Bebe sell these http://www.jojomamanbebe.co.uk/sp+littlelife-safety-id-straps-in-baby-and-toddler-out-and-about+b1329 the Lordship Lane branch might have them in stock. Otherwise you could write your contact details on a bit of paper and put it in a shoe.

I had my son at 32 weeks and he was 3lb 6oz when he was born so not the tiniest in SCBU at the time but small enough to cause friends to be wary of cuddling him! He had two 'ages' for a while - his actual age and his adjusted age (the age he should have been from his due date). He developed at the rate appropriate for his adjusted age and I sometimes used to tell people I met in cafes or baby groups that he was his adjusted age because he was so small. He is now coming up to 20 months and developing at the same rate as other babies of his age. It is possible that babies born early will have special needs either with learning or physically but I would listen to the SCBU nurses as they are amazing and really know their stuff. The babies may develop slower than other babies to begin with and I would be lying if I said I wasn't anxious about that but many babies catch up eventually. I am a teacher and I have worked with a number of sets of twins and some of them were very early but not all have had any lasting effect of this by the time they get to school. Those that have had been very sick when they were born. It sounds like your friend's twins are doing well and so there is every probability that they will not suffer any lasting effect of their premness. Your friend will need you to help her normalise her experience with them - I really appreciated it when people refrained from telling me how small my son was because to me he was perfect and I just wanted people to enjoy him in the way they would any newborn! Good luck with your own pregnancy. SCBU is a place where all the things that can go wrong in pregnancy and birth are very obvious but it is worth remembering that most people don't experience SCBU for their babies so don't let it worry you for your baby.

I agree with what canela has said - inroducing a dummy (or my son sucks the ear of his bunny toy) may help him to get the comfort from sucking to help him off to sleep and to resettle him if he wakes in the night. If my son stirs now I just put bunny's ear to his mouth and he calms down instantly. This book has been recommended as a gentle way to get a baby into a routine and supports co-sleeping http://www.amazon.co.uk/No-Cry-Sleep-Solution-Through-Foreword/dp/0071381392 although I haven't used it myself. I'm afraid I haven't got any advice about weaning off breast feeding, although there have been some discussions on here in the past which may come up in a search. Good luck, I hope you get less broken nights soon!

I lived there a few years ago - pre children but if I were going to go back now with baby I would consider the transfer to the resort as well as the resort itself. Transferring by seaplane will involve waiting around for longer after your 9 hr flight but gives you access to further away resorts and can be quicker than some speedboat transfers but the speedboat transfers will be for your flight so as soon as everyone going to your island is out of baggage reclaim and through customs the boat will go. Sri Lankan also used to fly direct - I don't know if they still do or if the planes stop in Colombo on the way. Emirates and Qatar were the other options but they have a change involved. The weather is pretty constantly hot although it is often wetter in our Summer months but that can vary between a short tropical shower in the afternoon and a few full days of monsoon rain. The sea also gets rougher at those times which will not affect the beaches as they are protected by the reefs but will affect your transfers and any trips out of the resort you wanted to do. My memories of resorts is probably out of date - I know a couple have changed names, I went to a few while I was there but all of them were fantastic in different ways. The beaches are fabulous but the most impressive part is under the water and if you can arrange it so that you can do some dives or snorkelling you will not regret it!

I don't have a personal connection but I took a large group of children there to watch their Christmas performance in December last year and it was excellent. They work with local children and the standard of the performances from them was fantastic. Lovely people running it too.

I was at Ruskin yesterday and it was open. It wasn't too busy either.

It sounds like your little boy hasn't lost passion for learning at all - he is loving learning to play his cornet and improving with his swimming. It sounds more like he may need a slightly different approach to homework - one that praises his effort in the process rather than focusing on the product. He is able to see how his effort is paying off with his other activities but sometimes we have a different approach to academic learning - as in that you are clever or you are not and if you are clever you are often expected to be able to do things without effort, which can send the message that if you do find it difficult you aren't clever enough. Carol Dweck is the expert on this http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mindset-How-Fulfil-Your-Potential/dp/1780332009

Polydron sell them direct from their website - http://shop.polydron.co.uk/cgi-bin/qsearch.cgi?search=magnetic&searchstart=1&searchend=20&spage=yes&currency=pounds&userid=11512113&searchtype=group&top=19 they are the most amazing construction kit, children of all ages love them!

We have started to try some of the strategies from here http://www.youneedabudget.com it has got some really good ideas. Haven't bought the apps or anything else yet (finally trying to be sensible about spending money on things we might not use!) but I am tempted!

Another vote for Mummy Laid an Egg. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Mummy-Laid-Egg-Picture-Books/dp/0099299119/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1362603716&sr=1-1

As Pickle suggested, a primary school would really like them. If you don't have connections to a school or you're not sure about turning up to a school with them, I'd be glad to collect them from you for my Year 1 class to wear for art.

KatDew - if your twins would have been in the following year group if they had been born at term and you think that they would benefit developmentally, you can apply to defer their entry into school so that they go to school at their "adjusted" age. Bliss have some info on their website http://www.bliss.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/Deferring-or-Delaying-School-Entry-resource-pack-Jan-FP-Update-20121.pdf I currently teach Year 1 and while some of the younger children have taken a while to make the transition from Reception, I think that they would have been further disadvantaged if they hadn't had any time in Reception at all. Reception is a great start to school and the social development and connections are really important. It would be great if schools were able to extend the EYFS into Year 1, or if we had the flexibility to be able to give children an extra year in Reception if they need it, but ultimately moving the birth date cut off would make the most significant difference.