Rach

I've heard that Dr Bhatia is leaving Melbourne Grove Surgery. Such a shame. She is a breath of fresh air and has really tried her best to improve the service. She is a great GP: thorough, dedicated and caring. This is a huge loss for us patients, and I guess it is back to try your luck with Locum GPs again!

Go out for a walk...cabin fever always sparks the biggest rows. Also make sure everyone has something to do and take loads of games. Also maybe all agree some boundaries/rules....dinner is served at a specific time and set up a rota of cooking/cleaning. Good luck.....my family drive me potty and my reserve is to hide somewhere with a bottle of wine!

Hello We has exactly the same dilemma. We got so used to living in the centre of East Dulwich with everything on our door-step. However, no 2 and visiting relatives meant we had to move out. We are now in Peckham Rye and we love it. We are near Warwick Gardens which is packed with children and very friendly parents. The transport links are much better and we're only an additional 10/15 mins walk from East Dulwich so I still pop in a lot. We now how the Bellenden shops which are looking fabulous with the Victoria in, Cafe Mon Petit Chou (sp) and apparently a new pizza restaurant. Maybe you were thinking further field but if not do have a look. The more space we have is fabulous too - a garden is fabulous - no need to constantly go to the park every day trying to tire them out! All the best, Rach

Thanks, have spent the afternoon looking at post-codes as we've just moved - I'm thinking of my old address so have twigged that I'm not going to get into any of the ones in East Dulwich. Now live on Lyndhurst Grove - behind Warwick Gardens and the ones I know of are Lyndhurst Grove and Bessemer Grange - however, there are loads in Peckham that we probably fall into the catchment for but are pretty lousy.

Hello How do you know what schools are best for you to apply for? I live in SE15 (although feels like East Dulwich - only one street away from that postcode). Is it all down to postcodes or actual 'as the crow fly's location'? A tad confused. Thanks, Rachel.

Hi Don't go Christ the King.....I went there (when it first opened) and it was dreadful. They treated pupils as if still very much school children and I just thought the level of teaching was incredibly poor. I eventually changed and went to Orpington 6th form and it was such a huge difference - you just went to three hour lectures - no assembly, registration classes etc. You turned up were registered at your class and that was it. This led to a greater focus on the actual lecture and you really felt the focus was purely about getting great A level results as well as actually understanding what you were learning. Good luck.

Hi Do you do any other time or day. I'm still working and the earliest I could get somewhere is by 7.30/8pm? Thanks, Rach.

Thanks, all. Have calmed down a bit. Trying to find half decent childcare that fits around work that doesn't mean selling a kidney has been more challenging than I realised. Thanks for all the suggestions. Rach.

I need about 3-4 days a week all day for when I go back to work. Fuschia Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > You need all year round, long day? or would > mornings/time term only be OK for you?

Any advice. Am a tad stressed. I put my boys name for down when he was 7 months old for a nursery I really liked (after having to wait three months to even get on the waiting list). I checked in a few months ago and they said not this September, poss Jan but otherwise the Sept after that. I've now checked in again and after 18 months waiting have been told that definately not this Jan and unlikely next Sept - unless someone moves house /drops out. So now I face the prospect of starting all over again, putting his name down on another waiting list. I would like him to start this Jan and definately be somewhere by next Sept. However, if we can't get into somewhere decent after waiting for so long what are the chances. Anyone got any advice? Where is worth trying - I've searched through the previous links and Montessori, Dulwich Woods, Nellys, Oak Tree and Gumboots are all recommended. Thanks, Rach.

Hi We haven't had a holiday outside of the UK since our boy has been born - 2 years ago - the whole passport thing got the better of us. However, we have finally got our act together and are looking at going away mid-October. I'm thinking of Sicily or Sardinia (love Italy) but I'm wondering at that time of year whether it will still be warm enough. I'm happy to look at other places. Am after somewhere nice and relaxed, swimming pool, lovely sandy beach and somewhere interesting for us to visit. Any suggestions greatly welcomed. Thanks, Rach.

I'm a mum and for the record I wouldn't let my kid use it - someone should enforce that - we would be very cross if adults where using the kids equipment - although a few might get stuck!

Can I say a big f*** off to the idiots who continue to be unable to let a post go on here without blaming parents/children - for every pathetic moan they have - change the record.

Hi Chantelle We had exactly the same deliberations - we were living in East Dulwich and we couldn't afford to buy there and at first we totally ruled Peckham Rye out. However, an estate agent persuaded us to have a look (without describing it as a village) and we now love it. I have to get the train to Blackfriars and in the morning door-door journey is 20 minutes - bliss (7 minute walk & 13 minutes on the train). Holly Grove - which is a great street to walk down to get to the station is lovely and take note of all the wonderful bars and shops mentioned above. The best thing though is that it doesn't feel as crowded as East Dulwich felt just before we moved out. It's not as 'community' feel as East Dulwich but people are super friendly and I have always felt safe walking around. Good luck, Rach.

Did anyone see GMTV this morning - our doctor from Dulwich Medical Center was on it talking about hayfever! Thought she looked fab and much better than Dr Hilary!

PS. Does she actually live around here? Someone mentioned North London?

Back to the subject..... I'm really annoyed with her - an MP for how long and she doesn't know what kind of message she's sending out if she appears wearing a stab-proof vest in her own constituency? Peckham has had such bad press and whilst it can and has been a rough area (along with many other places in London) on the whole it's a good place to be and I feel it's slowly getting better. However, with stunts like that it will never shake of it's 'rough' tag.

Love the look of the place and have been a guest at a brilliant birthday party in the room upstairs. However, during the day......?8.50 for a salmon sandwich made with cheap white bread - not impressed. Shame about the service complaints - it could be such a fabulous place.

Fab - just what is needed. I would come and eat if you don't make it to 'poncey' (horrid word but you know what I mean - decent prices) whilst still serving a lovely ice-cold bellini. And if you welcome children (high chairs, bottle warmer and a decent baby change room) but make it clear when they are welcome and when not - I will want to be able to pop in for a quick coffee / lunch with mummy friends during the day but will want to get drunk without little munchkins running around the rest of the time). When will it be opened?

They had a garden (which was fab) but had to close it following a complaint about noise. So plan B and to try and make everyone happy they though extending the back would solve the issue. Black Cherry isn't as big as the Bishop so I'm guessing they have to work even harder to make a decent profit. Either way it's a fab bar and if they aren't making enough to make it worth they're while to keep it open then it will be sorely missed if they decide to close. Let's all stop carping and support a bar that has contributed to making Lordship Lane a decent place to go for a night out.

You're all mad...William Rose...just stirring up the middle-class aspirations of ED people - Iceland...get some of those Bernard Matthews things for half the price and they come with breadcrumbs included, 15 minutes in the oven - christmas express.

Try going into the shops with a pram!! Okay, okay, East Dulwich is nappy valley and it so irritating that in some shops we seem to be tripping over 3-wheelers. However, there are certain shops that are so rude as soon as they see you pushing a pram they just glare. Annoying as we are - we're customers all the same and during the week, when we seem to make up the majority of the business I find it quite hard to swallow such rudeness. My baby was about a month old when the Chanderlier opened - happy walked in and got a table in the back so I wasn't too much in the way. Pulled the pram in close to the table - still I was asked to move it to the other side of the room hmmmm new-born baby...when I pointed out that I wasn't in the way the waitress walked off in a huff and went and moaned to her colleagues. Didn't get servered for ages and genuinely felt upset that I was being treated with such disdain - It wasn't busy, I wasn't in the way and the mums of east dulwich during that time of the day are the income for a lot of these places. To top it off ?8.50 for a crappy salmon sandwich on cheap white bread! Other examples are shop keepers watching your struggle to get in/out, constantly hounding you to move, and ones that you can't even get into (Mrs Robinsons). On the other hand there are shops that go out of their way to be lovely - DIY store, East Dulwich Deli, grace & favour (when you buy something), Dr Boos, to name a few. Anyway, don't want to start a whole 'bloody prams' debate.

Could you imagine - hopefully that will also have a knock on effect on the over inflated house prices!

PS. Who posted '0% commission, 100% scum' onto all the Foxton 'for sale signs'? - felt like a vigilanty banksy had been at work

Hi We've had our house on with them since they came in. We haven't had one person round to view our house and....when we've asked to go and look at houses they have been unable to get hold of the vendor or haven't got back to us. They know our criteria etc and we're ready to move - they are in no rush - why would they - nothing in it for them. A word of warning to anyone who is with them - read the small print. You need to give four weeks written notice in order to break the contract - so Nov 21st. Finally, check out the prices....for all the houses that I have looked at I've checked against the land registery to see what the last house on that street sold at...majority sold for ?100,000 less - gutting and worrying. Agree that anyone thinking of buying should wait until Feb - we've already dropped our price substantially and can see other sellers begining to do the same...well expect for that house on Muschamp rd - greedy guts - the last house sold on your street sold for ?140,000 less!! I love East Dulwich but I'm begining to dislike it - it's not that brilliant that I want to pay over half a million for a run of the mill house!