vesti

Take No. 40 then walk. You can look at Roman amphitheatre ( under Guildhall) and city walls en route.

How can there be a need for parent volunteers when charging ?10 per head. Is profit going back to Dulwich Festival?

I thought it was something to do with them marking the route of The Effra...

The infants is a church of England school, The Hamlet isn't; hence different catchment areas and why they can't amalgamate (Infants would have to loose church status or Hamlet acquire it). Of course parents know when they choose for their child to attend The Infants that The Hamlet has a different catchment area (unrelated to parish boundaries), The Infants admission info on front page of their website says, "Please note there is no automatic transfer at Year Three to Dulwich Hamlet Junior School"...I guess for some it's a gamble that just doesn't pay off. Sorry Growlybear, must have been typing whilst you were posting. You said it all so much more eloquently than I!

Amazon - Casio digital watches LA670WGA, the silver and the gold v in. V retro. Great self adjustable wristband and at ?15ish no real stress around loss/breakage. Bought eldest son chunky 'man's' version. Well received.

Had text saying the charter closed. Website still saying check 7:30am tomorrow.

checked websites an Twitter - Charter saying update by 7:30 tomorrow DHJS saying plan to open, send kids in appropriate clothes to play in snow Goose Green closed anyway, Inset couldn't see anything yet on DVIS, Heber or Goodrich. Key to opening usually how far away staff live an if can get enough in for no. of pupils

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How many German/English speakers are there to fill the school? That's the sticking point for me. What if you don't want your child educated bilingually in German? If local sites are available they should go to the Local Authority to develop a school that would meet everyone's needs

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I'd talk to the school or the governors rather than posting about them - much more constructive. Jane

Thanks Curmudgeon. Well posted.

Can't comment on the incident. Sorry to hear your child was hurt. Can comment on the pharmacy. We have used them for years and years and the staff have always been remarkably helpful: chasing down prescription items that other pharmacies said they couldn't get hold of for ages advising on products suggesting cheaper (same quality/effect) products chasing after me when I forgot my ? card. I have never witnessed rudeness. I have seen them responding with charm and politeness in the face of some right shouty, up-themselves customers!

Yes - The Charter don't allow phones. But the pupils all take them in and I encourage my kids to take them on some days cos if they are going out after school (and sometimes not home till late) I need to know we can contact each other. So - if the school confiscate it - it's only the cheap phone! And - it gets nicked at school (and they do and of course the school can't be expected to do anything about it cos phones aren't allowed) - it's only the cheap phone! And - the kids aren't stressing about loss or theft cos - it's only the cheap phone! And actually neither of the phones have been lost, stolen or broken - yet..

We just went to the Orange shop (Lewisham) and got their cheapest, most basic, phone with the longest battery life on pay as you go (Samsung, but bought so long ago the model probably doesn't exist now). It's worked brilliantly. We now have two of these and the kids take "the cheap phone" whenever they go out in preference to their (purchased themselves) iPhone and blackberries (which now are so much more about multi-media use now than use as mere phones). My children are aged 12 - 19 and the other huge positive of having the cheap phone (and one I had not planned for and wouldn't have given huge consideration to in any case) is the status thing. By absolutely having the most bog-standard cheap phone you have a perfect counter argument to the "Wot no blackberry?" pressure cos you are so obviously not even trying to compete and have a decent phone. You are just bringing out the cheap phone to prevent loss of or damage to your better phone at home!

Friends will want to see you - whatever. "Stuff" and a bit of grubbiness is the norm (certainly a more comfortable home to visit than the pristine clean, scared to file a toy in the wrong box sort of environment IMO). We all put too m.

Kids I work with - London Eye Mystery - Siobhan Dowd Long Lankin - Lindsey Barraclough Wolf Blood - N M Browne Stargirl - Jerry Spinelli (the first one) Wolf Brother (and the rest of the series) - Michelle Paver The Graveyard Book - Neil Gaiman A Monster Calls - Patrick Ness, Siobhan Dowd, Jim KAy Twilight series (I forget the author) Greyhound of a Girl - Roddy Doyle Uncle Montague's Tales of Terror - Chris Priestly Lots still in to Jaqueline Wilson and many now into Agatha Christie!

Mine have been out for a month already and growing well!

http://dawsonshill.org.uk/

And DKH has a much higher percentage of pupils with special needs

Lies, Damned lies and statistics... Then you also have to look at the percentage of pupils with statements and on School Action Plus. A school with a higher percentage of pupils with significant needs is unlikely to get 100% of pupils through level 4 and highly unlikely to get the higher no of level 5's. Just checked and St Anthony's has 3.8% with statements or on school action plus and dulwich hamlet has 6.1%.

Can't win schools can they really - don't put up the kids names - 30 parents demanding to know names and spellings put up the names - 30 parents telling you it's ridiculous to promote xmas cards don't ban xmas cards - why aren't you banning cards? do ban cards - why are you banning cards?! Maybe parents and children should make informed choices and decide for themselves. Presumably if people wish to do so there are other ways to deliver cards than needing to take them on to school premises and if you don't want to send them/don't celebrate chrismas/don't want to destroy the trees - dont send em. Simple. Merry Christmas!

Oh dear :-) . Slightly out of touch with the language of the newer parent. What are these wetbags that they are all into I wonder. So I google it, first thing that comes up is the urban dictionary definition...

http://www.re-cycling.co.uk/ is worth a try. Based under the arches at elephant and castle, they recycle! preciously used bikes. You would probably have to take your son with you and you might have to go a time or two depending what they have in. They get mixed reviews but we've had a couple of good bmx bikes from them. Typically better quality bikes than we would have bought new - names the kids go for! Second hand also means less likely to get nicked and you/they aren't stressing about maintaining the bike in it's shiny condition! Our lads have typically had bmx's as they enter secondary school as they are a bit more rugged and tend to last a bit longer (don't grow out of them in same way as grow out of other bikes (cos you sit upright or stand).Don't know much about aluminium frames I'm afraid. Dean's Garage in Beckenham have always given good advice too - and never sold us a dud.

Ugh! Thankfully not happened to us. Although I do find myself under a yearly seige from the people round the corner who seem to invite every kid under 10 in E Dulwich to trick or treat with them and think it's Ok to have hoards of them surge forward into our very narrow doorway and snatch at any sweets going. I am planning my management of them this year!! Maybe I can campaign for a minimum group size or have an "Only 2 school kids in the doorway at any one time" sign...