ceebeebee

Hi there, we have a villa in a beautiful part of Mallorca which is really child friendly and sleeps 10. It's walking distance to the medieval town of Pollenca and close to lovely safe beaches. It's a lovely spot and lots of EDF families have stayed. it's only ?995 a week in October and really well appointed (aircon, dishwasher, 4 bathrooms, cots and highchairs etc) have a look at website - www.villapascali.com.

Looking for (preferably) an all inclusive hotel for this summer within 2 hours flight - so not Turkey or Greece or Canaries. This is because we have less than a week! Somewhere with a bit going on for kids of 10 ish.... Any idea appreciated!

Thanks very much for all the helpful suggestions (and support). I do try not to put pressure on - but actually my sons problem is largely attitudinal! Thanks for the link mbe, i will give it a try!

Thanks - Yes there is much too much pressure - that's SATs for you. On Monday I tested some of my friends on a few 11 year old SATs questions. Barrister, accountant, banker and IT manager - none of us had a clue!! How is that possibly an appropriate level for an 11 year old! I don't want to pressure him, if he was genuinely hopeless I wouldn't - its just the "cant be bothered" attitude that frustrates! I know there are lots of websites, the first thing I did was google them, but many are not appropriate, and I would love to hear from someone who has actually had success with an app or something!

Does anyone know of an app that could help my son learn his spellings? the 100 or so top words that they need to learn for year 6 SATs. I've tried flashcards and cover up lists, but the same nuclear war ensues.... There's a confusing array of aps, and I really want it targeted to his level. Anyone else tearing their hair out?

That is great advice. Thank you for taking the time to reply to me!

Can anyone advise me where I start! Looking for an au pair but we are moving to Reigate so its for that area. Do you use agencies? Is there a place to look for au pairs who are already in the UK (heard horror stories of girls arriving straight off the plane and crying for 2 weeks!) Any advice appreciated! I will put a post in classifieds too, just in case!

Our lovely large villa is set in stunning countryside within walking distance of the medieval town of Pollenca, and close to gorgeous, safe beaches. It has three bedrooms in the main house, and another two in the adjacent annexe (so ideal for grandparents or two families). We provide cots and highchairs, toys, books, DVDs, inflatables, buckets and spades, towels, beach towels, all home basics (olive oil, tea, coffee etc) and a welcome basket. It has wifi and aircon and a pizza oven! We do rent the villa out commercially to cover our costs (and I must be honest, its fairly booked-up in school holidays), but lots of East Dulwich families have rented it, and seem much more respectful and pleasant to deal with, and therefore I'll give at least 15% discount to anyone from the forum. The villa is also ideal if you are into cycling or walking (or drinking wine and sun worshipping) Please see our website. www.villapascali.com Also see below posts from other forumites who have stayed there! Happy to answer any questions or have a chat. Claire messageRe: Villa in pollensa I've also been to Villa Pascali twice (my family of four and another family of four first time, then our family and my parents the second time). It is great as it allows larger groups to holiday together but not be on top of each other. Setting is amazing, I would go back but now my son is 5 we can only go during school holidays and so can only afford it if we maximise its full capacity (think it sleeps 10?). Would defo recommend. messageRe: Villa in pollensa Posted by bjm 03 March, 2015 17:39 We have also been to the Villa Pascali, amazing setting, well equipped, perfect for families and Pollensa is gorgeous. We will go back again for sure!

They do not always fill their church-goer places, so there is often more space available for community places. To get a church place you do need to show your face at a church (any church) quite regularly as the priest has to confirm that you are regular member of the congregation. St Johns may not be your best bet as the services are quite long! All Saints in Peckham is a great church for families!

Villa Pascali is available from Monday 14th to Saturday 26 September. Highly recommended by many East Dulwich families, we've ended up with an odd number of days free, so willing to discount quite a lot (up to a third off) if anyone would like to take it for all or part of this period, which is generally still gorgeous weather and balmy water. It sleeps up to 10 and is in a wonderful location with its own pool and lovely beaches nearby, as well as the stunning medieval Pollenca town within walking distance. See the website for more details, and contact me with any questions. www.villapascali.com. Thanks for looking! Claire

I have an August 30th daughter, who is now going into year 4, and is terribly behind. She joined a class of much bigger more advanced reception children, and seemed to decide that she could not compete, so she just got stuck. This is the view of the educational psychologist and the SENCO anyway. If I could have deferred her, I definitely would, although I do know other summer born children who have thrived. It is a massive worry for us, and we have spent thousands on tutoring, assessments etc. I am glad that finally the government is changing its stance, but it will take a long time to filter through the system. I asked our headmistress very recently what she thought, and she had literally never heard of the campaign, or the new policy!

Yes despite LL's condescending comment, there is a genuine problem at the passport office right now. There are around 1000 posts on Mumsnet to this effect and people on this very site having to sell holidays because of extensive (10+ weeks) delays. If you call the passport information line and are told the office dealing with your application will ring you back within 48 hours - do not hold your breath. The info line can generate up to 1000 callbacks a day, and they do not have enough staff to do the calling back. If Durham is the office dealing with your application, ring them and they will be helpful (ignore the recording telling you only to ring this number if you've received a letter). If you expedite your passport (for ?55) they work to your date of travel - meaning you won't hear back from them until about 3 days before your trip, but then your passport will arrive by courier the day after (providing your application is all in order). This is what I had to do. Here's the sacred number which no-one wants you to have: Durham Passport office: 0845 6015175.

I know myatts fields is still dry? Anyone been to Brockwell or Wells Park?

Apparently the park is "boring" and we went to the cinema yesterday. We've overdone museums and i need to get out of the house and peel these two off their ipad! Any ideas?

Does anyone know of a holiday drop off club with space tomorrow morning!!!??? Disorganised.....

Hi all, thanks for your thoughts and advice. I think it's very odd they took Porsche "for transport"as so distinctive, and they only took fairly light items from house, AND, my own rather less distinctive car was also outside the house and they took the keys to that too. We thought the car was stolen to order, but it was the police who said this was less likely! My husband is in touch with the loss adjuster, and there's no sign of the car turning up.....

Please look out for it, the police say its likely to be dumped a few streets away as too distinctive to hold onto for long. Reg starts WX05. Keys stolen in house burglary near Goose Green. PM me if any news. Thanks

I would happily recommend Simon of Amigos Magic. He did my son's 4th and 7th birthday parties. the 7th was on Sunday just gone and Simon was very unwell, but he still showed up and put on a great performance - the kids absolutely loved it. He tailors the show to the children's ages, and he did a great job.

Hi Snowboarder Pollenca and Port de Pollenca are brilliant. I am very biaised as we bought a place there last year, but I can honestly say this area is the most fantastic place for young families. Beautiful safe beaches, family friendly eateries, short flight, fabulous scenery and Pollenca itself is a stunning medieval town. We met families we knew on the flights out and back this summer - everyone loves this area. I am not trying to flog you our villa (its fully booked to early Oct), but if you look at my website you will see more details about the area. www.villapascali.com. Best of luck

Saw a car doing a 3 point turn in Adys road right by Goose Green playground this morning. It badly dented the side of a parked car and then took off at speed. Contact me for details.

Anyone know if the other water play areas are operating yet? Sydenham Wells and Myatts fields?

Another plug for Juggling Joolz from me! I posted separately about her yesterday as she hosted our children's party on Saturday and did an amazing job. She is very gentle and intuitive with the children.

Hi there, I'm sure she would come to honor oak - she lives that way I think. If you've never hired a professional entertainer before you'll find it sounds expensive, but Joolz is actually cheaper than many and she brings all her own props. I think its ?100 for an hour or ?150 for 2 hours. We went for the 2 hour option which was well worth it!

I want to give a massive plug to Juggling Joolz who was the entertainer at our son's 5th birthday party on Saturday. We found her on the Forum, but she's not one of the names that always crops up, so we were a little nervous, especially as we had about 30 kids coming! Joolz was absolutely brilliant. As soon as they started arriving, she gently ushered the children into a fun engaging game to get their confidence. She did balloon modelling, parachute games, dancing games, a BRILLIANT magic show, pass the parcel (yes, even with that many kids)! She was able to entertain and draw in the shyest, youngest child, as well as the older, boisterous ones, and had the crowd totally under control. I've noticed many entertainers just do a kind of stage show which the kids either love or hate, but Joolz did so many different things to keep their attention - she must have been exhausted! My friend and I who co-hosted the party think Joolz is fantastic, and would highly recommend her. Pm me if you want any more details. Her email address is: [email protected], number: 07963 447178.

Dodgy guy aggressively knocked on door and rang bell at same time about an hour ago. I didn't answer but he claimed he was following up on an information pack about the upgrading of the telephone exchange (total rubbish I think!) My neighbour had same experience.