sarahf

For pre-reception girls, definitely start with summer dress which can be worn until October half term. We stuck to the red PE tshirt and blue polo shirt plus skirt or tracksuit bottoms in the winter. Our daughter did have the shirt but buttons were fiddly for her and she liked to get dressed independently in the morning. For boys, navy shorts, joggers, blue polo shirt, round neck jumpers and red PE shirt. These can all be worn in reception. Ido have a random assortment of uniform if you?re thinking about buying second hand?

I also wanted to post a glowing recommendation for Colin who assembled our son's new bunk bed on Saturday. I found him during a handyman search on the EDF and felt that the recommendations for his services seemed the most consistent. I can see why. This is a genuine job for Colin (rather something he juggles with other things) so he prioritises his clients. We found him to be efficient, cheerful and professional. He's coming back next week to hang some pictures for us.

Hooray! Steve has just fixed our dishwasher with minimal fuss and expense. He was punctual (called before arrival), friendly and professional. Really delighted. Thank you.

Hi My son has been attending the Little Fingers on Burbage Road since September. The admin is atrocious an I have posted this somewhere on the forum, although not on the link referenced above as I think this was purely a discussion about the Barry Road nursery. Thankfully, the quality of care seems to be inversely related to their administrative duties. It's a small, caring environment and I have found it to be the perfect place for my son who was going from one-on-one care at home. The broad Montessori principles also seem to be well adhered to and I think it really encourages a child's natural curiosity whilst instilling independence. Very happy to discuss in person if you want to PM me your contact details. Sarah

I like our Uppababy G-Luxe

Have had the opposite experience to most of the posters. Our son (at age 2.5) took to his BB immediately but still can't scoot. We bought his from Bon Velo in Herne Hill and I gulped at the price (think it's was about ?110) but they assured me that it would be worth it. The main positive is that it is made from aluminium so will actually rest on the top of the umbrella pushchair when I'm taking him and his sister to the park. It is also much easier for him to steer. The average toddler doesn't have a great deal of upper body strength so find it hard to control heavy wooden or steel bikes. I guess that the short answer is that it depends on how much you want to spend. You can get an excellent scooter for ?60 but have to pay almost double that for a similar BB. The advantage of the latter is that it's meant to leapfrog stabilisers as it's harder to learn how to balance than pedal. Am sure your toddler will be thrilled by the Scuttlebug upgrade!

Oh well done CocoC on your home birth! You bought some maternity clothes from me a while ago and am so pleased that you also had a wonderful home birth experience. I had a home birth with my second because my first birth had been so straightforward. In comparison, I thought that the midwife support with a home birth was incredible (I was under Brierly's care). In particular, the post-natal care was faultless and they offer so much emotional and practical support - incl. feeding. The one positive if you have to transfer to hospital is that your midwife will go with you (unless another home birth that they have to attend), so it's a bit like having a doula. With our first birth, I did a hypnobirthing course with Kristin Haywood. I found that this helped both times but impossible to say how I would have been without the techniques! I planned to use a pool both times but thigs happened too quickly! All the best.

Our son goes to Little Fingers on Burbage Rd. It is a gentle and caring place with a really high staff/child ratio. I know they have another branch on Barry Road, which will be closer to you. Be warned, however, their admin is disorganised but it was the quality of care that really appealed to us - particularly after a bad experience with a nursery who just wanted our money but didn't pay any attention to our son. Good luck!

Thank you so much for taking the time to write your comments. It's really meant a lot to hear such sensible and abortive advice. I was feeling a bit upset and muddled by it all (especially as husband has been away on a business trip). It's also helped me separate the emotional (why don't they care why my son didn't start?) and the practical (have written the nursery, the debt collectors and their solicitors a letter for burden of proof). Thank you again.

It was a very last minute decision in terms of not sending our son to this nursery. The nursery he goes to now, I only contacted and visited once the Autumn term had stated. I was just a bit unnerved that there had been no communication from the original nursery in regards to our son's start date, settling in etc. To be honest, it was more done on instinct rather than anything else. Naively, I assumed that we had dropped off the original nursery's records - hence the lack of induction information. I admit that I was suffering from severe new baby brain when and if I signed a contract. However, the nursery hasn't sent me a copy of this as proof that payment is due. I have actually just written them another letter requesting a copy of any documentation that indicates that we are liable to pay fees for Autumn term 2013. I would rather not mention the nursery's name until I get proper legal advice. I guess that I just wanted to see if this is normal practice before I look for a solicitor who might be able to assist in this. Is this technically contract law? In fact, if anyone has a solicitor recommendation, I would be really grateful.

Thank you so much for your post. It's reassuring that I'm not alone in thinking like this and - agree - fully expected to lose my deposit but shocked to be charged a term's fees. The letter from the debt collector arrived on Friday so my brain has been going round in circles all weekend as haven't been able to contact them to get clarity. Feel a bit muddled. Thank for sounding lam and reasonable!

First of all, thank you for taking time to read this post. I'm a bit stuck as to what to do. Will probably try call around for some legal advice next weeke but would be interested if anyone else has had a similar experience or, in fact, knows a solicitor who might be able to help. Just before my son turned two, I looked into nurseries that he could attend 2days per week. One of the ones that I liked was a fairly new place but had a more established branch that I had visited when my son was quite small. Anyway, I put his name down to start after the summer half term (2013) but, a month before he was due to start, I called the head office to defer his place as my husband had suddenly been made redundant. This seemed fine, although some of the communication was slightly off as they still tried to invoice me but were ok when I contacted them to remind them that my son would not be starting in June. Anyway, when the September term drew closer, I was really surprised not to have received any information at all about our son's start date etc. In the end, I decided that it didn't seem to be the right place for us. They never called (or wrote) to check our son's attendance but very cheekily billed us! I assumed that it was another administrative error and was, frankly, a bit sick of their readiness to send invoices but not to show any evidence of child care. They're now threatening a CCJ. I'm unsure as to what my obligation is as they haven't sent any copy of a contract and haven't answered a letter that I sent via recorded delivery. In fact, they have employed a debt collection agency who are impossible to communicate with as they don't have any information to sensibly discuss the situation. They did say it was to reimburse the nursery for loss of earnings but they still have lots of places left. I suspect that I did sign a form to register our son. Unfortunately, I don't remember (I also had a new baby at te time so my memory was all over the place!). However, I guess that if I had filled out a form, it would have stated a June start date for half a term and not the full Autumn fees that we are being chased for. Feeling really frustrated although a bit relieved that we didn't send our son somewhere who have been so obtuse and, also, never contacted us about our son, only money. If anyone has experienced anything similar, it would be so helpful to get any advice! Happy to discuss over the phone if easier. Just PM me with your number. Thank you so much.

Does anyone have a child attending the Little Fingers Montessori on Burbage Road? I've found a couple of reviews online but most of these are at least 2years old. However, the general gist is that the administration side is slow but the care is good. I'd much rather the balance be that way round! If anyone has any experiences that they would be happy to share, I would be delighted to hear about them. We are thinking about sending our 2yo son there for two mornings per week. He is a fairly active and exuberant little boy, although quite clingy as he is used to me being his primary care giver. Thank you in advance.

I grew up in York and have taken my 2yo son there. There's plenty of museums - Railway Museum, Jorvic (possibly not old enough), a farming museum and the Air Museum at Elvington. There are also a few farm parks but you will need to get in the car again. We used to go to the homestead park near Clifton although after a recent revisit, realise that London playgrounds are more advanced (I guess that most people in York have decent sizes gardens with their own swings, slides etc). On a sunny day, a trip to Scarborough on the train is nice in a retro kind of way. On a rainy day, the designer outlet is a good bet - incidentally, the playground there isn't bad. Food wise, there's plenty of the casual dining options. If you have a child who will sit through a tasting menu..., The Blind Swine is worth a visit. Hope that you have a lovely holiday!