MrsP

Cheese

Skipping

Anger

Iron

Little Village Southwark https://littlevillagehq.org/southwark/the baby bank in Nunhead will take them. They support alot of families at Barry House. See their website for contact details.

You could also donated to Little Village Southwark who are based in Nunhead. They collect unwanted / no longer needed toys, books, clothes and kit for babies and children under the age of 5 and redistribute to families in need. They have a monthly wishlist on their website here https://littlevillagehq.org/southwark/

Yes, have seen a lot of discussion about Interhigh on Mumsnet, but nothing very recent. Just wondering if there are any local kids enrolled as the lack of a social scene is the downside of internet school - if there were other local Interhigh / online school kids it would be a nice idea to get them together.

Does anyone locally have any experience of Interhigh school. It's an online school, I've just attended their open evening and researching if it would be workable for our daughter in Year 7. Any feedback, thoughts welcome.

Our family is a big fan of audiobooks. We started when the kids were little using audio CDs and a CD player. Now the children are older (11 and 12 years) we have subscribed to Audible as they offer a great range of content. My issue is how best to access and listen to the content? The kids currently access it either via a laptop or iPad, but when they are listening in the evening or before bed we have a real issue with audio being listened to via a screen - like most families with kids our two are really bad at turning off the screen when asked and sometimes play a sneaky game when they are supposed to be just listening to a story. I?m also worried about exposure to the blue light in the evening which can affect sleep - the nighttime light setting option still feels quite bright. So what to do? What is the best way to listen to audiobooks without having a screen? Anyone else have this issue, ideas please - thanks.

Is there anywhere local to get pushchairs properly cleaned, serviced and repaired? Can't see to find anything closer than Wembley, there must be somewhere south of the river? Any suggestions, please PM me. Thanks.

It's not a public event - you need to buy a ticket http://thisisgala.co.uk/tickets/

My 6 and 7 year old still go to bed at 7! I appreciate they need less sleep, but I still adult time. They don't go to sleep straight away and are allowed to have quiet time in their rooms, reading or pottering with toys. Lights off between 7.30 - 8. At the weekend this is usually extended by half an hour. They also like to have an story cd to listen to on weekend evenings. My feeling is that although they may need slightly less sleep it is helpful to create an quiet, winding down atmosphere at the end of the day.

Hi there, I wouldn't bother with the Little Clipper, we had a very wonky haircut there, definitely wasn't worth it. Village Way on Lordship Lane have always been very helpful for us.

I have played for nearly 30 years and have always been a complete snob about digital pianos vowing never to get one. However, I had a complete change of mind when I visited Chappell of Bond Street and tried some of the models there. I was very sceptical about the playing experience but now have a lovely Yamaha Clavinova. Not only does it never need tuning, I can plug the ear phones in and play as loud as I want when the kids are asleep. It flat packs so can be easily removed when we move house without the expense of a specialist removal company. I do recommend a trip to Chappell of Bond Street (now called Yamaha Music London http://www.yamahamusiclondon.com), they have a great range to try and helpful staff. They even did same day delivery including a lovely chap who put my piano together for me.

Thank you for your messages and for sharing your stories. Am lucky to not have any capacity issues to deal with at present and we have powers of attorney set up. Will be getting the ball rolling with social services in new year. Great to know am not alone!

Just wondered if anyone has had any experience in caring for elderly relatives who do not live close by. Has anyone had experience of hiring private carers or been down the social services route? Would be particularly interested in finding out about how to recruit and vet reliable daily help for at home. Seems a bit of a minefield and am very keen to ensure my relative's wishes are at the heart of any decisions made.

Takes less than a minute - signed.

We went to Chartwell, Winston Churchill's house, in Kent last weekend - just 40 mins to get there, lovely house, beautiful gardens, but check out the camps and dens (complete with hammock) in the woods, plus the rope swings from the trees are awesome! Children and adults had a brilliant time!

I am starting to suspect my 6 year old has some form of dyslexia, I was wondering if anyone could recommend any books for me to read so I can start getting a bit more informed about what to do, where to go for help, and what strategies/resources would be helpful for my child. Many thanks.

I am in the early stages of trying to set up a babysitting circle amongst some of my friends. I would like to hear if anyone else has got a good model going? There are quite a few online sites for managing babysitting circles - has anyone used one? What systems of 'payments', credits, points have you used? Do we go for an online site or manage if 'offline'? What is a fair 'points' system? I have been thinking of an evening arrangement where kids are either in bed or ready for bed. Sun - Thurs up to midnight 1 point per hour, after midnight 2 points per hour, then Fri and Sat 2 points per hour up to midnight, thereafter 3 points. Time rounded up to the nearest half hour for half points. Is this overcomplicated? Any ideas gratefully receieved. Thanks!

Another recommendation for Greg. He has built a large cupboard in my basement with sliding doors which I am extremely pleased with. He has also fixed a skirting board issue I had, so is happy to do the little jobs as well as the big ones. He is really easy to chat to and explains things clearly!

We would like to go to Sweden this summer for our hols. Can anyone recommend a self catering cottage to rent, or a holiday company contact? We would like to be either near Stockholm or Gothenburg, preferably near water. We have found a few contacts online, but would prefer a recommendation if poss! Many thanks!

We experienced a similar issue earlier this year. There was a strong smell of chemical, what I can only describe as similar to white spirit, smell in our kitchen. Eventually it went away but I suspect it was the result of some kind of paint solvent or cleaner being poured down the drain by decorators next door.

Decided to go and check them out. The fountains are sort of half on. The ones on the top level are working a bit and the ones on the lower level not at all. Other parents at the park seemed to think that the fountains are being vandalised one an almost weekly basis and the water is turned off during repair. So pot luck whether to chance a visit!

Anyone know if the fountains in Wells Park are on today, we went a few weeks ago and they were broken - looks like a nice afternoon for a splash. Thanks.