Lolamaxx

Anyone have an au pair living with them who is looking to make new au pair friends locally? Bonus points for ones quarantining and wanting to start chats out digitally ;)

Nursery placements, especially at Preschool level with subsidised hours, are very in-demand in our young family-heavy area. Nurseries with great reputations like Gumboots have very long waiting lists, but yes, if you?re persistent and speak to them a lot around transition times like early Sept and end-July, they might be able to squeeze you in if you have immediate availability and are flexible about your days. They don?t need to do half-days, as demand is so huge, so they don?t, generally... but they do, as another poster said, do a settling-in period. I?ve put a few children through Gumboots, and have been generally really happy with the care and attention they received.

They?re planning to open as normal over the next few weeks. I went to drop off some verrrrrrry overdue books, and the process was as simple as plopping them in a box. Only the sliding-door area was open, with a trestle table blocking further entry. There were 3 members of staff/volunteers, and you have to wear a mask in that area as a user. For children, they?re able to give a ?mystery bag? of age-appropriate books, which I thought was quite nice.

Eating a Quorn dog and some sweet potato fries.

There?s a lovely reinterpretation of a flower still life from Dulwich Picture Gallery that?s on the corner of Bawdale Rd and Fellbrigg Road. Jazzes up the place, IMHO.

You are correct. They used to have evenings as ?South of the Border?. They seem to have stopped that now... as a former Tex-Mex dweller, I think that decision was for the best.

We?ve hired out the bowling green before... it was relatively inexpensive and came with the support of a teenaged staff member (volunteer?) and use of a kitchen with fridge. A great deal, and enjoyed by a large, mixed-age group, but woefully under-marketed. I came up with the idea myself, and had to hunt down an email to coordinate. I have NEVER seen it in use by any typical bowls club (having been here since 2007, and been in a life situation to visit Peckham Rye at least 2 x per week in the past few years), unlike the Dulwich Park one. Since outdoor spaces and kitchen access is at a premium at the moment, perhaps putting an awning over it and doing event hire for small guideline-friendly events, the proceeds of which get fed right back into the park, might be an idea? Small community market with limited entry?

Hi, every Mon 12-3 at the Oru Centre? Thanks

Hi, At one point recently, Pecan/Southwark Foodbank were operating a food donation spot out of the new co-working space next up Organic Village on Lordship Lane. Does anyone know where there are other ED drop-off points? Thanks.

Can anyone recommend drumming (non-digital full drum kit) classes for young kids age 4-5? That are in East Dulwich or near as possible? My son would absolutely love that, but we don't have a kit at home and don't know where to look to do this. Thanks!

Hi, we have a newly-arrived German au pair as well! Will DM you.

Ugh, would have given him a piece of my mind had I been around - hope your child is recovering; how stressful and offensive.

Rye Books bookshop on North Cross Road also runs a good 'un!

Have now visited Heber (very nice atmosphere, happy children, enthusiastic teachers, building a bit tatty but that's cuts for you...), booked Goose Green, have Harris this week. We'll see!

Thanks so much for responding... DVIS is idyllic, but my main reservation is that it's not close enough to where we live that the bulk of the neighbour kids would be going, and also that it apparently ends after Year Two. What primary schools do the DVIS children tend to empty out into?

We're also very happy with Gumboots, especially at the baby room-toddler room levels. They're a community nursery, relatively diverse group of children and staff, great food, lots of events organised... but there's a big waiting list, as there is for almost all nurseries around here.

Hi, Would love to hear from other parents and carers whose children will be starting Reception in ED in Sept 2019. Can't believe we can start the application process so soon! Would love to hear thoughts about different schools and teaching styles, tips and tricks from those with children starting this year, etc. We're mainly looking at Goodrich, Heber, Harris and DVIS, as I'm sure many are, but open to other options... love a school with a sense of community, collaboration, and open to new ideas, plus a responsiveness to individuals' needs... as much as can happen in this era of cuts. Thanks!

So the app is called AU PAIRS UK, which shows other au pairs and distance... I lied - she doesn't go on that Facebook page, but as we've just had a chat about it all, and she's thinking of making a Dulwich and District Au Pair Meet Up Facebook page, so will let you all know if she does!

There is a AU PAIRS IN SOUTH EAST LONDON - DULWICH, GREENWICH, LEWISHAM, BROMLEY AND NEAR Facebook page that our au pair is on... she meets people from it all the time, as well as some au pair meet up app. Worth getting your au pairs onto that!

I walk past this place all the time, have been since 2006, always wondering what's going to become of it... I think we'd enjoy another chippy there, perhaps Mr Liu wouldn't enjoy the competition of another Chinese restaurant, however! It does seem like a bit of a wasted opportunity, especially as there's a school right across the way. Not advocating crap food for kids, just a bit of livening up of the back streets behind LL!

I've got 3 kids under 3.5, so have largely avoided the playground as it's been so busy and hot, but really looking forward to getting stuck in once school's back in session! I'm wondering a bit more about the 1-o'clock Club that used to take place in the clubhouse that's now been knocked down for this new playground and cafe development. It was such a boon to parents of young children and babies - a wonderful resource to meet other parents, keep small kids entertained, do craft and outdoor activities, and access services like speech and language therapists. Will it be coming back in any way? It was VERY popular, so it seems like a strange and sad thing to cut out... thanks for any info!

Please - give us some dirt about customers! Don't name names, but everyone likes a bit of goss, and it's good to see the two sides on this thread ;)

I think there hasn't been an older generation that didn't think they had it much harder than the current younger generation... and maybe, in a lot of ways, they're right... perhaps not the Baby Boomers - they definitely had the peace and prosperity their parents and grandparents didn't get! Neither here nor there when it comes to folding up buggies when on buses, but if you think how society has changed in the last few generations, mums on buses would have been far more likely to have the help and support of their own mums, female siblings or female community members when out and about, or generally as a more chivalrous attitude was common, and communities were more close-knit. And it sounds like there was a bit more of a helpful and supportive "everyone muck in" attitude in general. Obviously having children is very much a choice, but that doesn't mean that it is easy to carry out... People who need help are just that - people who need help. Surely it's our responsibility to help others in society, if we can... refusing to help or take seriously a person who's disabled because it's the result of lifestyle choices wouldn't be right either, so surely anyone who's having an easier time, on the face of it, should help out someone who isn't?

This has made my day. Thank you

People are being a bit mean to ED Moots. C'mon now, it's a kid's scooter, they're probably distraught. He/she didn't say it in a mean way - in fact, it just sounded informative, letting the lady know that it belonged to someone and wasn't a giveaway. And that they'd pick it up. Calm down, folks!