Category: Around Me

Summer of Sport

What a summer! So many wonderful moments that it is difficult to list.

I started my London Ambassador volunteering and that gave me a golden ticket to visit the Olympic Park and watch the Technical Rehearsal of the Opening Ceremony. I feel so proud to be British and to have been a part of the Olympics as a volunteer, spectator and supporter; London put on an amazing show.

The summer of sport got off to a fantastic start for Britain with Bradley Wiggins winning the Tour de France and then without time for him to celebrate he was straight on to the Olympics.

The Olympics being held here in London was a dream come true as I got to participate through my volunteer work and I was fortunate enough to get tickets to events. How can I forget seeing Usain Bolt run!

Team GB did an amazing job and what stood out for me was what excellent role models the sportsmen and women are. After the Olympics were over I watched the Athletes Parade along with the tens of thousands of others. We all came onto the streets to recognise Team GB’s achievements through their dedication and hard work, the athletes held up placards thanking the supporters and volunteers when we were thanking them for the wonderful Olympics they gave us.

Bradley Wiggins and Andy Murray couldn’t be at the Athletes Parade because they were already onto their next job which led to another British victory and Andy Murray winning his first grand slam and the first British winner for 76 years. How on earth will they decide on who will win the Sports Personality of the Year for 2012?

One sport we’re not talking about is football, apart from the disappointment of the England Ukraine match this week. This summer of sport has shown what great ambassadors and role models sportsmen and women can be and that is what we should expect from footballers.

To clean up football and get better behaviour from footballers FIFA should ntroduce the type of instant replay rules that are used in Rugby Union where decisions can be verified by using technology. If the referees could be given microphones also as in Rugby Union then maybe it would force better language and behaviour.

I took videos of lots of Olympic events that I was fortunate enough to be at which can be viewed on my husband’s YouTube channel here:

http://www.youtube.com/user/JonathanMDaniels/videos?query=olympics


FLDRA Website

I have taken over the management of the FLDRA (Fox Lane and District Residents’ Association) website. My lovely husband Jon has assisted by updating the site and brought it up to date.

The aim of the website is:

  • to be a source of information
  • to facilitate sharing of information
  • to bring together the local community
  • to provide a method for reporting concerns

Please visit the website here http://www.foxlane.net/ and click on follow if you wish to get updates when there is new local news.


Local Community

As a committee member of FLDRA (Fox Lane and District Redsidents’ Association) we are concerned with anything happenning in our area and try to improve the area. I raised a couple of points at a recent meeting which the association have supported and as a consequence changes are being implemented.

One change is a new zebra crossing to go on Aldermans Hill where pedestrians (myself included) always cross the road to get to the medical centre. At the moment there is no crossing near and pedestrians take their life in their hands to cross the road. Unfortunately there was an accident in that very spot recently where a pedestrian was knocked down by a car, fortunately the injuries were not serious.

I suggested some signs in Broomfield Park so that parents were aware of the facilities and where they were and Friends of Broomfield Park took this on board and requested change.

These may be small things however good news particularly as “localism” is the way changes are made locally.


Primary School Admissions

I am researching Primary School Admissions in Enfield for 2015 for my twins Harry and Poppy who will be starting school then.

I want to send my children to the closest community school to my home which is Walker School at 0.563 miles away; a not unreasonable request. I have checked with Enfield School admissions and had my children been starting school this year they would be unable to go to our closest community school. This leads me to believe that there are insufficient Primary Schools in my area.

I have sent this email to Enfield Council today:

Thank you for your reply. As you know from my original email I am interested in the admissions process as I want to send my twins to the Community School closest to my home.

I have reviewed the data that is freely available on the London.gov.uk website and obtained data using the “Excel Custom Age Range Tool for GLA Projections Data”.
 
I have reviewed the projection for children aged 5 in the year 2015 and also 2016 to take into account the fact that school year admissions start in September; and then divided by 2 to get only one years data. In Enfield the projection of children aged 5 for 2015 is a total of 4650 children (boys and girls).
 
I have also reviewed the admission numbers for Enfield in 2011 and by comparing the data it appears to me that there is a shortfall of approximately 550 places.
 
As you see my workings out are crude and based on the data I have sought; I do not know what process Enfield follows as I am working from the email reply I received below, nor do I know what other factors are taken into consideration.
 
Please can you let me know what the projections are for Enfield’s 2015 Primary School admissions? What process Enfield follows to ensure there are sufficient primary school allocation for the Enfield population in the future? Does this need to be a Freedom of Information request?
 
Yours truly,
Gonul Daniels

 Please see my previous post for the previous email. My calculations may be incorrect but if you don’t ask you don’t know!


Primary School

I had my twins Poppy and Harry in April this year and I am now looking at the options for their Primary School education so that I am not shocked or disappointed in 4 years time when they are due to start.

The closest Community Primary School to my home in Bourne Hill is Walker based in Waterfall Road and approximately 1/2 mile from our home. Walker School has an excellent Ofsted report and is the primary school that I want my children to attend.

My next door neighbour’s children go to Firs Farm School because they could not get into Walker School and another neighbour’s children go to St Monica’s Roman Catholic School. Therein lays my problem!

Based on this year’s Primary School admissions from the London Borough of Enfield I would not be able to get my twins into the closest community school to me, and would therefore have to accept any school offered to me by Enfield’s School Admission Service.

All other schools within a 1 mile radius are religious schools and they have their own admission criteria based on their religion.

I wonder if the number of school places provided in Enfield meets the needs of the borough?

Enfield has kindly replied to my question regarding where they obtain their statistics from and I quote:

In common with most other boroughs in London, Enfield Council subscribes to the School Roll Projections Service of the Greater London Authority, who produce annual forecasts of pupil numbers for each year group for the primary and secondary sectors in our schools, including the 6th form. These forecasts, which also include numbers in academies, are based on a number of factors appertaining to Enfield, including trends in pupil numbers over the previous four years, birth trends, data on known new housing developments and migration (both national and international). Projections are provided for a 10 year period and are produced each year following the annual census of pupil numbers in schools, which is carried out each January. These most recent pupil numbers are also used to inform the projections.

 I have 4 years to work out what to do next!

 

 


Police & Enfield Council Update 11/8/11

Please see attached a Community Update dated 11th August from the Metropolitan Police which FLDRA Fox Lane and District Residents’ Association have been encouraged to disseminate.

Metropolitan Police Community Update 11/8/11

Enfield Council Respect

Please see attached a Community Update from the Metropolitan Police which FLDRA Fox Lane and District Residents’ Association have been encouraged to disseminate.

Metropolitan Police Community Update 10/8/11

 

 


Palmers Green

I walked in Palmers Green today and can see how the local shops have been affected by the terrible rioting (or should that be looting) of the last few days. Palmers Green is supposidly one of those area not affected by the looting.

The T-Mobile shop has had it’s glass doors smashed in and is now shuttered off but you can still see all of the broken glass in the shop entrance.

The Post Office is shut but whether it is because the staff can’t get there or due to fears fir safety and property I am unsure. The local jewellers had a group of people outside (insurers and owners I think) their shutters are down which I think saved them.

I visited the local hairdresser who didn’t know what she was going to be greeted with today and whether there would be damage. She was working on her own because one of her staff couldn’t get there from Tottenham and another on leave. I’m sure that her help could have got there but the worry is the “Civil Unrest” and one doesn’t want to get caught in it or find yourself unable to get home.

Lots of shopkeepers, including my hairdresser, were moving their wares away from the front plate glass windows to avoid the smash and grab which we’ve seen on TV.

This is what I wrote during 2010 and I stick to education being the answer:

We need Enfield to be safe for everyone whether they are young or old. We need to create an environment where there are activities for the young, such as youth centres and sports clubs and make them easily available. I believe that some youths carry knives to feel safe and to protect themselves or to get in with a gang. We need policies that make youths and the elderly feel safe; that will stop youths hanging around together in feral packs, and to teach youths that carrying a weapon makes you a target for violence, for the loss of liberty or worse still loss of life.


Tottenham Riot

My daughter worked at Spurs yesterday and when she left the football ground just after 8pm she saw the build up of the riot happening. Fortunately she managed to avoid the trouble by travelling in the other direction.

What began as a supposed peaceful demonstration led to a full scale riot. This reflects the tensions that have been brewing in the Edmonton and Tottenham area for months following a number of murders. It is astonishing that this has been allowed to escalate to this proportion.

It is doubtful that the initial protest could ever have been peaceful given the facts surrounding the death and the Police shooting of Mark Duggan. Would the Police have been able to calm and subdue people who view them as the agressors in this incident without preparation?

It does seem from news reports that the Police were very late in getting involved and were not prepared for the levels of violence. Perhaps the Police were policing the football match and preparing for the Hackney carnival?

Of course there is no excuse for the opportunists who take advantage of an awful situation by looting. After seeing various streams on Twitter and BBM I’m sure that social networking doesn’t help these situations where easy pickings can be broadcast to many.

Where are the BBC today? I would expect something of this scale to be on covered on national TV; they appear to be looking for UFO’s!


Bush Hill Park By-Election

29 July 2011

Congratulations to Lee Chamberlain and to the Conservatives on winning the Bush Hill Park by-election in Enfield.

28 July 2011

Bush Hill Park are going to the polls today. The by-election has been caused by the resignation of the Conservative councillor in the Bush Hill Park ward in Enfield.

I have been out canvassing with the Conservative candidate Lee Chamberlain. The weather has been lovely so fingers crossed for a good turn out. Good luck Lee.

 


Midwife Mayhem

What is happening with maternity care? Everyday we read about the possibility of Chase Farm Hospital closing and now this Midwife Mayhem story appears in the local paper.

I gave birth to my twins Poppy and Harry in Chase Farm Hospital on April 17th this year and can tell you that a midwife’s lot does not appear to be a happy one.

What I noticed from my first hand experience in hospital was that midwives are working an exhausting 12 hour shift. They have to be extremely flexible and have great endurance. For example the midwife that helped me through labour came on shift at 7.30pm expecting to be on the general ward looking after 30+ pregnant women (a feat in itself) and ended up supporting me through labour up to 4am without a break! I’m sure the EU would have something to say about that.

There is a lack of stability and every day is different.  Other Labour wards such as Barnet could be closed for a night creating more work in Chase Farm (this is a common occurrence) or indeed Chase Farm Labour unit could close and make for a quieter day for the midwives.

Imagine being 9 months pregnant and going into labour. You phone Chase Farm Labour Ward and they tell you that they are closed. How scary is that? You have received all your ante natal treatment there and are then told to contact another labour ward in another hospital such as Barnet or North Middlesex hospitals but there are no guarantees that they will be open either.

I only managed to have my babies after waiting 3 days to be induced because Chase Farm’s Labour Ward was closed to new admissions on that Saturday night.

Sickness levels appeared to be high causing strain on the staff who are working, this clearly affects staff morale. All the uncertainty that surrounds our local hospital and the care that they provide is affecting morale which in itself contributes to staff being sick.

I received fantastic ante natal, labour and post natal care in Chase Farm Hospital despite the apparently terrible organisation of the care trust and this is due to the committed staff.

I want clarity from our politicians in simple terms so we understand what is being proposed. It is a hot potato that our back bencher MPs are not leading on.


Car crash

Sadly a car crash but happily no one hurt!

We had just sat down to dinner when a Policeman came knocking on our door to let us know that the sporty 2010 Fiat 500 that we bought for my daughter’s 18th birthday had been involved in an accident. A man had been arrested for drunk driving which leaves us with a broken car, a devastated daughter and no quick repair as the driver had no insurance.

I’ve emailed the Fox Lane and District Residents’ Association so we can discuss traffic calming at the next meeting.


Mrs Daniels

I am a hard working mother of 4 children, and stepmother to my husband’s 2 children. I have been employed since leaving college taking only 6 months and 2 years off respectively for the birth of my children. I am currently on maternity leave following the birth of my twins Poppy and Harry.

I worked at the Bank of England for over 10 years, the Houses of Parliament for 5 years, local government for over 6 years, as well as the private sector at Queenswood School. I currently work for the Greater London Authority and the Mayor of London.

I come from an ethnic background and I am second generation immigrant as a result of my parents fleeing the problems in Cyprus in 1960.

I have served the local community as a governor at Ashmole School since 2004; and serve on committees including the curriculum, pupil discipline and staff admission. I also serve on the Fox Lane and District Residents Association (FLDRA) comittee.

My experiences in the local community, as a parent and as a governor have given me the knowledge of the local community and specifically the difficulties that youngsters face, such as the lack of places for them to enjoy themselves, the gang culture that has increased knife crime, and their career and employment issues.

I am keen to widen the community that I serve and my ambition is to make a difference and improve community life.

I believe that I represent the average working person in my area .I am a working mother and I have shared many experiences that the public and local community can relate to such as trying to get my children into good state schools.

I have worked both locally and in London and experience the travel issues that Londoners face and the ever rising cost of being in employment.

I have experienced and share the concerns of all working parents; such as childcare and the ability to work knowing your children are safe. I understand how the economy affects our ability to work.

In my career I have experienced recession and taken voluntary redundancy, I have been outsourced in the workplace, and I understand how an uncertain future can affect communities.

I have put my children through state education and have experienced the concerns that all parents face regarding the quality of education and the inability to get local children into local schools.

 

I have gone through the school appeal process and been disappointed. I have waited until the last moment to get my child into the closest school to us due to local authority rules and expect to go through all of these issues again with my young twins. I know that my children will be unable to go to the closest state primary school due to the lack of primary school places.

Gonul Daniels

 


Primary School Places

I am currently supporting a parent trying to get her son a school place in the London Borough of Enfield. Mrs M has 2 children, J who has a place in Year 4 at a Primary School in LB Enfield and K who has not been offered a place at any school and has been out of education sice October 2009.

Mrs M is distraught that her son is not being educated and that there is no iminent prospect of K being offered any school place.

I have been speaking with LB Enfield and their legal obligation is to offer a place at a school in LB Enfield, not necessarily at the school that K’s brother is attending or even at a school close to where they live. It is Mrs M’s legal responsibility to ensure that K attends school.

Whilst trying to help in this problem I realise that it may not be in the family’s best interest to force LB Enfield into offering a place at any school due to the logistics of taking one child to a local school and then taking another child to the other side of the borough to another school which is clearly not sustainable.

Last week I spoke with the Council and found there are 2 primary schools which had a place and a very short waiting list in close proximity to Mrs M’s home. Mrs M has now put K on the waiting list of both schools. I will continue to contact the Council regularly to ascertain if more Year 1 places become available.

My thoughts – The Council are trying to fulfill their obligations to the best of their ability and in this case there would be no benefit to the family to force the Council to provide a place at any school for K. I do think that more can be done to maintain communication for example the Council phoning parents who don’t have a school place regularly (I would like to see it done daily).

The problem that Mrs M is facing is clearly affecting the moral of the whole family and there is a feeling of helplessness and desperation that they have endured for 7 months. I’m hoping that between us K gets into a school within the next few weeks and I will be phoning the Council daily to try and achieve this.

17 May 2010

As some of you may know if you have been following my blog, I have been trying to help Mrs M get her son K into a primary school. Today Mrs M was offered a school place for K at a primary school. Good news however the school is too far away from the school where her other child is going. If she takes one child to school then the other will be one hour late everyday and won’t be picked up on time. Mrs M is going to turn the place down with much regret. I have phoned the school where son J is, and K is either 1st or 2nd on the waiting list. I’ll be phoning again tomorrow.

6th July 2010

I am delighted that Mrs M’s son started his first day at school today in Year 1 after being out of school since October last year. Clearly there are not enough primary school places that there is no flexibility to allow 1 child into a class. Ideal class sizes are approximately 18 children however the schools in Enfield have 30 pupils per class and over subscribed. On a personal note I am so happy for Mrs M and her family.