Indeed but with all the recently created childrens centres around situated in the grounds of local primary schools, ie Kilmorie, Kelvingrove, Eliot Bank, etc, mums, young and not so young, in Forest Hill are already spoilt for choice. And thats not counting places such as the Honor Oak Tavern and the Horniman, Normanton Street church, FH Library the Ackroyd and a whole lot more that host a lot of baby and toddler groups and events. Personally I find it hard to keep up with all the events in FH as it is. I dont; think Forest Hill mums totally rely on Dulwich any more other than to have a change of scene or visit the park. Its a good idea though, its just that there are a lot of venues already providing great services locally that I'm not sure a specific dedicated venue would make enough to justify its existence.

Has anyone any idea of the capital budget required to bring Louise House up to scratch , DDA compliance, and also the revenue requirements ie rent to the Council and repairs sinking fund etc? Have the Council given an indication of this to anyone? Its pretty critical information in assessing what income needs to be generated in order to stay in the red. It would also be helpful to look at successful case studies from elsewhere to gauge what would work where. I am sure that given the under provision of nurseries in the area there would be someone interested in looking at it however they need to know its on the market so to speak. Bojangles refurbished an old house in FH last year for this purpose and Pitta Patta is also based in a Victorian building so there are precedents. The best way to start therefore is I see it for a marketing brief to be prepared ie area, condition, rents, outgoings, with some indication from a surveyor on potential including capital costs. The next step is to effectively put in on the market for rent. I am not sure how a restriction on community use can be placed on the building or how wide or narrow this definition could be. Presumably it already carries a D1 classification?