Hi King Kong yes I will pm you about the NCT get-togethers.

Re antenatal classes -
just to clarify for anyone who doesn't know, there are a couple of types of antenatal classes, the ones run by your hospital which your midwife/health visitor should be able to give you details about (the nearest to here is Lewisham Hospital) - these are free but the quality is variable I think depending on which hospital it is.
Then the NCT also run antenatal classes, which KingKong mentions, these are not free though, but generally quite good and run by trained antenatal teachers.
Yes - it does seem though that it isn't always possible to get into NCT classes nearby, and also the other people at the classes may not be from your local area, I think this is to do with the classes being very popular and Lewisham being a large area, so they fit you in wherever they can. But it is a shame I agree.

Re NCT - if you sign up to an NCT antenatal class it doesn't automatically mean you will be a member of the NCT, you have to join separately.
Once you join the NCT you are 'allocated' to your local group, in this case to the Forest Hill group, which is more focused on postnatal and parent support.

Also you could ask your midwife/health visitor if they run any postnatal classes as these are a good way to meet other parents. At the moment there are some being run by health visitors at the children's centre on Kilmorie Road (next to the school) on Friday mornings, looking at things like baby massage and health and safety. I don't know how long it is planned for these to continue though, the health visiting service seems to have been going through a few changes at the moment.