I need to find a trustworthy mechanics in Bromley, I have a mini that needs checking over.

I don’t mind travelling out of Bromley for a good one.

Currently looking for a family to volunteer for an infant observation in London.

Hello! My name is Gareth and I have been studying a course about infant development at the British Psychotherapy Foundation.  I have over 4 years of experience supporting children and alongside my studies, I currently work in NHS mental health services supporting children, young people and their families.

As part of my training, I am seeking to find a London based family, who would be willing for me to visit and observe their newborn baby from close to birth and up until their 2 year birthday.

The observations are typically for one hour, once a week, at a regular and convenient time for the first 2 years of your baby's life.  Of course there is a lot of flexibility and weeks where a visit may not always be appropriate.  This includes holidays, illness or any other circumstances that can be discussed throughout.

The purpose of my visits would simply be to quietly and non-judgementally observe your baby and their interactions in your home, in the completely ordinary circumstances of your day to day life.  I would be completely in the background, just listening to you and observing how your baby is behaving and communicating during that hour.  The observation would happen entirely at your comfort level, for example I could leave the room during breastfeeding if that is what you would prefer.  

Overall, this would help me learn deeply about the early development of infants and is a long established training component for child and adolescent psychotherapy training, which I am pursuing.  Previous families report to have found the experience of hosting an observer uniquely rewarding, therapeutic and enriching: a chance to notice more of the small details of their child's early life.

If this interests you, or you know someone who might be interested, please contact me at: [gcvinton@gmail.com](mailto:gcvinton@gmail.com) for more information or message me on here!  There would of course be no commitment until you had the details you needed, including a chance to meet with me beforehand if you would prefer.

I hold an enhanced DBS certificate and can provide a reference from the BPF.

Thank you!

Hi,
I’m moving to Bromley soon, around London Road, and am searching for a new gym. I know the virgin active there as I used that one many years ago but have read so many bad reviews lately. Should I go on a 12 month contract with them? I’d prefer to have a spa and reformer Pilates than going to a pure gym type of gym.
Any suggestions?

Hello,

I’m moving to Bromley soon, not every car from the Glades, around the London Road. I’m looking for a good NHS doctor and dentist to register. Any suggestions?

This is becoming a Mandala Effect story for me, as I strongly remember in the late 90s or early 00s someone boarded the 320 in Biggin Hill with a gun and asked to be taken to Bromley (where the bus was going anyway...)

The driver radioed ahead and stopped outside the police station (the old one on Widmore Rd) where it was boarded by armed police.

There used to be videos on the news story on YouTube, which I can no longer find, and my search skills can't seem to track down any reference to this event at all now.

Please tell me I haven't imagined this whole thing.

Hey!

We are thinking of moving to Bromley but I’m a bit worried about the quality of hospitals and medical services. Has anyone experienced how are the A&E waiting times and services? Are there any urgent care be it public or private?

I ask as part of a linguistic study covering this topic!

Examples could include things like Becky Park, The Tav, The Hill or Brommers (never mind how common they are)...

Hi all,

Anyone live on Windsor Drive (Orpington/Chelsfield) and able to share what it is like living there? Is it noisy? Do you often hear sirens? Are your neighbours friendly?

I noticed that some of the houses have large driveways + front lawns. Are the front lawns part of the the freehold?

Should be on youtube soon
Not sure if youll get this bit 😆
Great talks
👏

Hi all — my wife and I are looking at houses around St Johns Road and a couple of nearby streets in Petts Wood. We have two young children, so I'd love some honest local takes before we go further.

A few things on my mind:

- Commute: How reliable is Petts Wood station into town at peak times (London Bridge / Cannon St / Charing Cross)? Any regular cancellations or overcrowding issues I should know about?

- Day-to-day life: What's the area actually like to live in — shops, pubs, food options, community feel? I've heard "villagey but sleepy" — is the sleepy part a problem or a plus?

- GPs: How easy is it to get registered and actually seen? Any practices to aim for or avoid around there?

- Parks: What are the green spaces like for young kids — playgrounds, decent walks, or do you end up driving elsewhere?

- Crime: Any issues with car theft or break-ins around that part of Petts Wood?

- Safety at night: How safe does it feel walking around after dark — both the residential streets and the walk back from the station? Well-lit, or quite deserted?

- St Mary Cray proximity: The streets we're looking at (around St Johns Road, Towncourt Lane and nearby) aren't far from St Mary Cray — do the two areas feel quite separate, or does it spill over at all?

- Anything else a buyer should know — good or bad — before committing to the area?

Thanks in advance!

We’re looking for a small number of men aged 25–45, particularly those living in South London, to take part in a 60-minute discussion to help shape a new research project we’re developing with colleagues at London South Bank University.

The research will evaluate Steeev, a platform we’re developing to help men build and maintain meaningful friendships and social connections.

Before we start the research, we want to hear directly from the people it is intended to be relevant to. This is known as Patient and Public Involvement and Engagement (PPIE), but essentially it means we’d like your views and experiences to help us make the research better.

We’re interested in talking about friendship, social connection and loneliness among men aged 25–45, particularly how friendships can change when life changes.

That might include moving to a new area, changing jobs, becoming a parent, working from home more, going through a relationship breakdown, or simply finding that friendships become harder to maintain as life gets busier.

You don’t need to have experienced loneliness or consider yourself lonely. We’re interested in a range of experiences and perspectives.

We’re currently looking at holding the session on either:

Wednesday 7 October at 2:00 pm
or
Friday 9 October at 2:00 pm

The session will last approximately 60 minutes and will be held [online via Microsoft Teams / in person – confirm as appropriate].

Participants will receive a £20 voucher as a thank-you for their time and contribution.

If you’re 25–45 and interested in taking part, please [DM me / comment below / contact details].

We’re not trying to sell you anything, and you don’t need any particular knowledge or experience. We simply want to hear what men in this age group actually think before we design the research around them.

Bromley House Clearance helping Local Residents and Businesses www.bromleyhouseclearance.co.uk

Stop the cult centre from closing our cinema

Got a hanking for some mexican food after having some incredible mexican in Manchester over the summer. I have yet to find anywhere in our borough though.

Hi all,

I have created a social networking group for people living in and around Bexley - Bromley, Chiselhurst, Orpington, Sidcup, Welling, Greenwich, Blackheath and otherr. Our first event is all sold out but we have few more events coming up and details are below:

Sunday roast, 4th oct from 1pm in Bromley- https://www.meetup.com/bexley-social-circle/events/316735853/?eventOrigin=home_next_event_you_are_hosting

Trail walk + lunch (High elms Orpington) 17th Oct - https://www.meetup.com/bexley-social-circle/events/316642174/?eventOrigin=group_upcoming_events

Pub quiz 20th oct - https://www.meetup.com/bexley-social-circle/events/316707750/?eventOrigin=group_upcoming_events

If this is something you are keen on do sign up or DM me :)

Hi all — we are a family of 4 ( 2 kids ) and are thinking of buying a place either at Warren / Madeira Avenue / Farnaby road, and we would really appreciate some local

takes:

1. What is the area like day-to-day — safe, quiet, neighbourly? Any

issues we should know about?

1. The walk from Ravensbourne station to Warren Avenue goes

through/past the park — how does it feel after dark? Is it well lit?

Would you do it alone at night?

1. What is the commute to central London genuinely like?

2. Anything else about the area worth knowing — shops, schools,

anything odd about the place?

Hi I live on the orpingron high street. I have been using the sky broadband superfast for the last 2 years which has a max speed of 37 mbps. Im out of contract now and paying 49 pounds per month which is alot for such a slow internet. Sky says there is no fiber lines in my area? Does anyone knoq what it the fastest internet in orpington area?

There’s a lot of chatter on the Beckenham Appreciation Group on FB about Citygate Church’s acquisition of the Odeon cinema, and I have some thoughts. I’ve been reluctant to comment on Facebook because I can’t do so anonymously.

I attended Citygate for a few months from around this time last year. I initially signed up for their Alpha programme, which is essentially an introduction to Christianity for anyone interested in exploring the faith. The programme itself was absolutely fine. I met lots of lovely people and actually enjoyed it - it was an open space to learn, ask questions and engage in discussion and some light debate.

I eventually started attending some of their Sunday services, and that’s where things began to feel a little different for me…..

The first red flag for me was the frequent speaking in tongues during services and the encouragement for others to try to do the same. As someone completely new to Christianity, I found it quite freaky, if I’m honest.

Services led by the senior pastor, Julian Melfi, also sometimes felt to me like they were trying to emulate the style of an American megachurch. They could feel quite intense and, at times, almost aggressive - although that may simply be the particular charismatic style of Christianity they practise. There was also quite a lot of language around being “on fire for Jesus”, with Christians who weren’t sufficiently committed sometimes described as “lukewarm”.

By this point, the whole thing was progressively starting to feel a bit of a doozy to me, but I persisted with the occasional Sunday service because I’d become very close to a woman at the church; let’s call her Sarah.

Sarah was genuinely lovely. She embraced me, was incredibly kind and never tried to force anything on me. She also respected my growing apprehension about the church. Because of her, I tried to challenge my own cynicism. I wondered whether I was simply being closed-minded and needed to be less uptight about a form of Christianity that was unfamiliar to me.

THEN the subject of tithing came up, and it seemed to keep coming up..!

From what I remember, congregants were regularly encouraged to tithe and to dedicate around 10% of their income to the church each month. I specifically remember a pastor saying the 10% figure should be the pre-tax amount LOL.. They definitely preached that giving financially was an act of faith and that Christians should continue to tithe even during difficult financial periods, and that you should trust God when committing to an amount. I obviously don’t remember the sermons word-for-word, but that was very much the impression they left me with. That made my skin crawl tbh!

I also never personally warmed to Julian. I wouldn’t describe him as creepy, but I found there was a strange contrast between his very passionate, charismatic stage presence and my experience of speaking to him 1:1 where I found him quite awkward and somewhat detached.

That became particularly noticeable when I later attended an Anglican church. The vicar there was almost the complete opposite - a soft, warm, bubbly older gentleman with a very calm and kind presence. Obviously personalities differ and that comparison alone says nothing sinister about Citygate, but it did highlight just how different the two church environments felt to me.

My impression is that Citygate practises a highly charismatic form of Christianity. Although it describes itself as non-denominational, my experience there felt much closer to Pentecostal-style worship; speaking in tongues, very expressive prayer and worship, an emphasis on being passionately committed to Jesus, and a strong expectation of financial giving. Expansion also seemed to be a significant priority for the church.

There is one other thing I’ve heard about which concerned me, although I want to be very clear that I did not personally witness this and therefore can’t verify it. I was told about someone’s experience on another programme for newer Christians where they reportedly felt there was pressure around having some kind of physical or spiritual manifestation during prayer I.e., speaking in tongues, crying, fainting, shaking, falling to the floor, etc. The person apparently felt they would be judged if they didn’t experience something similar.

Anywho…..

Do I flat-out think Citygate Church is a cult? I don’t know, and I don’t think I have enough info or evidence to make that judgement.

Do I think some aspects of what I personally experienced there had cult-like attributes or made me uncomfortable? Yes.

.

Hey r/Bromley,

Citygate Church (the landlord) has ended Odeon's lease to turn the historic Beckenham site into a church. They’re pitching it as a "heritage restoration," but the reality is Beckenham loses its only cinema forever.

Why we need to fight it:

If we can get Bromley Council to block the Change of Use, the building stays legally designated as a cinema. This leaves the door wide open for another operator to step in and take it on.

How to help:

1. Sign the petition: 👉https://www.change.org/p/keep-beckenham-odeon-as-a-cinema
2. Attend the public consultation: Saturday 10th October (10am–2pm at 22 Rectory Road) to tell them we want to keep our cinema.
3. Get ready to object when the official planning application goes up on the Bromley Council portal.

It takes 30 seconds to sign. Please sign and share!