Dr Bradley

The Aldi computer comes with a 3 year warrenty with telephone helpline and return to base for repairs. so you pay the postage and they fix it. With Dell you have to pay for those two years, it isn't cheap, and any upgrades from stadard spec are expensive. When I looked at a Dell the base price went from about 600 to 1100. Ok so I want high spec and I don't think the Aldi will provide it, but if it fits what you want then it is probably a good buy.

The Settle to Carlisle run is excellent, but can be extended by going to Dumfries then the Nith Valley to Glasgow (used to do it as the route of the Thames Clyde Express in my youth. From Glasgow get the train to Fotrt Wiliam and Mallaig over Rannoch Moor. Brilliant but would be better as a stream excursion. (And the Deep is great.)

In similar circumstances, about 10 years ago, I was in deep s**t financially. I made agreements with all the utilities, mortgage lender and other people I owed money to - except council tax, who demanded more than my monthly income and kept taking me to court. I was charged 100's of pounds in court fees, which I couldn't pay. They complained in court that I had been frivolous in spending £50 on a van to get to a self employed job for which I needed tools so couldn't use public transport, but would earn me eough to start paying my debts. I later found that the advice the council had given me i.e. that I wasn't eligible for council tax benefit because I had a lodger, was wrong and that this bill could have been avoided by claiming benefit. By this time it was too late to do anything about it - their wrong advice cost me a small fortune(to me at the time).They have harrassd me ever since. The local council are in a monopoly position and clearly abuse this. Almost any other service provider with whom I felt so badly treated I could find an alternative. Not with CT unless I move out of the district which I am at last about to do. Apologies - rant over.

I've worked in a few brilliant state comprehensives where the needs of all pupils wer catered for. I've also worked in very poor ones (includng one later classed as the worst in Britain, couldn't wait to get out).The head of each shool made an enormous difference, for better or worse.The comprehensive principle is great but when it dosen't work it is a disaster for the majority of pupils. As said before there needs to be provision for diffrent abilities and types and a means of preventing a minority destroying the prospects of the majority. Even the worst school I was in had many decent and able pupils but they were taught little as the staff had to spend all their time controlling the minority of disruptive ones. They needed to be taken out of there and provided with an education that suited them more - for the sake of the rest rather than themselves. Expensive

Couldn't agree more. A great step towards equality of opportunity. The other step needed would be to make state schools as good as private/public schools, though nobody knows how to that.

Blue skies, I agree that the rules are not designed for approval by the Plain English Society. Even the people who operate them can't understand them. It's a result of the law making process that starts off intending to cover every possibility, then something occurs that isn't covered so its added on - again and again and....... The result is a miasma of confusion. No offence taken and hope none given.

I've seen first hand many people handling claims for benefit who are horrendous in their attitude to claimants and woefully short of knowledge about what they are doing, so I can fully understand Blue Skies poor experience. On the other hand most of my past colleagues working with the public were professional and considerate. Whilst it was some time ago that I actually dealt with claims for HB I am still involved (not for much longer though ) and still know the current rules. HB can be claimed in the circumstances described and as Christine has said there are ways to appeal about a refusal. It is not possible to claim whilst cruising as it would involve mooring in different local authority areas and the idea of new claim for days or a few weeks would not be viable, however if you retain a home mooring and simply cruise for a few weeks as a "holiday" then the claim on the mooring you are still paying for should continue. Next year the method of assesing the amount of housing benefit people can get will change. I've not yet worked out how this will affect "unusual" abodes but I think boaters claiming HB are likely to be better off - not a promise, just a possibility. Blue Skies does seem pretty determined that HB cannot be claimed despite the wealth of knowledge on this thread saying otherwise.

If your spendig £60000 or more, I don't think the Surveyors cost will appear to be much. Any boat builder who objects to a surveyor checking on the work might have something to hide and perhaps shouldn't be used.

EH!

Owning or renting the boat will make no difference, you can still get HB for the mooring fees.

You will not get any HB relating to boat ownership, even interest on the loan. HB and a boat applies only to mooring costs.

That sounds good.

I see Christine has already answered this correctley. What a shame. It's the first topic on the forum that I know something about. CC'rs are unlikely to get any HB. See earlier post.

Try searching for T-Mobile, there has been quite a lot on that.