u/obfuscation_

But what happens if you go in, but decide not to buy anything?

Surely they can't hold your car ransom and force you to buy a token item, just because your favourite middle of Lidl item was out of stock?

Not far off: https://jobs.disneycareers.com/cultural-representative-program

https://preview.redd.it/o7tv0gte0hpg1.jpeg?width=3072&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=b40e136c00b96cb5aa3e6b1e7e2ff7a6e25e743e

This was 51D from a few weeks back - I would highly recommend it. Direct aisle access, no one stepping over you, and near but not too near the two large lavatories at the front.

I think the biggest thing that biases towards the same old names are some of the initial criteria bidders have to meet over size and scale - many smaller potential bidders just don't have the balance sheet or numbers of people to get a look in.

https://preview.redd.it/i2f73amf7qcg1.png?width=1170&format=png&auto=webp&s=d27fa56af91578f2d8fb4a0d02a00ddc49276bfa

I found this post super helpful to explain the (much bigger than I realised) world of gas cylinders!

We can build gov.uk but can't build our own pension platform?

Except how much of that build work is actually by supplier-augmented or wholly-supplier teams?

You're right, and I hadn't scrolled enough to see that.

The Cabinet Office asserted that it had several plans, including a more gradual roll-out of the Capita technology, and other options which are commercially sensitive, which it agreed to share with the Committee confidentially.

I have to say, none of that fills me with much confidence. Of course they had contingency plans but it doesn't mean they were realistic, affordable, or better.

The fact that they talk about "a more gradual roll-out" as an option is a good example - running a legacy service (presumably without MyCSP's support) alongside the new one sounds utterly horrendous. If that's the one they're willing to say out loud, that's bad news.

The question is - was there ever really an option to extend MyCSP, and how much might that have cost?

Just remember that you likely want a temporary adjustment, as otherwise your reduction will be counted as a (very slight) FTE reduction that would likely be harder to undo in the future.

They know tender evaluation well and must be good at bids. They will also know the limitations on evaluators bringing in outside experience to the process (so only evaluating based on the bid material itself), although I believe that is starting to change.

The only regret we've really had with our VW Sharan — which we bought when we needed 3 large car seats across one row — is that there is almost no decent alternative nowadays.

Massive boot, sliding doors (an absolute godsend), three equal sized individual seats in 2nd row (ideally rather than a bench), and something that isn't a van so is pleasant enough to drive - it's a hard list to match.

We still have yet to really benefit from the 3rd row seats, other than a few one offs, because I'll be damned if I have to take a car seat out to get to them, but the boot space with them down is incredible.

The best advice to give them would be "HR" or, probably better, "union".

Don't forget bananas are already radioactive, before you start making nuclear waste banana smoothies!

Soliciting in the office or to customers would clearly be a problem, but I'd be looking towards your department's guidance on outside work for more detail.

Typically taking up other employment should be agreed with your line manager and involves agreeing sensible boundaries - for example ensuring you're not working so much that your CS job is suffering, and that you remain available for your expected working hours/arrangements.

When it comes to the civil service code, I think it's primarily "honesty" and "integrity" I'd be concerned about - so not misleading anyone, ensuring gifts/hospitality couldn't be perceived as inappropriate and the like.

Oh last of all - making sure any earnings are declared to HMRC properly. That one is probably the biggest deal of the lot.

Although I work in an area that isn't customer facing, I have some really excellent colleagues who started their careers there and have done really well for themselves.

It seems to help some people get a really good appreciation for how parts of the organisation work and to see things from both a customer and operational perspective, which they've then brought to other roles.

You will find variations of this question in other posts, but what it might come down to would be seeking an "access order" from a county court under the access to neighbouring land act. This allows for reasonable access for essential maintenance.

It is certainly a bad idea. When paying "cash in hand" the employer must still make sure appropriate deductions (e.g., income tax and NICs) have been made on your behalf. I believe you must also be given a payslip, which should explain these amounts for you. Paying national insurance contributions also counts towards "qualifying years" for your state pension too.

Although it's your employer in the wrong initially, any deductions may be recovered from you at a later date as they are still owed, so you should really consider contacting HMRC to report your employer:

https://www.gov.uk/report-cash-in-hand-pay

If you want to double-check that HMRC is definitely not aware, you can try signing up for a Personal Tax Account online, which should show you what payments HMRC knows about already.

Don't forget that buying and selling houses comes with a fair cost too - in terms of legal fees and estate agents fees - so even a small increase in value may well be eaten up.

If you're buying and selling frequently, you're also more vulnerable to changes in house prices - for example, would you be happy if prices crashed 10% and you couldn't move on as you intended without taking a loss? You're basically putting all of your eggs in one basket.

As many others have got at, a house purchase has value beyond the financial aspect.

I would expect that unless it's getting directly wet, you really don't need to worry that much. The majority of the work is in the prep - getting the surface relatively smooth before painting.

Looks to me like fairly standard white gloss woodwork so you should have plenty of choice. Definitely use a primer first - sometimes you'll see a combined "primer and undercoat" which would work. Apply with a brush and try not to go over the same area lots - it doesn't usually respond well to being overworked.

Keep in mind that if you paint over any existing gloss you will want to lightly sand it first otherwise the paint won't stick properly and will peel off prematurely. Also, watch out for the difference between oil and water based paint - the former needs special brush cleaner when you're done or you'll end up in a right mess! I've also followed the advice of being consistent of using the same choice of oil or water based for both the primer and the gloss, as otherwise sometimes they might not work properly.

If you make a decent job of the repair, they shouldn't have a good reason to take your deposit. The tricky bit is obviously that "good enough" is entirely subjective.

Your deposit should be protected by a deposit protection scheme and you would be able to dispute any deductions but keep in mind the whole deposit would be held while that was resolved. If they thought it needed work I believe you can ask for evidence of the quote they got to show it was reasonable and competitive (instead of just asking their expensive mate to do it for a hiked up rate at your expense).

Assuming you try to fix this yourself (again, I would check they're happy you doing this, but you could always ask LegalAdviceUk about how to approach that), once you're happy with it I would send photos to the landlord to ask for any additional work they think it needs - that way you can continue to do it yourself rather than waiting until you come to moving out and it's too late.

I'd expect you might need to wait another couple of days. Like mentioned, it could be that the ambient temperature being quite low could be making it worse - air flow isn't as helpful if it's all very cold air!

We've been through cycles before of closing windows so it warms up a bit, then when it feels more humid you can air the room enough to get rid of the condensation. It's amazing how much water you're waiting to come out of the walls. I haven't tried a dehumidifier before so couldn't say whether that's a better option, but probably a touch more energy efficient if you have access to one.

I feel like this is one of those jobs that will unravel a bit - one thing will lead to another, especially because you don't just have one piece to cleanly replace.

Given you're trying to blend the old with the new, I'd suspect it will end up being noticeable that you've had to do something even if you do a good job so I'd be tempted to own up (depending on your relationship with the landlord) to make sure you don't put loads of effort into something they'll ultimately still say they're not happy with - then you're down your time, money and deposit potentially.

Even if you can't feel much air movement, the moisture will be working its way out into the air in the room - unfortunately from my limited experience it's just a case of waiting longer than you'd like!

How long is it since you had it plastered?

Until recently we've had no problem topping up our central heating via the filling loop. However now it seems the valve we'd usually open still turns but doesn't do anything. It doesn't feel particularly loose (there's still a little resistance as you turn it) but can't work out if our bathroom fitters adjusted something else instead.

Previously I'd just done a quarter turn on the top right valve - is there something I'm missing?