My daughter's annual review took place in June, and was nothing like any other I'd been to before.  It was far better for the appointment of an interim SENCo, who met with me in advance and invited people I thought should be there.  In previous years I've attended a 'meeting' with an Inclusion Manager, the class teacher and my daughter's LSA, but have never received any notes of these meetings.  It turns out, neither had the LEA ... and so my daughter's statement had not been properly reviewed for 3-4 years.  Has anyone else out there had a similar experience?  And do you feel, as I do, that schools should tell you from the outset what to expect from an annual review?  

I've heard other parents describe ARs as 'scary', but this isn't my experience?

Me too.  I got my first letter from Southwark this year too, and my daughter's had a statement for 5 years!