Quite right Cheq - limits are there for a reason! It's not just the schools or the aircraft's limit, but it's also your own - you have to decide what you are comfortable with, and I wouldn't be (on my own) with a 13 knot cross wind!
I have been thinking of setting up a web-cam at Liverpool, purely because when I'm at home and I look out the window, it looks perfect, however when I speak to my instructor who is at Liverpool, he informs me that it's crap! There's only about 12 miles distance too!