Skip ‘n’ Chips

The Children's Allotment is a lovely project in East Oxford which was one of our regulars in 2019. Having taken over an abandoned plant nursery the Children's Allotment team have been working hard to transform the site from a tangle of brambles and nettles to a place where they can deliver outdoor childcare and learning.

The allotment has come on in leaps and bounds since our first visit in spring 2019, but of course COVID-19 derailed their plans, as it has for so many organisations. In the last couple of weeks work has resumed and with group community missions back on the agenda we were really pleased to answer the call for volunteers.

We had a handful of tasks to complete: Clear the vegetation choking one of the apple trees, move some large bags of rubble into the skip, detangle bindweed from the allotment boundary, and wheelbarrow woodchip from one side of the site to the other and spread it out.

Gloved up, tooled up, divided into teams, we got to work.

As always, our allotted hour (or so) flew by. Stepping back to look at the results is always satisfying - it's surprising how much a team of motivated GoodGymers can achieve in an hour. Apple tree liberated, wood chip spread, detritus skipped, socially distanced group photo taken, and that was another Wednesday Community Mission complete.

Good work dream team!