It was a night of celebrations in Westminster last night - not only did we pick up two very successful hauls of bread, rolls, sandwiches and pastries that would otherwise be thrown away but it was also...

Sam's 1500th good deed!

Huge congratulations Sam - from sorting and stacking at foodbanks, packing clothes for rough sleepers and volunteering at junior parkrun, Sam has created a huge positive impact by doing good in Southwark and beyond. Well done Sam, you've spread a lot of happ-bee-ness!

Andy, Sam and walked through the Christmas crowds carefully balancing our bags of goodies trying to locate the Under One Sky Team on their weekly walk to support vulnerable people in central London. This charity provides essentials to rough sleepers, not only good food that would otherwise be wasted, bu hot drinks, resources and support. It was great to see their vital work in action.

On a wet Monday night in Wandsworth we bought the festive cheer, beginning with a warm up and a survey about Christmas films - do they make you ho ho ho or are they just about as fun as an over boiled brussel sprout? The grinches just lost out in the votes, and the verdict is in - Christmas movies are here to stay!

It was great to see some new faces along to our run - a huge welcome to Emma and Giulio who came along to their very first session. Give them a big festive cheer!

Our job for the evenings was at Larkhall park, a regular location for GoodGym visits. Every time we come we work hard on various spots throughout the park alongside the regular volunteers who help keep it a safe and welcoming green space for local people.

Last night we divided into two groups. The first team was to tackle the big bed at the entrance of the park, the second went off to help shift a massive pile of soil and to clear an area of leaves.

Before long it was action stations and everybody was hard at work. Jordan and Felix took on the massive soil shifting challenge, while Jason debuted his fabulous new invention - the spade light. Quick, somebody get it patented. It only took 40 minutes for us to make a big difference and the Friends of Larkhall Park group appreciated how much got done. Well done team!

The fun didn't stop there though - there was just enough time to squeeze in a circuits based fitness station in the playground. It featured squats, ladder runs, curtsy lunges and plenty of laughs.

Next week it's our final group run of 2026. I'm just finalising the task, so keep an eye out for the sign up page. We'll follow this with a social at a local pub - time to get those vocal chords warmed up!

There are plenty of opportunities to spread the Christmas joy this week, including:

• Helping collect donations and other jobs at Battersea's oldest church tonight. We really need a couple more volunteers for this - and you will be rewarded by celebrity speakers and mulled wine!

• Supporting a carol concert for the elderly on Thursday

• Putting up Christmas decorations at a church in Battersea on Saturday morning

As well as doing a whole lot of good, GoodGym runs never fail to throw up some surprises! Saturday's litter picking session was no exception. Throughout the morning, Andy and I came across a 200-strong horse drawn cart parade, a convention of corgis in Christmas jumpers in Hyde Park, a very rare English bulldog and a mystery package in Little Venice. We also collected two huge bin bags of plastic bottles and other waste, made friends with some German tourists and spotted the parakeets in the park. A morning well spent!