A large group of Goodgymers gathered for our first November task in Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park. We started with introductions, biscuit preferences and a brief history of the park. Then it was time to get our gloves, tools and head torches and we headed off into the darkness.

Our task was to plant over 400 snowdrop and daffodil bulbs along the side of a rediscovered footpath among the graves. We planted randomly to add to the wild, natural feel of the park which is a managed nature reserve. Come back early next year to see these beautiful flowers in bloom!

Many hands made light work of the planting and a fun time was had by all. Conversations flourished and new friendships were formed. Ken also imparted his knowledge of cemetery celebrities (including William Perkin who invented an affordable mauve dye and has family buried there) and natural wonders such as the picturesque purple fungus on the stump of a horse chestnut tree.

A big shout out to Iona and Peter for completing their first ever Goodgym tasks. It was great to have you and we hope you’ll join us again soon. Also, a big hello to our visitors to the borough including Hannah!

A group of us gathered on a still warm October eve to help Ken with some bulb planting. We worked in a small area of the cemetery park and planted over 250 crocuses. These will flower in the new year and enhance the wild beautiful look of the park.

A light mist descended on us as we took up our trowels and starting digging deep (as deep as the trowel to protect those bulbs from hungry squirrels)! It was dark as we started, but we were equipped with our headtorches and spotlights, diligently gardening among the grass and graves as the bats flew overhead. Some worked so ferociously that even the tools were no match for their pure strength!

A big welcome to Jo and Beate joining us for your first task! It was great to have you there and an enjoyable Monday evening. Hope to see you again soon!

This week's big Monday night task took us to St Peter's Church and it was light work for the group of 14! We welcomed new joiner Emmanuel and wished Anna a happy birthday 🎂

The first half of the session involved a sweep of fallen leaves, a quick litter pick and removing misplaced large stones from the flower beds. With sunset falling at around 7.30pm, our attentions turned to installing a network of garden lights, planting stakes into the ground at well triangulated distances apart. The switch-on moment proved a satisfying end to the evening.

Stress is prominent in our society, and now it’s affected the trees! The parched summer we’re suffering is no fun for our barked friends either, who are shedding their leaves before the schools have gone back. They know a thing or two about survival – one of the plane trees on the site is 280 years old – but the leaves are piling up and blocking the paths of St Matthew’s churchyard

So a squad of Goodgymers – some arriving earlier than others – converged on the premises to help Lady Andrea address the situation. A special welcome to new recruit Arina, who’s just joined her boyfriend in London, and was soon converted to GoodGym, after Mile End ParkRun on Saturday

We picked up, swept, gathered and bagged, all while catching up with news of padel and tennis, job hunts, shakshuka, pubs, poetry and property

Within an hour, we’d filled more large bags than I could count (but it was more than twenty-five). Just pity the man from Veolia who comes to empty the medium-sized rubbish bin and is confronted with our leaf-bag mountain. At least he’ll have a nice tidy church garden to look at…