It was a hot and sweaty evening, but that didn't stop an incredible team effort as we helped Voices of Hope prepare for their move into Kingston Library. We wasted no time getting started, splitting into teams as soon as we arrived. Dave, Luke, Marcos, John, Jana, Sabir and newcomer Hannah took on the heavy lifting, carrying desks, cabinets, pinboards and other bulky furniture down flights of stairs and into the waiting skip.

Another team tackled a ground-floor room packed from floor to ceiling. We uncovered everything from children's books, stickers and umbrellas to an old projector screen, mountains of shredded paper, a coat stand and even a monkey face cut-out board, which naturally became the star of our group photo later!

It quickly became clear that the fastest approach was a human chain. Claire, Anna and Emily kept everything moving, with paper sorted for recycling while the rest of us passed item after item towards the skip.

Outside, John soon earned the title of "King of the Skip", climbing aboard to pack everything in while Dave joined him to make the most of every inch of space. By halfway through, the skip was already nearly full.

Louise kept us organised, directing what needed clearing next, while cardboard was flattened and everyone pitched in. After a quick water break to admire how much we'd achieved, we tackled one final room full of heavy boxes, discovering a fascinating old book filled with historic photographs of Kingston Library that may even be of interest to the museum.

As the last items disappeared, Sekar swept whilst Anna vacuumed and Louise, Hannah and Marcos helped pick up the many small paper pieces off the floor. Nikita kept the human chain flowing of the last few bits to the skip. Hannah even rescued a few children's books for her classroom.

In just one hour we'd filled a skip, emptied multiple rooms and left the building ready for Voices of Hope to move into their new home. We celebrated with chocolate bars, plenty of smiles and a brilliant group photo—some of us perched on the skip, others pulling faces through the monkey cut-out.

A fantastic evening of teamwork and an amazing amount achieved in just one hour! 💚

This week’s GoodGym task was a split mission, with half the group heading to support the brilliant charity Growbaby.

Rachel, Jana, Manasa, Ellie, Emily and Laurel went o Growbaby and we started by sorting a huge collection of teddy bears. Once that was finished, the manager of Growbaby arrived with her large four-wheel-drive car ready for a dump run the next day — and we quickly got to work loading it up.

Rachel took on the role of chief car packer while the rest of us formed a human chain carrying everything from baby carriers and highchairs to old chairs and other bulky items. We managed to fill the car completely — there wasn’t room for a single extra item!

After that, Emily and Manasa sorted bookshelves upstairs, Ellie organised toys downstairs, and Jana, Laurel and Rachel sorted baby clothes.

In just one hour, we got through every task and helped make the space far more organised for the Growbaby team and the families they support. A great team effort all round!

Hestia's Room of Doom

Tonight we ran, walked and cycled our way to Hestia to tackle their room of doom.

Having donned our gloves after a quick biscuit (we were spoilt again by John) we emptied the contents of the room. There was an eclectic mix of items with enough hangers for a small department store, multiple printers, paint, various poles, tents and even tooth brushes.

Having cleared the room it was hoovered and the thick dirt wiped away. Everything went back in groups of similar items and the rubbish and recycling was piled up.

An hour later it looked like a different room and the Hestia team can now find everything.