This Tuesday, 10+ of the GoodGym Brighton crew ran, cycled and walked over to Lavender House for a full perimeter clear-up. Headtorches on, we weeded, detangled and plucked our way through the edges of the building, filling up multiple wheelbarrows for compost and giving the outside a noteworthy November glow-up.

Jane had a moment of magic finding a red admiral butterfly and having it stay still on her hand long enough for a photo and a video. A flash of summer in a little bit of a November drizzle!

Also on this week's GoodGym Brighton’s wildlife watch: an honourable shout out to the many ‘bench bugs’ we had to yank coats and jackets away from, and a healthy, stocked-for-winter looking worm. Christophe’s ‘bright’ idea to light our group photo with headtorches gave us a more sinister, ghostly energy than our normal group shots, but it’s not been too long since Halloween so I think we got away with it.

Weeds tackled and all equipment returned, a few of us ran over the road to the Sidewinder for some burritos and much-needed trail run chat.

Can we join forces with the Tidy Up Team of Brighton & Hove Council, and local community volunteers to make a difference? Yes, we can.

Can we support the Hanover & Elm Grove Community Forum, Hanover Action, and the Phoenix Estate in their weeding efforts? Yes, we can.

Can we help create cleaner, greener, and more welcoming streets for everyone to enjoy? Yes, we can.

Can we come together as neighbours, volunteers, and friends to strengthen our community spirit? Yes, we can.

Can we show that teamwork and care can transform our shared spaces? Yes, we can.

Can we show up energised and leave feeling satisfied ? Yes, we can

11 Goodgymmers jogged and walked the short journey over to Round Hill to help keep the neighbourhood tidy. When we arrived we joined forces with Dom and the volunteers from the Round Hill Society. The Round Hill Society helps to preserve, improve and create pride in the the area. We also welcomed new Goodgymmer Andrea to her first task!

After going to pick-up tools from the local community store we split into 3 groups to tackle a few different areas. Armed with secateurs, shovels and brooms we got to work on cutting back bindweed, trimming overhanging hedges and clearing the edges of the pavement. With 3 big teams and a can-do attitude we made short work of the pesky bindweed and quickly filled-up 14 bin bags. The looming darkness at the end of the task reminded us children of summer that autumn was indeed coming!

Once we finished all our tasks and regrouped, in scenes reminiscent of Jesus feeding the 5000 Stefania fed us all from huge reserves of end-of-life croissants, bread and salad. Fully carbed-up we all jogged back home in the autumn darkness.