A dedicated team of GoodGym volunteers headed to One Church this Sunday to help out in the kitchen for their weekly community gathering. Our mission? To prep a massive, comforting feast of vegetable and beef stew to feed the local community.

The shift started as a trio, with the three of us arriving sleeves rolled up. Because the head chef was arriving a little later, we had to make a few quick executive decisions just to get things moving and prep stations set up! Once the chef arrived, the cooking officially kicked off, and our trio officially upgraded to a four-man band. From there, the quartet got straight to work at the chopping stations.

There was an absolute mountain of fresh produce waiting for us, but we sliced, diced, and chopped our way through bags of carrots, potatoes, onions, and seasonal veggies. With the vegetables prepped and the beef ready, everything went into the giant simmering pots, quickly filling the kitchen with the rich, mouth-watering aroma of a hearty Sunday stew. It was a fantastic, high-energy session filled with great conversation and brilliant teamwork.

A good day for a GoodGym session.

We met by the Peace Statue and unanimously agreed on one thing before we’d even set off: how is it still this incredibly hot?! Nevertheless, we got ourselves moving and made our way through the warm Brighton evening to our task.

On arrival we met Tom, who welcomed us, showed us the tools and pointed out the areas of the garden most in need of some attention. And there was certainly plenty to get stuck into!

We set to work clearing a huge amount of weeds, with bindweed making a particularly determined bid for garden domination. Many handfuls, armfuls and bags later, we’d brought some much-needed order back to the space, opening it up for residents to enjoy again and hopefully giving them the chance to develop their own green fingers.

As ever, the conversation flowed as quickly as the weeds disappeared. Tom kept us entertained with some fascinating stories, while our very own Jane treated us to a potted history of Arundel Castle and England's Dukedom. We also learnt from Tom about Father Mark and the history of how 58 Cromwell Road came to be.

More importantly, Tom reminded us why places like this matter and of the real difference a welcoming, cared-for space can make to people’s lives. It was lovely to be reminded that, although pulling weeds might seem like a small thing, lending a few pairs of willing hands can contribute to something much bigger.

With a rather less jungly garden behind us, we said our goodbyes and ran off into the still-light, and still very warm, summer evening.

Great turnout, we had plenty volunteers but each one was very dedicated and worked so efficiently. We chopped veg and cooked a veggie chilli, roast butternut squash, sweetcorn fritters, and a cherry almond cake all in just over an hour, it's never been so quick! Thanks everyone

Yesterday, six magnificent Brighton GoodGymers ran up to Lavender House for a weeding blitz. The sun was out, and so was our appetite for destroying invasive vegetation to help the local retirement housing community thrive.

A massive GoodGym Brighton welcome goes out to Douglas, who joined us for his very first session! Douglas jumped straight into some intensive gardening, proving himself to be an absolute natural.

Meeting at our usual spot, we kicked off the evening with a brisk group run up the hill to Kemp Town. It was a perfect leg-burner to get everyone’s heart rates up and muscles primed before diving headfirst into the physical task. Upon arriving at Lavender House, the crew was greeted by Nial with the massive task of tackling fast-growing "idle weeds" creeping along the perimeter. Armed with garden tools and plenty of enthusiasm, we split up along the property boundaries and fanned out across all edges of the building.

Working at a blistering pace, the group cleared pathways and gravel borders in just 45 minutes. The result: 100% of the building’s edges were completely transformed, leaving the outdoor space beautifully tidy, safe, and accessible for the residents. It was an incredible display of team efficiency, proving once again how much a small, dedicated group can achieve in under an hour! We packed the tools back into the shed, thoroughly enjoyed drinking some refreshing water with squash to rehydrate, snapped a quick group photo, and headed off on our well-earned cooldown run back down the hill.

Yesterday, we ran 5km to the Preston Park Velodrome to support the Brighton Bike Hub — a brilliant volunteer-run community workshop. 🚲 They make cycling affordable by offering free tool access, DIY repair spaces, refurbished bike sales, and adult cycle training in and around Preston Park.

Our GoodGym group session mission? To tidy and paint their 20ft shipping container, transforming it into a clean white canvas for an upcoming mural artist!

The Bike Hub mission? Reducing carbon emissions, improving air quality and making our streets more people and planet-friendly, while getting around more cheerfully. They are also committed to enabling those on a low income to enjoy the benefits of cycling.

Did you know that nearly half of people in Britain spend more than 18 hours a week on the sofa – yet 70% say they want to be more active? Timely, today, British Cycling launched Sofa to Saddle to get the nation active – a free eight-week programme to help more people discover the joy of cycling. The benefits of getting started are significant. Research shows that people who cycle at least once a week are 37% more likely to feel good about themselves, while 79% say cycling helps clear their head and 58% feel calmer and more relaxed.

By making cycling more accessible and supporting people to take those first pedal strokes, Brighton Bike Hub contributes to Cycling UK mission to enable and inspire everybody to experience cycling's joys and benefits, and to British Cycling ambition to help one million more people get on their bikes by 2028, creating healthier, happier communities across Britain.

This GoodGym session and organisation are close to my heart. It felt rewarding to help others get a Good addition to their active travel journeys.

Book a training with BikeHub here: https://brightonbikehub.org/training-sessions/

Download Sofa to Saddle here: britishcyc.cc/sofatosaddle

Join GoodGym for another Good session!