On the longest day of 2026, four GoodGymers met Ben Morris and the other Balsam Bashers from Clean Up River Brent (CURB) for a biodiversity-boosting mission. It was only 10 am, but with the sun rising so early at this time of year, it already felt almost like afternoon.

Having defeated the invasive Himalayan balsam on the banks of the River Brent near the Brent Viaduct last summer, the next step was to build a fortress of native plants. Earlier this year, CURB had planted purple loosestrife and reeds ("the good guys") in the space reclaimed from Himalayan balsam ("the baddie"). However, much of the riverbank had since been occupied by a different gang: stinging nettles, cleavers and brambles.

With another delivery of reeds still on the way, our mission was to prepare the ground for future planting events. Cue hacking, slashing, lopping, chopping and digging.

Andrew, who fondly remembered his previous slashing mission with CURB, joined regulars Steph Ducat, Sevan and Kash. Armed with wellies, the four GoodGymers ventured down to the riverbank. Sevan and Kash even had the pleasure of dipping their booted feet into the cool river water - a welcome relief on such a hot and thirsty morning.

"Every minute a dive into the water gets more and more tempting!" – Andrew.
"I'd say have a swim, but I cannot say that." – Ben.
"You can swim as long as you're not getting in contact with the water." – Andrew.

Unfortunately, the River Brent isn't exactly a wild swimming destination. The water is known to be heavily polluted, containing sewage and harmful bacteria, making it far from safe for a dip. That's one of the reasons CURB exists. Alongside practical conservation work, the group monitors water quality, removes rubbish, raises awareness through public engagement, and campaigns against sewage pollution in the river system. We'd all love to see the Brent become a clean and thriving ecosystem once again. Encouragingly, a few volunteers spotted fish during the session, proving there is life in the river - but there's still plenty of work to do.

And so we got to work.

Steph wielded a monstrous slasher, mercilessly cutting back unwanted vegetation. Andrew took on the nettles and brambles with shears and a fork. Standing ankle-deep in the river, Sevan focused on the delicate task of rescuing the loosestrife and reeds by removing bindweed and nettles. Kash worked the slope between Steph's assault and Sevan's rescue mission, chopping back nettles and sticky willy.

At one point, alarm was raised when a couple towering hogweed plants were spotted rising above the surrounding vegetation. If you haven't encountered this particular baddie before, giant hogweed is a highly invasive species whose sap can cause severe burns when exposed to sunlight, leading to painful blisters and long-lasting skin damage. Fortunately, Ben confirmed that the plants in question were merely common hogweed rather than their far more sinister cousin, and the slashing could continue.

"These hogweeds are enormous... but not giant." – Sevan.

In a little under two hours of hard work in the sun, we cleared a significant area that is now nearly ready for planting. We left most of the roots for a less dry day, when they'll be easier to dig out. We're looking forward to hearing from Ben about the next delivery of plants so that we can arrange a follow-up session and cement our victory over the baddies by planting more of the good guys along the riverbank!

Hot Sunday afternoon and I was back at Mrs A house to meet her son Mr J to continue the Battle of the Thorns. Rise of the Roses today as the remaining brambles have been removed in the front garden. The garden has opened up and we have a clear path in the garden and in front of the windows. Her son said : oh there are the flower pots...yes they have risen from the thorns. He then said - we should call this path the Steph Path.

Now he is thinking of bringing 2 chairs in the front so that his mom and himself can sit in the garden and enjoy the roses, the butteflies and bees. The Thorn Jedi left with a few scratches but will return - this is the way.

Next chapter - Return of the thorn slayer for the back garden

Social visit with Mr T on a hot Sunday afternoon. Run from mission to social visit. My second person that I visit every week

As part of London Climate Action Week 2026, GoodGym Ealing hosted three wildlife survey sessions in three of the Tiny Forests across the Ealing borough that GoodGymers had helped plant within the last couple of years. Earthwatch Europe, the organisation behind this fantastic project, helped promote our events designed to connect local people with these small, densely planted native forests that support biodiversity while strengthening relationships between people and nature in urban settings.

From the perspective of raising awareness about the Tiny Forest hidden in the heart of Hanwell, the session at Cuckoo Park was a success. Alongside five GoodGymers, Steph Ducat, Sevan, Kash, A.B. and Penny, two local residents and nature enthusiasts, joined the fun.

Noah and Faye, who live nearby, had no idea the Cuckoo Park Tiny Forest even existed and were excited to discover it. They joined the wildlife survey, helping GoodGymers count butterflies, pollinators and ground dwellers such as ants, snails and earthworms. They were also keen to learn more about the project and expressed an interest in helping maintain their local Tiny Forest and spreading the word within the local community - potential future Tree Keepers in the making!

After the survey, the new Tree Keepers got stuck into some maintenance work, removing weeds and tall grasses that could suppress the growth of the smaller trees. Flowering plants were left untouched to continue attracting pollinators.

The Cuckoo Park Tiny Forest looked dramatically different from our previous visit. Tall grasses and thistles had sprung up throughout the site and, somewhat unexpectedly, so had several clusters of cereals! The forest was buzzing with life, and during the survey, we discovered that insects weren't the only creatures calling it home. While searching beneath a slab for ground dwellers, we uncovered a tiny mouse which stole the spotlight from the butterflies.

If that sounds like your kind of evening, we're hosting one more wildlife survey session during London Climate Action Week, this time combined with an optional run. Join us at the Hanger Hill Tiny Forest and help us discover what wildlife is hiding there!

An indoor decluttering mission sounded ideal on such a warm day. After being outside under the hot sun for their first 2 tasks of the day, Kash and Sevan were looking forward to this one. When they met Mr C's carer, he led them inside, past piles of clutter, then out to the back garden. This wasn't what Kash and Sevan were expecting. For Mr C's carer though, clearing the patio was priority number 1.

The garden had been cared for recently and had plenty of beautiful plants that had become overgrown. The pots that were sitting on the patio were to be moved to the back of the garden to make space for seating and a table during the summer. No one could see down the garden path and Mr C's carer admitted to not having been there for months, so some chopping tools were requested and Kash went an adventure to discover what lay at the end of the garden.

Once the the path was cleared and Kash had found some spots to move pots to, a plant chain was created. Mr C's carer lifted the pots up off the patio and handed them to Sevan. Sevan made his way down the uneven stairs and passed the pots on to Kash. Kash then slalomed her way along the garden path and found a safe space to drop the pots off.

Once the pots were moved, it was time to explore the other items on the patio and to work out what to get rid of. Kash, Sevan and the carer found:

• 3 metal tables with terminally rusty tops or legs
• Pieces of a bird feeding platform with no instructions
• A half-full box of clementines from last December in various states of decay, though 2 still looked perfectly orange
• Plastic containers, some cracked, most filled with water
• Broken bits of pots

Each item was examined by the carer and separated into plastic, general or "iron" black bags. The bags were left at one side of the patio for later disposal and the pots at the back of the garden were for future re-discovery. As Kash and Sevan left, they looked at the belongings indoors and could see more missions for Mr C coming soon. The saving grace was that patio was in a better state and was one step closer to allowing Mr C to use it again.

I stayed on at the Soup Kitchen for the lunch service where I helped serve then moved on to clearing and washing up. Chef Arul cooked an amazing chicken curry with a paneer vegetarian alternative (I tried the latter and it was delicious). Despite a slow start to the morning we served over one hundred hungry clients with takeaways also available. As always it was hard work but lovely to be there and see how much the guests enjoyed their meals.