Having arrived late from Rickmansworth parkrun, and nearly heading for the wrong location, I eventually joined Sheila, Rachel, Viv and Bradley (welcome to your first task) at out What3Words location.

There had already been a lot of activity despite the rain. One of the regular volunteers, David, had dug the turf up with a whizzy machine, so that we could dig holes and plant bulbs and plants. We planted one section which we then covered with wood chip that some of the team transported over by wheelbarrow.

Welfare visit for Mrs D

Karen, Sheila K, Sheila A and Jane helped out at the Baby Bank on another busy morning. As we arrived, the facility was receiving a van-load of buggies which had been abandoned at the airport. Our task was to give them a clean and leave them to dry in the sun. We made short work of it and were rewarded with an indoor job, picking out new toys for 10 children to accompany their Christmas pyjama packs. Karen and Sheila K then earned massive numbers of Brownie points by between them making teas and coffees for the volunteers and doing the washing up afterwards. The remainder of the time was spent putting together clothes and toys for specific referrals. A very productive morning!

A handy seven made their way to the Burchetts green infant school to clear away the autumn detritus. We spent the hour getting the play areas free of the golden leaves on a chilly evening. It was a job well done.

Karen, Laura and Sheila gathered at the Braywick Plant Nursery on what is the last scheduled Goodgym community mission here. The finances are not working out and this fantastic facility is planned to close at the end of the year unless a rescue plan can be devised. We worked alongside 3 young men from Talkback, who gain valuable experience and skills in Horticulture from their weekly visits. We were sorting and trimming the perennial plants being over-wintered, and by the end of the session we had gathered a dustbin full of trimmings including several acorns which had fallen into the pots whilst they had been outside. Goodgym has been supporting Braywick Plant Nurseries since April 2023, and 55 different GoodGymers have carried out 96 tasks. Let's hope that a rescue plan can be found.

This was a return visit to Ms M for some more gardening. She has a beautiful garden but worries that she can no longer tend to it by herself; anything close to the ground or stepping up a ladder is now very difficult for her. This time she asked me to cut back a rampant passiflora, a passion flower plant, that had reached the house gutters and was not showing any sign of slowing down, given the mild weather we've been enjoying this autumn. Once I finished that, I tackled the weeds in the lawn. The green bin was already full by then, so a hippo bag came in handy. Ms M was very pleased with the results and she is forever so grateful to have some GoodGym help.