Tonight's task was to help one of Kingston's amazing local charities, RAK (Refugee Action Kingston) . RAK help out refugees in the area to integrate, live fulfilling, independent lives and become recognised and active participants in their local communities. Part of this involves the provision of clothing and other essential items. Our task tonight was to sort through a load of these donations and help organise their storage system.

As with any catch-all store, there are a few departments at RAK: Mens, Womens, Kids and Toiletries. All of these areas needed reorganising and tidying up. A recent fire inspection suggesting that all cardboard should be disposed of where possible so any items in boxes needed repacking. There were also a whole load of unsorted donations that needed to be split into department or discarded, if the quality was below-par. We separated into groups and did what GoodGym does best - use many hands to make light work. Always amazing how much can be done in a short period of time!

Welcome to Kitty and John on your first tasks! Excellent to meet you and hope to see you next time :)

Four GoodGymers rolled (on bikes) into Squirrels community scrapstore's yard. Inspired by Rufu's bold promise to Barbara that the place would be unrecognisable by the time they were done, the team embraced the challenge.

Despite the warm weather seemingly "cementing" the weeds stubbornly into the concrete, we diligently scraped, pulled, and swept the area, making short work of the tenacious growth and even banishing the lingering dead moss. The impressive collective effort resulted in a satisfying haul of 3 crates of weeds, a bag of rubbish, and a clear yard. But this is just the start as there are a couple more spots to tackle on a return visit.

This week's group session had the team pedalling into action to support Full Cycle with a hands-on task that wheely put our teamwork to the test. The mission? Clear out the side of the building - a tight, dark alleyway crammed with wheel rims, old bikes, and a jungle of brambles.

We formed a human chain to tackle the task, shifting rims, tangled bikes, and debris whilst clearing, sweeping and snipping. The overgrown brambles were quite an eye sore for some but the real challenge was carefully restacking everything back into the space, making it some what more accessible. Definitely a bit different to some of the usual tasks at this community project and what better way to spend an hour; a game of bike-themed Tetris in a confined space where we found plenty of energy to complete the challenge.

Congratulations to Luke who was debuting his new black t.shirt!

We had a great turn out this Saturday and a lovely sunny day for our visit to the Forest School. Jacqui, Sekar, Amy and Yana were tasked with clearing out the weeds that have suddenly started to spring up with all the warm weather we’ve had. Meanwhile Alexis and Julie had the challenging job of removing the old tree stump that has been in the way of the allotment entrance causing a hazard for the children. The allotment looked much tidier when we were finished and we were rewarded with orange squash and biscuits, as well as the obligatory cuddles with the beautiful animals. It’s great to see the results of our work over the last few months here.

A welcome return to Surbiton Library on a bright evening as part of the WWF x GoodGym’s Workout for Nature event to celebrate Earth Day.

There was nature of sorts, as those of us who have been here before will know that the ivy grows fast and there are plenty of weeds to prise out of gaps in the paving.

Kudos to Dave, Julie and Rachel for the gardening while Tom, Amy, Alexis and Emily first got going with the litter pickers to remove the various nasties that were lurking around. Lovely to then get a bonus help from both Andy and his daughter Verity, who proved an expert sweeper.

Great to be outside, and doing good as ever.