Across the balcony from each flat on the Parkview Estate is a planter, visible to anyone walking through the estate. Many of the planters contain colourful flowers, giving the estate a much brighter look and countering the graffiti and litter to be found in some areas. But some of the planters are full of nothing but dry earth, a few twigs, and maybe a weed or two.Which is where GoodGym come in

We met in the community garden, a familiar place to us by now, except for Sam, who still got there eventually. “Have you seen Sam?” asked Emma”. Yes, he’s walking up behind you” I replied. Soon we were loaded with buckets of soil, a wheelbarrow (which we somehow took up in the lift), filled watering cans, and those all-important geraniums

Local knowledge was provided by Seb, a resident of the estate, as well as task owner Catherine, a long-time friend of GoodGym who also provided a cheat-key to enable us to get into the block

Some residents already had one or two plants opposite their front door, so we asked them if they minded us filling the gaps with a couple of geraniums. However, one resident who said “yes”, was unsure what “the missus” would think when she returned

Eventually, we’d flowered the whole of the Sidney House block. But there are other Parkview blocks which would appreciate the same treatment, so put a date in your diary for 13th June and sign up for our next visit at https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/parkview-free-plant-giveaway-538b5ba6-27b0-4fcd-97c1-317997cbd35a