While in another life we might have been running Parkrun at this time on a Saturday morning, today the task was to help clear a fly tipping site near the allotments on Tenantry Down.

After we all arrived puffed out after struggling up Brighton’s own mountain, Bear Road (that is, apart from Tara who arrived by car!), Garry from the council’s Tidy Up team trained us in the difficult art of clipping the special bag openers on to the rubbish bags. Some of us had more trouble with this than others.

Then we climbed down the steep bank to make a start of clearing several years’ worth of rubbish. We all got stuck in, with our litter pickers and the bags just kept on coming! Unbelievably this site is just five minutes from the actual tip!

Roy and Michael carried out two broken large screen flat TV’s, chairs, tyres, a fridge and even an old bath tub. Susan found a garden umbrella and Michael carried out a drainpipe. Unfortunately for Rosemary she then uncovered a wasps’ nest and got stung four times. Luckily she survived to tell the tale but it was a nasty surprise. We all agreed that this community mission was truly ‘life changing.’