Braved a cold, rainy morning to tackle the 'wild area' of John Innes Park to clear brambles and nettles to help the local habitat thrive. Despite the drizzle, it was a joy to work in such a beautiful space. We left damp, but with a clear path and clear heads!

We spent our session tonight getting everything spic and span at the Community Fridge, knocking out the usual familiar cleaning jobs, leaving the space looking fresh and tidy for the week ahead.

Beyond the scrubbing, we spent some time prepping for next week’s group session creating a long list of tasks to keep us busy when we return with the full crew.

Want to help us tackle that to-do list? Sign up for next week's group session here: https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sign-up/help-with-deep-cleaning-and-other-jobs-at-merton-s-community-fridge

A lovely lunchtime session today at Merton Park Baptist Church helping with the Souo and Company. After some great chats with the regulars over a bowl of tasty parsnip soup, it was time to get to work. Enlisting Henry the vacuum to clear the breadcrumbs and then finishing up the dishes it was a simple mission but a great way to break up the day.

Our first group session of 2026 saw us back at Little ARK and on such a chilly evening we were grateful for Syebvonne's warm welcome and a plentiful supply of hot drinks and Turkish delight. The evening's jobs included stuffing draught excluders, ironing on and cutting out labels, and screwing the legs onto a table. Chris and Erol also went beyond the call of duty to source a drill bit in order to attach coat hangers to a door. This creative space is looking better all the time. Well done everyone and especially to our first-timers Lina, Chris and Felicidade. We hope to see you again soon.

We kicked off the first GoodGym session of 2026 with a high-energy morning at Morden Parkrun! It was a brilliantly busy turnout; with a nearby event cancelled, we saw a huge influx of runners eager for their first Saturday 5k of the year.

The team braved the icy, cold temperatures to support the core volunteer crew, keeping the finish funnel flowing smoothly and warming up our hands with some post-run token sorting. Despite the chill, the atmosphere was fantastic - a perfect way to ring in the new year with the local community.

It wasn’t just about volunteering today! Two of our team decided to pull on their trail shoes, braving the icy paths to join the masses for a brisk 5k. It was a proper fresh start to 2026, with the cold air and slippery ground making for a focused training session. A great way to bank some early miles for the year and contribute to RED January - can we keep the momentum going?