Two GoodGymers turned up to make some rustic knee rails for the wildflower patches at St Mary Magdelene Church. They quickly got to work and were knocking posts and cutting rails in unison until they ran out of posts! Ken got on his bike to get more and finish the task.

We are back there this Friday to finish the task if you can join!

After the heatwave broke, it was time to get a second coat on!

Temperatures hadn't plumetted that much in reality but our task this evening was the complete the task we started three weeks ago: protecting the boathouse doors for the scouts. This evening we headed out to put the second coat of teak oil on.

Starting with a good stretch in the sunshine on Richmond Green, half the group started walking to the river while the other half did interval sprints around the green, getting six sprints in before jogging off to the riverside.

Armed with brushes and oil, the doors were soon looking well-fed and happy, giving us time to go and get well-watered at the busy pub next door before sunset!

On the longest and hottest day of the year so far, three GoodGymmers turned out for our monthly Richmond Furniture Scheme visit

JP, Sam and Adam, arriving by various means of transport from bike, running to driving, were allocated the task of weeding and clearing out the overgrown yard before bagging and leafing it all behind!

We finished off by helping unload items from the weekends mega skip day

Overall you could say the outside space was improved beyond Beleaf!

See link below for upcoming tasks https://www.goodgym.org/v3/session

This vibrant youth club always brings out everyone's playful side and this evening was no different while we scrubbed down the projector inflatable, laminated posters and menus and prepared flags for summer activities! All this sandwiched by a sunny 7.5km run welcoming Larissa back to GoodGym for the first time since 2020, and Steph for her first group run, taking us from Richmond to Mortlake. The other half of the team made their own way and Lucy and Katie hot footing it from another task in Hammersmith!

A glorious sunny morning welcomed a grateful eight to the Ham Lands today, as we welcomed two new joiners for our monthly session helping the Friends of Ham Lands in their habitat preservation.

We set up in the same location as last month, near the Thames Young Mariners, and Sharon briefed us on the morning's task to cut back and clear the wild clematis and giant dock which had clustered (to make my punny title work) in one particular area.

The team selected digging tools and shears and got stuck in, digging out the clematis by the roots and cutting down the giant dock low to the ground, being careful to remove it without dislodging too many of its seeds.

We made fast progress as everyone worked steadily, clearing the low lying clematis and clusters of dock and filling sack after sack, which were regularly dragged to the undergrowth to be emptied on a compost heap.

Sharon was on hand with refreshments and we stopped to wet our whistle with the best cuppa ever to be served from a plastic cup, before a final push to finish off. Shear delight!

As usual, we rewarded ourselves for our efforts with a visit to the famous Swiss Bakery for coffee and snacks. Big shout out and warm welcome to Alex and Ann - hope to see you both again soon!

Next time at Ham Lands is on 12th July. You can sign up here: https://www.goodgym.org/v3/sessions/goodgym-richmond-helping-the-happy-ham-landers-4b814934-05f6-47e4-a6b2-cf6839ee6cc6

We were greeted by Jane (Head of Therapy) who introduced us to the Purple Elephant Project. Its focus and core values behind an intrinsic nature of supporting families and the key message being that 'children should be heard'.

In quick succession, we got down to the list of prepared tasks. The major areas included tidying up the garden and indoor play therapy centre, filled with toys, art materials, sand trays, and other creative tools were located. We also had senior play therapist Tracy on board, who performed an initial assessment with us to identify what sections needed tidying up. A stop and think exercise before tackling a job was a good shout. Our mission was to create an environment where therapists could reach out to the objects in those sections, that would later help the children to express their emotions and process trauma. We agreed and got cracking with the jobs.

Honor went guns blazing and took care of the therapy garden (and bringing along her own mower) whilst Mazin helped inside. Some of the tasks required fixtures and fittings to doors, shelves, units, a new screen along the fence, a replacement garden hose, the cooperative outdoor games, bedding, planting, mowing, general cleanup etc.

It certainly looked holistic by the time when we were done. It was a magnificent show of support from the entire team including our young special guests, Esra and Felix who helped create a magical atmosphere! Their bursts of role-play and act out scenarios clearly on display meant that everything was tickety-boo. The adults continued to tackle the rest of the jobs and before we knew it, it was close to lunch.

A job well done!