Seven of us made our way to an industrial estate in Mitcham on a dark and drizzly night. As ever, it was well worth it to help out the brilliant charity Critical Support. This time some of the team were sorting crates of bread, fruit and other food, while others carried out an amazing transformation to the upstairs room, categorising clothes donations, tidying and even hoovering. James was as appreciative as always and amazed by what we'd achieved in such a short time. We look forward to returning.

A year on from our first session in this garden, it was lovely to see how well it's coming along, with the first daffodils shyly emerging and the impressive new bay tree resplendent in its pot. For this session we were planting fruit trees, moving blackcurrant and raspberry bushes, cutting back lemon balm and doing some weeding, all under the knowledgeable supervision of Inger. The sun came out and it didn't really feel like January. We'll be back next month!

For tonight's group session we got sew busy helping Little ARK in their new makers' space. It was a perfect night to be indoors, especially as the rain poured down outside!

We split the team across three different rooms, to diligently sift through boxes and bags of fabric and haberdashery. Not only did we sort, wrap, and fold the materials into colour groups, but we also got busy cutting fabrics in preparation for making essential draught excluders.

Making good progress in the alloted hour, we then headed out into the rain for the soggy return run/walk/cycle but will no doubt be back soon as there's plenty more to do. 

Well done team - we did sew good!

During our lunchtime we answered a last-minute request to help Little ARK move furniture into their new pop-up space.

The team tackled everything from ensuring safe van access (via some on-the-road traffic control!) to maneuvering tables, shelves, and fabric up the tight stairs. Seeing everyone work together to setup this community makers space was inspiring.

We finished the entire move, including collecting and unloading a second round of furniture, in just 45 minutes! So there was time left over to enjoy some much-deserved tea and cake.

It’s missions like this, supporting an amazing organisation in the community, that make GoodGym so rewarding and we look forward to helping again very soon.

Why not join us: https://www.goodgym.org/happenings/cutting-materials-to-help-little-ark