Happy Christmas! 🎄🎅🎉

Welcome to Michael for your first GoodGym Manchester outing, and good to see Stefanie, Sam, Sanjeev, and Ben for a ~4.5 km jog around the city centre.

Setting off from St Peter's Square, we made our way down to Grosvenor Street before circling back up Oxford Road to Manchester Central Convention Complex, through St John's Road to the gardens (unfortunately the Garden of Hope from The Christie had finished) before skirting past the Opera House, up Deansgate past the lights before ending near the Cathedral, with bells ringing.

We went for a drink at Sinclairs Oyster Bar, a Samuel Smith pub so no phones allowed out. Chit chat ranged from the theatre, restaurants, cricket, basketball, lawn tennis and sports injuries to Christmas plans and the mild winter so far.

Good to see you all, and wishing you the best over the Christmas period, however you plan to spend it! See you in 2026 💫

Went along to Woolton Hall to help with the preparation for the Manchester Christmas Dinner for recent care leavers.

There was a bumper group of volunteers to wrap presents, set up the tables and decorations, and generally clean to prepare Woolton Hall in Fallowfield.

Good couple of hours spent.

Thank you to the 18 volunteers today!

With the festive break coming up, we had a skeleton crew at Fletcher Moss parkrun event number 276. 317 runners and walkers completed the 5 km course. Thankfully additional volunteers came along before the start.

There was a little bit of mud getting the kit out but the event itself went by without a hitch.

It was my 250th parkrun volunteering credit so made some cake for the finish area. There were lots of santas and grinches out running the course.