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.

What began as an impromptu plan to break up the day turned into a very productive session as seven GoodGymers arrived to transform a corner of the park. Working alongside the Friends of Morden Park, the team made light work of a once-neglected area by clearing stubborn brambles and laying a fresh woodchip path. It was a fantastic example of how we can help with a community space. There's plenty more to do so we will be back but the Friends meet every Wednesday at 10.30am and would welcome extra hands - so feel free to get in touch if you want to get this session listed more regularly.

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!

Back again supporting the wonderful Little ARK team - this time with their busy wreath-making workshops. It's that time of year so making the most of every chance to get creative 😀.

With surplus fabric scraps aplenty and the clever idea of utilising old coat hangers for the base, it was a creative buzz with facilitating everyone to ensure they had the materials and guidance they needed. Some created more than others 😉.

We both felt very inspired by the end, despite being almost out of fabric.

What a perfect morning to celebrate a milestone! We marked one year since launching GoodGym Merton by supporting our friends at Morden Parkrun.

The beautiful, crisp morning was ideal for getting out and doing good. Our team embraced various roles, from marshalling the course and handing out finish tokens to expertly managing the funnel. We had an absolute blast cheering on every single walker and runner including several members of the GoodGym team who took on the course themselves!

It was a brilliant, energetic way to celebrate a year of incredible community achievements. Cheers to many more years of getting fit and doing good in Merton!

Well done team and congratulations to Alex and Siobhan on their first Parkrun experience and welcome Siobhan (officially) to the team.

Tonight we headed to Raynes Park Station to assist FORPS with a monumental task: shifting two bags of topsoil for their planters, along with some essential pruning.

We knew the topsoil challenge was steep - on previous visits it took ten people who could access the platform to shift one bag, in 30 mins! Tonight, with half the hands on the platform and the rest of the team helping outside, we had our work cut out!

Challenge accepted. Everyone flew into action, carrying bucket after heavy bucket, while keeping to safety protocols (no running etc), and avoiding disruption to passengers disembarking. Despite a huge effort and an extra ten minutes, we had to concede defeat with a small amount of soil remaining.

A massive welcome to Alia who completed her first mission, we hope to see you again soon.

After helping pack up we headed to the pub to drown our sorrows knowing we gave that topsoil our best shot.

Great work, team! We may have been defeated by the soil, but we definitely won the battle for community spirit, marking our one-year anniversary with cake and celebrations.