It's fair to say that a lot of screwdrivers (and screws, hammer, nails, saws, shovels, brooms, string, tape, sections of wood...) were required for today's production at School21, where our friendly host Maggy had quite a bit planned for us to get done.

Fortunately we came with lots of pairs of willing hands, as Sooz, Hilary and Nick arrived from volunteering at Junior parkrun, Ambra from Redbridge, a first time GG task for Paul, and it was great to see Kevin again (once he'd worked out how to get into the school itself...).

First up was reducing the size of a woodchip area in the playground (the "easier task" per our host) - this involved shifting a row of car tyres that formed the boundary, and then shovelling/brushing the woodchip that was now outside of the tyre line back inside the play area - once done, Maggy asked us to glue some of the tyres (that weren't already cable tied together) to stop the children moving them around. Getting the "hard as nails" glue out of the tube was a workout in itself, but Kev then worked out a neat way to then ensure sufficient pressure was applied to both surfaces to get the bonding to happen...

We then moved on to the main event - "teepee building", where we discovered that certain team members seemed to have particular skills learned from times past that were extremely useful today (call Ambra if you ever find yourself needing a raft tied together in a hurry...) - as what we had was a series of broom handles, random offcuts of wood, some string, a variety of tools (of varying usefulness), some elastic bungee cords and the piece of material that would be the cover...it was up to us to come up with the construction masterplan, including deciding on the actual shape of the shelter...Scrapheap Challenge GoodGym style.

After an hour of deliberating, planning, measuring and sawing (specialist subject of Paul), tying (Ambra), frantic hammering and some quite challenging use of a screwdriver or two (there's never enough torque when you really need it), we had the frame built and it was time to put the cover over the top and tuck the edges under the pallet. We nominated Ambra to try it on for size, and it was a thumbs up all round - especially from Maggy's son who was keen to get inside and start reading...

It was welcome sunshine that greeted us in Maryland this morning as we made a return visit to see Sue and her planters (of the "inanimate wooden" kind, not of "tea"...).

She had already forewarned us that today's task was painting (something we're always up for, especially when it's bright and sunny outside), and was clearly well prepared as her shopping trolley was overflowing with items that a modern day Michaelangelo would have been proud of.

After a quick round of weeding to tidy up some of the planters that we hadn't tended to during our last couple of visits, the paint trays, brushes, gloves and tins of white primer appeared, and once Graham had carefully done the pouring, Rosa, Hilary, Eugene and Nick positioned themselves along the wooden sides to get started, and as with all good painters, chatted contentedly as we worked. Helpfully Sue had marked with a cross (confusingly...) the blocks that she wanted painting - forfeits would apply to anyone who strayed outside of the lines.

As if by magic, we were soon joined by Kevin and Sharon, making a very welcome return to tasking, and it took Sue all of two seconds to put a paint brush in Kev's hand and tell him to start work...

After a good ninety minutes of careful brushing and much concentration, we soon had the three large planters primed with different sized white blocks (Piet Mondrian would've been proud of our efforts). Sue's intention is to then apply a range of different colours onto the primer which will then give the planters a more unconventional "artistic look"...a return visit surely beckons for us all to complete the masterpiece...

Tonight's task, our first visit to Wild Green E13, a volunteer led community garden in Plaistow, lived up to its name in so many ways. Our welcoming host Fleur was pleased to see us, and once she'd unlocked the container and distributed gloves and gardening tools, she pointed to a long edge of the garden, where some fruit bushes were lurking behind a lot of very green weeds and grass (and snails...), and asked us to get weeding...and so we did.

No prior skills required, and whenever we came up against some vegetation that we couldn't decide was friend or foe, Fleur got our her plant identification app to give us the go/no go signal (one was even identified as an opium poppy...which made us all wonder if there was some extra curricular horticulture going on in the garden...)

With four of us (Hilary, Graham, Bea, Nick), and Fleur on management oversight (and litter picking) duties, we had a great and very sociable evening in the fading light removing the unwanted green stuff, disturbing the habitat of far too many snails, but eventually leaving this area of garden looking much neater, and with easier access to the fruit bushes. Good work all around. We've agreed on a return visit on 16th June for more wild and green fun.

Sometimes on these tasks it's the unlikeliest item that brings proceedings to a halt, and so it was today for Hilary and I as we worked our way through the installation instructions for Ms L's new front door camera, which she wanted installed to try and deter antisocial behaviour at her front door.

It seemed we'd be able to get it fixed to the door as she wanted, but when we came to connect the camera to her phone via the relevant successfully downloaded app, we discovered it would only all work by connecting to a Wifi network, which wasn't something Ms L has installed at her home. A quick check on the interweb confirmed our concerns that there wasn't an alternative option to make it function correctly.

We explained the situation to her, and proposed some possible solutions - and let her know that if she were able to get a different camera that could operate without Wifi we would be happy to return to get it all set up for her.

What a difference a bit of daylight makes! After what has felt like a very long, dark winter, it was a joy to head out while it was still light — a sure sign that spring (and lighter evening runs) are finally here. We were off over to Forest Gate Community Garden to meet our host Fiona, one of the volunteers from the garden. A small group of us, including first-timer to Newham Ambra, jogged over from Freaks and Geeks to the garden, where we met the rest of the team — including very first-first timer, Gavin, who’d cycled over.

The garden’s story is really interesting — the site was once a hostel, but abandoned and then left to overgrow in 2006 (think buddleias aplenty). A group of determined locals began the transformation in 2013, securing a lease in 2015 and bringing together over 70 volunteers to clear the space, build raised beds, dig a pond, and get planting. By 2016, the garden was open to the public — and it hasn’t looked back since. It’s a great example of what sustained volunteer effort can achieve.

With that inspiration in mind, it was time to get to work. After gathering tools and bags at the garden, we headed over together to a set of community planters along Upton Lane that the Forest Gate team also look after. Being a little distance from the main site makes them trickier to maintain, and so our help is particularly valuable.

We weeded, cleared rubbish, and gave the beds a much-needed refresh ahead of a community garden trail coming up in early June. These planters sit right out on the street, so the difference is immediate — helping make the area feel greener, brighter, and more cared for for everyone passing by and living nearby.

Huge welcome to Ambra and Gavin — it was great to have you both along and making a difference from day one!

📅 What’s coming up?

👉 Check out all our upcoming sessions and sign up here.

There’s no session next week as we take a short Easter break, but we’ll be back on 14th April with a visit to a community garden in Plaistow. After that, we’ve got a fantastic line-up every Tuesday evening over the next few months, plus some weekend tasks on the 18th/19th April, soon to be listed.

And of course, we’re at London Fields Junior parkrun most Sundays if you fancy getting involved.

Great work everyone — see you soon! 🌱

Five top Newham GoodGymmers headed out on a lovely run up the canal to Hackney Marsh Adventure Playground, arriving to a warm welcome from Ange.

As ever, Ange was full of enthusiasm — a true champion for the playground and the young people who use it. It’s always inspiring to hear her talk about the space, the community it supports, and the importance of adventurous play. We caught up on her recent trip to the National Playwork Conference, where she got to hear her favourite anthropologist speak — including something about 2-year olds playing with machetes. I can't quite remember the details, and it isn't something Ange is planning to introduce at the Playground, but it did sound interesting... Alongside that, we heard about ongoing works since our last visit, which are helping make it an even better place for local kids.

Our task for the evening was a classic: tackling a mound of woodchip and spreading it beneath the zipwire. At first, it was hard to tell whether we were facing a quick win or a never-ending pile, but within 30 mins, the mound was no more and the ground below the zipwire safer, softer, and ready for action.

With the job done, we headed back along the canal, enjoying a relaxed run and a chat along the way.

We should be back in May for more playground fun, but before that we have a number of new tasks - first up next week is Forest Gate Community Gardens, where we’ll be helping get planters looking their best for a summer community garden trail. 🌱 Your help, as always, will be hugely appreciated - hope to see you there.