For our first group session of the New Year we were full of energy, despite the cold, and back at our regular task - St Andrew's.

We arrived to find the energy levels at the centre were equally as high, and there had even been a new arrival - Spikey the bearded dragon! We were treated to a meet and greet with Spikey later on, but first there was a task to do.

The youth club has recently been given a grant to buy a whole load of new kitchen equipment, but first they had to get rid of all of the old stuff cluttering up the cupboards.

We kicked off by emptying out all the old gadgets and mixers, blenders and sandwich makers, before carefully testing each one to make sure they worked.

Then came the cull, the cleaning and the uncovering of a fabulous new cheese grating machine that youth manager Adrian was very happy with indeed!

With everything cleaned and sorted we organised the cupboards and there was just a time for an audience with Spikey. He gratefully accepted his January feast of mealworm and crickets as we admired him, before heading off into the freezing night.

Next week we're back transporting food to rough sleepers - hope to see you there!

It was a night of celebrations in Westminster last night - not only did we pick up two very successful hauls of bread, rolls, sandwiches and pastries that would otherwise be thrown away but it was also...

Sam's 1500th good deed!

Huge congratulations Sam - from sorting and stacking at foodbanks, packing clothes for rough sleepers and volunteering at junior parkrun, Sam has created a huge positive impact by doing good in Southwark and beyond. Well done Sam, you've spread a lot of happ-bee-ness!

Andy, Sam and walked through the Christmas crowds carefully balancing our bags of goodies trying to locate the Under One Sky Team on their weekly walk to support vulnerable people in central London. This charity provides essentials to rough sleepers, not only good food that would otherwise be wasted, bu hot drinks, resources and support. It was great to see their vital work in action.

On a wet Monday night in Wandsworth we bought the festive cheer, beginning with a warm up and a survey about Christmas films - do they make you ho ho ho or are they just about as fun as an over boiled brussel sprout? The grinches just lost out in the votes, and the verdict is in - Christmas movies are here to stay!

It was great to see some new faces along to our run - a huge welcome to Emma and Giulio who came along to their very first session. Give them a big festive cheer!

Our job for the evenings was at Larkhall park, a regular location for GoodGym visits. Every time we come we work hard on various spots throughout the park alongside the regular volunteers who help keep it a safe and welcoming green space for local people.

Last night we divided into two groups. The first team was to tackle the big bed at the entrance of the park, the second went off to help shift a massive pile of soil and to clear an area of leaves.

Before long it was action stations and everybody was hard at work. Jordan and Felix took on the massive soil shifting challenge, while Jason debuted his fabulous new invention - the spade light. Quick, somebody get it patented. It only took 40 minutes for us to make a big difference and the Friends of Larkhall Park group appreciated how much got done. Well done team!

The fun didn't stop there though - there was just enough time to squeeze in a circuits based fitness station in the playground. It featured squats, ladder runs, curtsy lunges and plenty of laughs.

Next week it's our final group run of 2026. I'm just finalising the task, so keep an eye out for the sign up page. We'll follow this with a social at a local pub - time to get those vocal chords warmed up!

There are plenty of opportunities to spread the Christmas joy this week, including:

• Helping collect donations and other jobs at Battersea's oldest church tonight. We really need a couple more volunteers for this - and you will be rewarded by celebrity speakers and mulled wine!

• Supporting a carol concert for the elderly on Thursday

• Putting up Christmas decorations at a church in Battersea on Saturday morning