The first GoodGym Monday group run to finish in daylight for what feels like a very long time was a bit of a mixed bag, in more ways than one.

As part of the Great British Spring Clean 2026 (we are a day late but never mind), we decided to head to Heaton Park, one of the parks not targeted by the council's organised litter picks the last couple of weeks. The night began with us having obscenities shouted at us by some unkempt imbeciles and ended with a young girl's dad approaching us saying she wanted to thank us for our efforts. Quite a contrast in our interactions with passers-by tonight.

In between, Heaton Park was surprisingly tidy, with very little litter. The journey there and the journey away from the park yielded many bags of litter, at least two or three each for our group of four GoodGymers.

It was great to welcome Bryn for her first good deed tonight, we hope we didn't overload you with too much GoodGym-related information. We are very enthusiastic about what we do! Experienced hands Scott and Jack made light work of the litter that crossed our paths, while Richard was left wondering whether the pompom on his hat really deserved to be the subject of such obscene abuse (probably not).

On a cold Monday evening, four GoodGymer set off through Byker, aiming to build on last week's task and make the streets a lot tidier. Byker somehow is always littered no matter how many times we pick lots of litter up.

Lots of bags were filled, as usual mostly with drinks containers of various kinds. It never ceases to amaze us how many full-size empty wine bottles find themselves dumped on the street and in the undergrowth!

There was lots going on at GoodGym Newcastle tonight. Former Area Activator Anji made a special guest appearance, only her third time returning since having screws inserted in her wrist after an accident. Possibly not ideal to be scraping paint off walls, but Anji scraped as much off as anyone else. Welcome back!

We also welcomed first time GoodGymer and student Muhannad. Not all of our tasks are quite so dusty. We hope to you again soon!

We also had a belated celebration of Aimee's 400th good deed, which involved meeting and stroking Ginny the horse. 400 good deeds is an awful lot of volunteering, with a lot of good done for the local community.

Before all of this, we went for a short run to show our support for This Girl Can's Let's Lift the Curfew campaign. Let's make sure that Newcastle is a safe place for women and girls to exercise outdoors all year round.

Next up for GoodGym Newcastle is a gardening task with Newcastle Parks on Saturday in Iris Brickfield Park. Please come and join us if you can!

On the first day of autumn, three GoodGymers headed from Stepney Bank Stables towards the Quayside. We covered a slightly different area than usual, some of the streets and areas away from the river.

Welcome to Libby, making her GoodGym debut, and welcome back to Jack, joining us for the first time in a little while. An ankle injury and a two-hour run yesterday meant we focused more on the doing good than getting fit this evening.

Libby spotted an enormous quantity of L'Oréal and Garnier sachets hidden behind a bush next to a car park. Her estimate of 2,000 probably wasn't far wrong. Everyone was extremely dedicated this evening, so we picked them all up and deposited them in a nearby bin. Twelve bags of litter were filled in all, definitely making a difference to how the area looks.

This morning’s visit to Magret’s allotment marked a small but satisfying milestone—we finally finished clearing her plot! And just in time, too, as the sun seemed determined to melt us. Thankfully, our trusty new wheelbarrow made light(er) work of hauling weeds and trimmings, even if we were dripping by the end.

It was lovely to see that Magret has already started planting in the areas we cleared on earlier visits. Check out the photos —it’s always rewarding to know the effort is paying off.

As we dug, pulled, and sweated it out, we uncovered a surprising shared memory: Debs and I discovered we’d spent time in Jack’s hometown. That gave us a lovely excuse to pause and reminisce about Chocfest, Miss B’s charming tea rooms, and the irresistible cakes at the community café in the country park. Nothing like a little nostalgia to take your mind off the heat!

Midway through the session, Magret dropped by with Sue to chat. It was heartwarming to hear how much she’s enjoying having access to the plot—it’s clear it means a lot to her, and that’s what makes these sessions so worthwhile.

After what must be six—or maybe seven—visits, we’ve finally cleared the full length of her plot. But the job’s not quite over yet. There are still more plots in need of attention and Sue has plans to strim and mow them in preparation… and so, spades at the ready—until next time!