On the first group task of Spring we were blessed with a dry evening and a gardening task. Having cleared the area of litter, the team got stuck in to weeding, pruning and digging out the flower beds round Martin Way Methodist Church. Getting rid of some of the more persistent roots needed real effort and team support, but that is what we are so good at. So by the end of the evening, all the beds were cleared, the anti-weed netting was down and secured, and we could all be satisfied with a job well done.

Collecting rubbish by lamplight. An hour spent collecting rubbish in the early evening by the light of our headtorches. Amazing just how much litter can be collected in a short time with a few people joining together.

It made a difference, we made a difference!

Goodgymers from several areas counted and logged their use of hard and soft plastic, ready to be added and used to the survey. This is to see how our environment is impacted.

Little Ark came to our rescue, and we were able to come to theirs as they needed our help to make bags for carrying liquids. So it was that the GoodGymers found themselves cleaning waterproof banners, and using templates to cut lengths of waterproof fabric from an erstwhile banner, all ready for stitching. Knowing our limitations, that step was left for the professionals.

Our debut at the Lantern Arts Centre was also our first session on a Sunday evening. Despite the timing, not too many of us got stage fright and six Goodgymers turned up on cue. The event was the 'Get in' where the company starts to transform the church into a theatre space for their upcoming production of Be My Baby, a play about unmarried mothers set in the 1960s.

Tasks included moving flats and props and hanging cloths and everything else needed before the following day's set build. Along with other volunteers, including members of the cast, we whizzed through the jobs so fast, we were able to do some improvisation and give the rehearsal room a thorough GoodGym clean as well. Hopefully we will be back for an encore!