On a Sunday when the clocks had sprung forward (stealing an hour of our lives) and the clouds were gathering, there was only one thing for five hardy GoodGymmers to do — get out and litter pick.

Today we joined a session organised by the Friends of Sefton Park, who regularly care for this large and much-loved park. We received a warm welcome and set off just as the rain began to fall.

Bekah, never one to be unprepared, had brought a brolly and somehow managed to walk along — umbrella aloft — while litter picking at the same time. The rest of us simply embraced the rain and let ourselves get soaked.

Litter, of course, knows no boundaries. Before long, there was plenty of stretching and reaching to retrieve crisp packets, biscuit wrappers, and drinks bottles lying tantalisingly out of reach in the bushes. Liam, being the tallest of the group, had a definite advantage — effortlessly grabbing a napkin I’d been trying (and failing) to angle towards for what felt like ages.

As we moved along the stream, we all fished out bits of litter bobbing in the water, clearing the way for the ducks to swim freely again. Some pieces had drifted further out, but undeterred, Bekah reached in while I anchored her so she could stretch that little bit further — a very trusting moment! Clara ever the documentarian, whipped out her phone to capture both the action and the replay… though the ducks she tried to photograph quickly swam off in their newly cleaned stream.

As our time came to an end, we had to retrieve Aatefa, who was completely in the zone — hood up, focused, and not at all ready to stop without some serious persuasion.

We returned to add our haul to the impressive pile collected by other volunteers. In total, 34 people turned out today, and the park is noticeably cleaner as a result.

To top it all off, the park café kindly provided a free hot drink for all volunteers. Sitting there in the warmth, I couldn’t help but regret mocking Bekah and her brolly earlier — she was perfectly dry. In fact, perhaps I should have let go when she was reaching into the stream… now that really would have been a splash for trash.