Cash Boost For junior parkrun
London Marathon charity grants £1.19 million to support junior parkruns...
UK children have completed a million junior parkruns in the first year of a new partnership with the London Marathon Foundation and London Marathon Events (LME). A grant of £1.19 million has seen unprecedented growth in participation in the past 12 months.
The biggest-ever investment in junior parkrun has helped launch 51 new junior parkruns across the UK in areas such as Merthyr Tydfil in Wales, Norris Green in Liverpool, and Battersea in London.
Junior parkruns are free, timed 2K events where children aged four to 14 can walk, jog, run, or wheel outdoors. This partnership has been developed to increase access, targeted to areas of deprivation and communities where inactivity is at its highest.
The London Marathon Foundation’s funding is part of a three-year partnership with parkrun, with strategic support from London Marathon Events (LME), that aims to grow the event across the UK and enable more than 300,000 additional children to join in junior parkrun events by 2026. In addition to the grant from the Foundation, LME is using its resources to help junior parkrun deliver the ambitious project.
The formation of this partnership recognised an urgent need for free-to-access initiatives that encourage children – especially those in areas of high deprivation – to engage in regular physical activity. The NHS Digital’s National Child Measurement Programme in England found the prevalence of children living with obesity in reception and Year 6 was more than twice as high in the most deprived areas than in the least deprived areas.
Nick Bitel, London Marathon Group CEO, said: “Providing opportunities for children and young people to be active is a core principle of the London Marathon Group and is why we were so excited to form this ambitious partnership with junior parkrun. We are delighted to see the positive and record-breaking impact the partnership is already having, with over one million junior parkruns being completed by children in the past 12 months. We look forward to growing this project even further over the next two years and helping to establish a lifetime habit of physical activity for children and young people.”
One of the 51 new events is in Hesketh Park, Southport. Hesketh faces the highest level of deprivation in Southport, with 37% of households affected. This new junior parkrun has grown quickly and regularly has more than 100 children and young people participating.
Dr Simon Tobin, Southport GP and event director at Hesketh Park junior parkrun, said: “Working as an NHS GP for 30 years I know just how important physical activity is for the mental and physical health of our children. Seeing so many young people every Sunday getting into the habit of taking some regular, free exercise with their family in our local park is a vital part of establishing good lifestyle habits at an early age. Setting up a junior parkrun has been the most joyous and rewarding thing I’ve ever done.”
A recent survey found that 96% of families plan to continue going to junior parkrun and more than half of parents and caregivers report their child has walked, jogged and run outside of junior parkrun due to their participation. You can find your nearest junior parkrun and register for free here.
The London Marathon Foundation, LME, and junior parkrun look forward to continuing to grow junior parkrun over the next two years and maximising the incredible and wide-ranging impact it can have on hundreds of thousands of children, families, and whole communities.
Photo of a junior parkrun courtesy of parkrun Marketing