Meavy pupils run around ‘Britain’

Over the past year we have been working hard to create a 'running culture' at Meavy C of E Primary School. We started with a daily running challenge, based on the ‘mile a day’ that many schools take part in, and took this further by aiming to cover routes equal in total distance to running around Great Britain, visiting all the capitals and the three peaks. The children ran daily, recorded their distances and then calculated their total miles covered, plotted routes and researched places of interest on the way. We completed the challenge by December and this term we have started on our mission to run to ‘Russia’ in time for the World Cup. The biggest impact of this initiative has been the increased confidence, enthusiasm and general fitness of our children.

We also have a vibrant cross-country running club led by two of our teachers and parent volunteers, and nearly half of our KS2 children have taken part in it. We run off-road trails covering some stunning scenery and aim for around two to three miles each time. Scrambling, river crossings and a great deal of mud are often involved - the children love it!

Last week we held our annual cross-country event for children in the school aged 7-11 and all the children completed the challenging trail run. Last summer a parent organised Meavy Madness which involved a 1k, 2k and 5k off-road trail race for primary school children - this this year it is on 14th July and we expect it to be even more popular. We also have a beginners’ running group for parents once a week. Running has had a big impact on our school and we wanted to share the enjoyment it has given everyone.