Year of Active Travel: South Yorkshire’s Mayor opens new junior parkrun

South Yorkshire’s Mayor Oliver Coppard opened a new junior parkrun for children in South Yorkshire on 17 November.  

The new event at Millhouses Park in Sheffield is the eighth junior parkrun in South Yorkshire.

South Yorkshire’s Mayor, Oliver Coppard, said: “My ambition is to build a healthier, wealthier and happier South Yorkshire.

“We know that giving children the freedom and choice to move more and move differently can help build a strong foundation for an active lifestyle; encouraging young people to develop healthy habits at the start of their life. 

"Offering our young people the chance to be healthy and active couldn’t be more important, because right now one in four people in South Yorkshire are physically inactive. That’s why I am using my Year of Active Travel to showcase brilliant examples of people getting active, across Barnsley, Doncaster, Rotherham and Sheffield.  

“I'm really happy I’ve been able to help bring this new junior parkrun – South Yorkshire’s eighth - to Millhouses Park. It will help more children and families take part in regular and fun physical activity close to home, and help build healthy habits from a young age.”

Mayor Coppard has committed to supporting parkrun in South Yorkshire as a key element of the 'Year of Active Travel', promoting health, wellbeing and community. South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority contributed £2,000 towards establishing the Millhouses junior park run. 

The Mayor’s challenge at parkrun encourages residents to get involved by walking, jogging, running or volunteering at any six parkrun events in South Yorkshire, aiming to strengthen community bonds and enhance overall health and well-being.

Millhouses junior parkrun Run Director, Mohammed Ahmed, said: “The Millhouses junior parkrun core team would like to say a huge thank you to all the donors who have helped to get us here. 

“We have been genuinely blown away by the support from everyone in the local community. We are really hoping this regular Sunday event will inspire children and their carers to become more active and healthier.” 

junior parkrun is a free and fun 2k event that takes place every Sunday morning, organised by local community volunteers for children aged four to 14. 

For more information about junior parkrun and to find local event details visit https://www.parkrun.org.uk/events/juniorevents/ 

Find out more about the Mayor’s Year of Active Travel at https://southyorkshire-ca.gov.uk/explore/south-yorkshire-year-of-active-travel