Moira junior parkrun off to a Flying Start

Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council, in partnership with parkrun, has welcomed Lisburn’s first ever junior parkrun, which is going from strength to strength, with an average of 86 runners participating each week.

 

Launched in October 2015 at Moira Demesne, the junior parkrun was established due to the success of the Wallace Park 5km; organisers recognised the demand for a shorter event to suit younger runners.

 

The 2km community based event, takes place every Sunday at 9am. Children aged 4-14 years old can participate for free in a fun and safe environment.

 

Vice Chairman of the Leisure and Community Development Committee, Councillor Aaron McIntyre, is pleased that the Council is facilitating Lisburn’s first junior parkrun. He said, “I am delighted that the Council is playing its part to provide a platform that encourages children to get active in a safe and fun environment.

 

“The junior parkrun was introduced following the success of the parkrun at Wallace Park, which takes place every Saturday at 9.30am, and the need to get children active. As we are all very aware, obesity is a key health concern in children, and we as a Council must do our utmost to provide facilities and support programmes that encourage physical activity.

 

“What is great about the junior parkrun is that any child can take part, no matter what their level or ability, they can walk, jog or run. They can run on their own, with friends or with family - it’s the perfect introduction to running and it is free!

 

“I would like to encourage parents and guardians to invest in their children’s health now, get along to Moira Demesne and reap the long term benefits of physical activity”, concluded Councillor McIntyre. 

 

Event director, Michael Snoddy is delighted with the high level of participation. He said: “It is fantastic and I am very pleased with the turn out so far. Our busiest event saw almost 160 runners.

 

“There are always lots of smiling faces from the runners and a lot of appreciation. We have some quite young runners and a good mix of ages and boys and girls. With the better weather approaching, we want to spread the word and encourage more families to come along. The children can run, jog or walk. It's completely free to take part in”.

 

Children are able to run on their own or with their parents and Michael hopes that more junior parkruns will be organised in the near future. He said: “It’s for the sheer pleasure of running and spreading the opportunity to younger runners. It’s about them enjoying themselves and being healthy. How great to see the community coming together to volunteer and make it all happen each week".

 

‘junior parkrun Moira’ was set up after Rowandale Integrated Primary School held an initial public meeting. From there, volunteers set up a core team and with support from Lisburn & Castlereagh City Council, designated Moira Demesne as the venue.

 

To get the event off the ground, the Public Health Agency provided the event with funding to purchase equipment, including timers, a laptop to process results and scanners. ‘junior parkrun Moira’ now joins 21 other parkruns across Northern Ireland and is one of only three junior parkruns.

 

The three junior parkruns are Moira, Larne and Portrush.

 

To volunteer for the junior parkrun at Moira Demesne or for more information, visit http://www.parkrun.org.uk/moira-juniors/.