Newbury Racecourse was the place to be on Sunday 13 October as over nine hundred runners took to the start line for Greenham Trust’s all-inclusive Step Up 4 Good 10K and family fun runs event. Despite the weather, crowds of spectators braved the rain to show their support for those running to raise money for local charities across West Berkshire and north Hampshire.
Over 20 local charities took part including Berkshire Youth, Dingley’s Promise, Eight Bells for Mental Health, PALS West Berkshire, Parenting Special Children, Swings and Smiles, Living Paintings and MS Therapy Centre.
Cruse Bereavement Care raised over £2,500 towards their fund-raising goal. Running in memory of its late founder, employees from Amberjack raised £2,000 for the Time to Talk Charity that helps support vulnerable young people in West Berkshire.
This year saw a record number of entries, with more than 900 runners signing up to take part in the Family Mile, Para Mile, 3K and 10K races. British middle-distance runner and World Championship silver medallist, Hannah England gave some words of encouragement to the runners before starting each race and awarded winners their well-deserved trophies.
First up was the Family Mile with race winners:
- Under 5’s group: James Bateman, 9:33 and Lucy Hampson, 11:26
- 5-8 age group: Patrick Dineen, 6:48 and Ella Cronk, 7:19
- 9-11 age group: Isaac Layton, 8:23 and Abigail Spencer, 6:53.
Seventeen participants completed the Para Mile, sponsored by the Swift Group for children under the age of 15 with a physical or mental disability or impairment.
Next was the 3K race which saw race champions:
- Under 12’s category: George Sharp, 11:00 and Maddy Baker, 13:18
- 12-14 age category: Jacob Woods, 10:47 and Miriam Cooper, 11:09
- 15 and over category: Freddie Lee, 12:54 and Victoria Maggs, 15:15.
Over 300 children from local primary and secondary schools including Francis Bailey Primary School, Curridge Primary School, John Rankin Primary School, Falkland Primary School and St Nicolas Primary School, took part – all raising funds for their own school projects.
After a much-needed warmup, it was soon time for the fourth and final race. Taking first place and completing the 10K course in 35:46 was James Knight for the men, and winner of the women’s race was Liz Leader at 44:05. The 10K veteran winners were Jeff Bird, 37:26 and Dianne Sullivan, 46:22.
Chief Executive of Greenham Trust, Chris Boulton, said, “We are overwhelmed by the dedication and enthusiasm of the runners who took part in this year’s event. Although we didn’t have the weather on our side, this didn’t dampen the spirits of both the runners and supporters who came out in their hundreds to cheer on the local community and raise money for charity.
“It’s wonderful to see the community unite to as they encourage one another and achieve personal goals together. Thank you to the local businesses, volunteers and the team here at the Trust for their continued support and hard work.”
Greenham Trust would also like to give special thanks to the winners of its ‘Design Our Medal Competition’, Claudia Conington and Charlotte Bevan both from Hermitage Primary School for their creative designs.
One lucky runner was also given the opportunity to donate £5,000 to a charitable project of their choice. Delighted to win Greenham Trust’s golden ticket was Ruth Moyse who donated the funds to her chosen charity, Parenting Special Children. Ruth said, “Thank you to Greenham Trust, this money will in part support the A Team, PSC’s group for autistic girls, giving them opportunities to try new things, have fun and make friends. We can’t stop smiling.”
All of the official results can be seen in full at www.stepup4good.co.uk
