UK encouraged to parkrun for the NHS

Sir Andy Murray OBE is calling on people across the country to 'parkrun for the NHS' to celebrate the health service's 75th birthday and lead a more healthy and active lifestyle.

Thousands of people across the UK are expected to take part in parkrun events on Saturday 8 July and junior parkrun events on Sunday 9 July.

The events are intended for for parkruns and their local communities to acknowledge the huge contribution that the NHS makes to the health of the nation. Participants are encourage to wear NHS blue or fancy dress.

For the NHS's 70th birthday in 2018, more than 146,000 people took park in a park run event.

Participants can walk, run or jog the event. Volunteers to help run the event are also welcome.

Andy Murray said: “The NHS is one of our nation’s greatest institutions and I am honoured to support its 75th birthday. ‘Parkrun for the NHS’ is a great initiative and it’ll be amazing to see thousands of people from across the UK walking, running and volunteering at their local parkrun and junior parkrun events to mark this major milestone in the NHS’s history.

“Our nurses, doctors, paramedics, midwives and all of the other NHS staff and volunteers do an amazing job caring for us and the NHS’s 75th birthday is an opportunity to recognise their hard work and commitment. It’s also a fantastic way of encouraging more people across the UK to be active, together in the outdoors, no matter what their age, ability or background. I’d encourage everyone to head down to their local parkrun or junior parkrun and join in the 75th birthday fun. Even better if you can do it in the trademark NHS blue, better still in fancy dress!”

Dame Ruth May DBE, chief nursing officer for England, said: “I’m delighted that the NHS has teamed up with parkrun UK to help celebrate the NHS’s 75th birthday. We are encouraging as many people as possible – from local communities to NHS staff and volunteers – to get involved, whether it’s by walking, jogging or running the course, or lending a hand as a volunteer. It is a great way to get together and celebrate the NHS for its anniversary but importantly, a great way to take steps towards a healthy lifestyle too.”

Image by Daniel Reche from Pixabay