The organisers of the Air Products Worcester City Runs have announced that Worcestershire Ambassadors will be the official charity partner for the 2021 event. This year, the popular Worcester City Half Marathon, 10K and Young Athletes Run will be joined on the weekend of 4-5 September by Paula Radcliffe's Families on Track initiative. All of the funds raised by Worcestershire Ambassadors will be donated to Worcester Community Trust, to provide professional support and activities that build good mental health and well-being in the local population.
Founded in 2014, the Air Products Worcester City Runs attract thousands of runners and spectators to the city every September. The half marathon, 10K and junior run have grown in size year on year, attracting both leading club athletes and large numbers of fun runners, many of whom raise money for good causes. After an enforced break due to the pandemic, the event will return to the heart of Worcester in September and the partnership with Worcestershire Ambassadors is intended to help raise much needed funds to support local people as they deal with some of the ongoing challenges presented by the coronavirus.
Worcester Community Trust delivers a range of services and activities to improve wellbeing, reduce loneliness and isolation, and provide specialist support for survivors of domestic abuse. All of the funds raised through the partnership between Worcestershire Ambassadors and Worcester City Runs will assist the delivery of two key programmes of work. The first is a series of mental health first aid courses to teach people how to spot early signs and symptoms of common mental health problems, such as anxiety and depression and stress. The second is a cognitive therapy-based peer support programme called Moodmaster that provides a range of simple tools and techniques to help people manage life's emotional ups and downs more effectively, cope better with everyday stresses and worries, and improve their overall quality of life.
Worcestershire Ambassadors and Worcester Community Trust have both started recruiting supporters to be sponsored when tackling either the Air Products Worcester City Half Marathon or 10K. The aim is to have at least 50 runners on the start lines on Sunday 5 September, raising thousands of pounds that will benefit the local community.
Steve Cram, founder of the Air Products Worcester City Runs, comments: "From day one, we've always received a huge amount of support from the people of Worcester, from participants and volunteers, through to local companies and spectators on the city streets. That's what has built the success of the Air Products Worcester City Runs, so we're over the moon to be able to agree this partnership with Worcestershire Ambassadors. We love what the team there does to promote Worcestershire and hope that their runners raise a really big amount for the Worcester Community Trust in September."
Julia Williams, Chair of the Worcestershire Ambassadors, adds: "As well as promoting the county as a great place to live, work, invest, visit and do business, one of our core aims is to play an active role in our community, by supporting local good causes and charities. The last 18 months have been extremely challenging, firstly due to the floods, and secondly due to COVID-19 and a number of individuals across the Worcestershire have been brave enough to share how these things have impacted their mental health.
"With this in mind, we have built our Walk the Walk campaign for 2021 to promote good health and mental wellbeing and we are delighted to now be partnered with Air Products Worcester City Runs to grow our campaign and to raise money for Worcester Community Trust who will invest funds into mental health projects to support individuals across our county."
Ruth Heywood, CEO of Worcester Community Trust, comments: "Worcester Community Trust is thrilled to be a part of one of the best events to come to Worcester. Our charity thrives on bringing people together and supporting people through challenges they may be facing. Over the past 12 months, the Coronvirus pandemic has made this particularly difficult, which has impacted on the mental health and wellbeing of so many of our residents. WCT will be focusing on delivering services for local people to access to support them through the recovery phase and any funds raised through the Air Products Worcester City Runs will be dedicated to hosting mental health first aid and Moodmaster courses. I am looking forward to getting my running trainers on and doing my bit too!"
To find out more about fundraising for Worcestershire Ambassadors in the Air Products Worcester City Half Marathon or 10K, visit www.worcestershireambassadors.com/walkthewalk2021-2/walkthewalk2021-3. To find out more about Worcester Community Trust, visit www.worcestercommunitytrust.org.uk.
Anyone who booked a place on the Air Products Worcester City Runs in 2020 has had their entry automatically carried over to 2021 (unless they indicated otherwise). The events are now open for entry again at www.worcestercityrun.com. Places on the Worcester City Half Marathon cost £37 for unaffiliated runners (£35 for affiliated) and places on the Worcester City 10K cost £28 for unaffiliated runners (£26 for affiliated). Places on the Young Athletes Run (one mile for under 11s and 3K for under 16s) cost £8. The cost for entering Paula's Families on Track is £40 per team.
