On Friday 17th May, 700 children from around Rotherham came together to take part in the Rotherham School Games Colour Run in aid of Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice, based in North Anston.
24 schools registered their children in March, then spent the following weeks learning about Bluebell Wood’s work through assemblies etc.
Runners were then encouraged to gain sponsorship from friends and families via the JustGiving page and lots brought money on the day.
KS2 children participated in our morning event – many of which were Y6s who had finished SATs the day before and had lots of unspent energy to use around our 500m course! They were then given the challenge to complete as many laps as they could in 30 minutes, travelling through different obstacles whilst being pelted with colourful powder paint. We were so impressed that some even managed to complete a 5K in that time, though some happily walked and jogged around the course having fun with their friends!
The afternoon event was open to Y9 girls, aimed to address dropping levels of physical activity in teenagers; all had a smile on their face and were barely recognisable by the end of the day!
The main objectives of the Colour Run were to have fun, take part in physical activity and raise money for a good cause.
Thanks to Bluebell Wood’s Marketing & Communications team for creating this flavour of the day: Colour Run Reel.
Bluebell Wood Children’s Hospice supports babies, children and young people with life-limiting conditions. They support hundreds of families in their North Anston hospice and in family homes. Their fantastic services cost around £6.5 million a year to run, so they can continue to provide this excellent service for families that need it most. We are overwhelmed by the generosity of the children’s sponsors and, to date, we have raised £6424.87 with lots of last-minute sponsor money due to come in during the next week or so. The JustGiving link will stay open for another week so if you haven’t already, please donate here.
Chloe Turton, from the School Games team said, “The atmosphere throughout the day was fantastic with both KS2 and Y9 students throwing themselves into all aspects of the run. The smiles on their faces never dropped and hopefully this has given our runners a positive experience of physical activity and has also spread the word of Bluebell Wood’s work whilst raising money for them. A massive thank you to all of the Bluebell Wood volunteers, Wickersley Partnership Trust central team, Rawmarsh Sports Leaders, Rotherham school staff and the parents/carers of the children running who encouraged them to take part. It really was a team effort”.
Hannah Goulding, Regional Fundraiser at Bluebell Wood said, “We’d like to say a huge thank you to Wickersley Partnership Trust, the school games team, all the sports leaders and of course, the children who took part in the colour dash. It was such a fun day and the amount raised is phenomenal. Every penny will help us continue to be there for local children and families who need us.
