IT is often said that children are great imitators, so it’s important to give them something great to imitate.

But what happens when the activity being imitated is not an enjoyable one, leaving a profound and long-lasting negative association?

Rob Borthwick, Director of parkrun UK Ltd, writes for parkrun blog: "One doesn’t need to look any further than the parkrun blog to read scores of testimonies from parkrunners who swore they would “never run again” after being forced to do school cross-country or athletics, which for years or in many cases decades they associated with pain, pressure and humiliation.

Of course, these courageous people who have publicly recounted their own traumatic experiences of being forced to run in their younger years are only the tip of the iceberg in the context of seven million parkrunners globally.

Thankfully, and reassuringly, children are increasingly being introduced to organised physical activity in a supporting and welcoming environment that elicit feelings of joy, friendship and fun.

One such movement that is leading the way in establishing these positive associations with physical activity celebrates its 10th anniversary this weekend.

Its name is junior parkrun – a free, weekly 2k event for four to 14 year-olds and their families every Sunday morning.

That first Sunday morning in April 2010 saw nine children and a group of parents and volunteers quietly walk, jog, run, skip and laugh along a 2k route in London’s Bushy Park.

These pocket-sized pioneers have since paved the path for more than 430,000 people around the world to participate in what we now know as junior parkrun.

At that time, parkrun as a movement was still in its infancy compared to where it is now: 31 events in the UK and a single event in Denmark with just a few thousand participants each week.

The brainchild of Bushy junior parkrun was Paul Graham, who like so many others had fallen in love with the concept of 5k parkrun but who wanted to create an event that was bespoke to children and young people.

“I felt something new was needed that was specific to children, including those with health conditions. As an occupational therapist and a sports coach I was in a good position to put something together,” Paul recalls.

“Just like 5k parkrun there was no pressure and kids who can’t run or walk can still add meaning or value to their community and have fun."

Unlike many school-led or club-led activities where performances are judged, we made it about taking part with others rather than the actual task of running.

Paul is a strong advocate of ‘social prescribing’, which involves referring patients to non-medical treatments such as physical activity and fresh air. He believed that junior parkrun could provide another outlet for many of the people he supports.

“For example, young people with autism and Asperger’s can enjoy specifically tailored tasks, so they don’t have to make decisions that could disrupt or disorient them such as changing direction or speed.

They can just run, which they enjoy because their flow of thinking isn’t interrupted,” says Paul.

In the early days, junior parkruns were held monthly and in just a handful of locations. Following the launch of Bushy in 2010, Forest of Dean junior parkrun started in 2011 followed by Savill Garden in 2012 and Woodley juniors early the following year.

It was around this time that a chance encounter between Paul Sinton-Hewitt and Chrissie Wellington, the recently retired four-time Ironman World Champion, cemented the direction junior parkrun would take.

Chrissie Wellington says: “One of the few upsides we can take from the pandemic is that it’s forced us to consider how we engage people and what we can bring to people’s lives beyond a physical 5k or 2k event. Our School of parkrun was a case in point.

"For a long time we’ve wanted to integrate parkrun into the school curriculum and it gave us an opportunity to develop and test an education resource to engage young people and their families.

"It is our ambition that in the longer term, activities are continued beyond Covid-19 because they are really exciting and are a chance to prove concept."

Like 5k parkrun, junior parkrunners are also rewarded for reaching participation milestones.

A blue wristband is available to juniors who complete 11 events (Half Marathon Club), a green wristband is earned after 21 events (Marathon Club) and an orange band is earned by those who join the Ultra Marathon Club upon completion of 50 junior parkruns. A certificate is also awarded to people who complete 100 events.

Regular participation isn’t solely an incentive for young participants either. Research carried out in May 2018 showed that for every 100 junior parkrunners, at least 40 adults also took part alongside them.

With more than 350,000 juniors crossing the line over the past 10 years the impact on adults and family units has also proven to be significant.

Junior parkrun in our region include: Locke Park Redcar; Hemlington Lake, Middlesbrough; John Whitehead Park, Billingham; Rossmere Park, Hartlepool; Hardwick Park, Stockton; South Park, Darlington; The Station, Richmond; Stone Cross Playing Fields, Northallerton; Durham Racecourse; Saltwell Park, Gateshead, Riverside Park, Chester-le-Street; and Newcastle Town Moor.

Rob Dashwood, who helps organise the Richmond event, said: “It’s a lovely, supportive atmosphere and whilst some kids are out to beat their friends and get personal bests, most kids are just happy to be out and getting some exercise and freedom and don’t really care about their time.

“The marshals are all really encouraging and cheer the runners on – everyone is made to feel welcome and part of the event.”

It is not mandatory for a parent/guardian to participate in junior parkruns, but children under the age of 11 must be accompanied to and from the event by a responsible adult, and the adult must remain in attendance for the duration of the event.

To run, children need to pre-register with parkrun website and print off their personal barcode, which is scanned at the event to allow individuals to get their time.