The Leeds Building Society has announced a new, three-year partnership with parkrun, a volunteer-led, not-for-profit organisation providing weekly, free running events for people of all ages and abilities.
Over 450 events take place every weekend, with over 100,000 participants running and volunteering each week.
The new partnership was launched at the Woodhouse Moor parkrun in Leeds on 20 May, a milestone event location for parkrun, being the first ever parkrun outside of London when it was launched in 2007.
The launch was accompanied by an animated video explaining parkrun’s story and how it impacts on communities, and why Leeds Building Society is now partnering with the events.
Nikki Marsh, Leeds Building Society’s director of customer and digital, said the partnership is a true collaboration between two like-minded organisations that will help deliver “genuine benefits to communities”.
She said: “Our new research shows that across the UK there’s a real desire for people to meet and get to know others in their neighbourhood, but one in four of adults don’t feel close to anyone at all in their community.
“We believe parkrun, which offers free weekly runs and volunteering opportunities in over 450 locations across the UK, really helps bring communities together. It’s a brilliantly simple way for adults and families to join a local initiative whilst getting fit and active at the same time.
“Like us, parkrun was set up to improve the lives of its members and, through our partnership, we’ll be helping more people get involved. We’ll also be supporting projects and programmes we believe will bring a lasting benefit to those involved, our members and their wider communities, as well as helping ensure parkrun stays free to everyone.”
Nick Pearson, parkrun CEO, said the new partnership with Leeds Building Society would help parkrun continue to build on its success and strengthen its impact across local communities:
He said: “We are delighted to be working with Leeds Building Society, who we feel we have a real synergy with and the same dedication to supporting communities. They are owned by their members and put a huge amount of time and effort into good causes, particularly through volunteering.
“Working with such a well-established and nationwide organisation will help us reach out to more communities and help bring more people together, as well as ensuring parkrun stays free for everyone forever.
“We now have some really exciting plans to help extend the community impact of parkrun beyond the Saturday or Sunday morning runs themselves.”