STONEHOUSE parkrun celebrated its one year anniversary on Saturday.

People turned out in their hundreds for the 5km run around Oldends Lane Playing Fields.

Following the run, cake and drink were on offer as a special treat, thanking everyone that has participated in the popular event.

Run director, David Skeats is delighted the Parkrun has been such a big success and is hoping it will continue for a long time.

“The parkrun is very important to lot of people in the community, “said David.   

“It’s more than just health and fitness, it’s a fun event that people can go to and socialise but also push themselves to keep fit and improve week on week.

“On a normal weekend we expect to get around 100 people turning up to do the run, from people who take it slowly, finishing in about an hour to the people who complete it in 16 minutes.

“A lot of people who come every week are from Stonehouse or Stroud but some travel around the country doing all the various park runs and we are proud to be on the list.”

Since Stonehouse parkrun began, 1485 unique runners have turned up from all different age group and backgrounds.

Lesley Williams, a key early supporter of the parkrun, said: "I am very proud that parkrun has reached this anniversary, and I am so thankful to all the organisers and participants that make it a success every week. 

"For happy and healthy lives we have to stay active and parkrun achieves this week in and week out. 

"I was keen to give the original funding to this project because I knew that  it could change lives, and I am happy to support ‘junior parkrun’ with an additional £2,500 from the ‘Active Together’ funding from the County Council."

The run is free for everyone and takes place at 9am every Saturday morning. For more information visit http://www.parkrun.org.uk/stonehouse/. 

Photos by Simon Pizzey.