The Hurst pupils take on colourful run to raise money for outdoor spaces
Hundreds of children were all the colours of the rainbow after taking part in The Hurst’s colour run, raising money for the school’s outdoor spaces.
Around 170 pupils in years 7 to 11 headed to the school field on Friday for the run, taking on a 1km loop three times, while being pelted with powder paint.
It was a good job it was non-uniform day, as the pupils emerged from the run covered head to toe.
First across the line was year 7 pupil George Dann, who said: “I do feel very colourful.
“I’ve done cross country running a lot before so this was really fun.
“The paint doesn’t taste that good, but at least I got a new top.”
The pupils were cheered enthusiastically on by drama teacher Luke Attridge on the microphone, who was also acting commentator.
Also cheering the pupils on was headteacher Jayne McLaren.
She said: “I think it went very well – the kids have thrown themselves into it.
“They really enjoyed it and from what I hear, it’ll be even bigger next year.”
Mrs McLaren said the event had two purposes – raising money to improve the school’s outdoor areas, and doing something fun for the children.
She continued: “We wanted to raise some money for the outdoor areas for the children – we obviously have our budget but it’s never enough, but I wanted to involve the children in fundraising for that.
“We’re hoping to raise at least £1,000.
“The money goes right back to the children and enhancing their experience, such as picnic rugs to sit on the grass, or a sail to sit under.
“It was also about trying to do something that brought the fun back for the kids.
“School has been a difficult place for the last two years, during Covid, masks and all the rest of it.
“We wanted to do something for fun and get ourselves started for a great summer term.”
The event was the brainchild of the school’s communications officer Rachel Fisher, who said: “It’s the first whole school event we’ve been able to do since Covid.
“We haven’t been able to run these fundraising events for such a long time, it’s nice to be able to get things back on the calendar again.”
