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WAT-a-Run 2025: United by Distance, Driven by Purpose

20th May 2025

A journey across 85km to help children wake up safe, rested and ready. Over 100 runners. 15 schools. 85 kilometres. Our Goal - £50,000.

WAT-a-Run 2025 was our biggest and boldest yet. Across two sun-soaked days, runners from the ºÚÁϳԹÏÔÚÏßÓÀ¾Ã Academy Trust Family came together to complete a challenge that was as inspiring as it was ambitious — running between all 15 schools in the Trust, raising money for our Bed & Breakfast campaign.

From the starting line at Greenways Primary Academy on Saturday morning to the final sprint into Great Wyrley Academy on Sunday afternoon, the route covered over 85km across Stoke, North Staffordshire, South Staffordshire, Sandwell and Dudley. Spirits were high. Legs were tired. Hearts were full.

Some highlights:

• Almost 100 runners took part, with nearly every runner pushing past personal bests.
  

• Six incredible individuals completed the entire 85km across both days — that’s more than two full marathons.
  

• Many others ran the full distance on Day 1 or Day 2, with those completing Day 2 now officially ultra marathoners.
  

• Thousands across our communities came out to cheer us on, line the route, and show support — including over 500 people at the finale at Great Wyrley for the Family Fun Run.
  

• Day 1 ended with a bang at Clayton Hall Academy, where the Clayton Carnival created a festival atmosphere that captured everything WAT-a-Run is about — joy, togetherness, and purpose.
  

Each school welcomed runners with banners, cheers, and heartfelt support — a reminder of the community we’re all running for.

A huge thank you to all of our schools and communities for the incredible hospitality, energy and celebration at every stop. You made every runner feel like a hero and turned every kilometre into a memory.

And what a community it is. The money raised — over £26,000 so far and still rising — goes directly to our Bed & Breakfast campaign, which ensures that children across our Trust have a safe bed to sleep in and a nutritious breakfast to start their day.

We want to say a huge thank you CHG-MERIDIAN UK, Sync, Relish, and XMA as headline sponsors of WAT-a-Run 2025, supporting our mission to improve the lives of young people across our communities.

Their generous contributions are helping us accelerate progress towards our £50,000 Community Foundation milestone, ensuring more children have access to a safe bed and a nutritious breakfast—essentials for wellbeing, attendance, and readiness to learn.

We’re also pleased to welcome the Glen Group as a supporting sponsor, whose involvement adds further strength to this important campaign.

From physical challenge to emotional impact, WAT-a-Run continues to be more than just a run. It's a statement: we show up for our students, our schools, and our shared future.

Thank you to everyone who ran, supported, donated, or cheered us on. You made this happen.

Watch the highlights film here:

Check out the photo gallery below!