Celebrations as organisers confirm parkrun events will return to Wigan in weeks

The free 5km events, which take place at parks and green spaces around the country on Saturday mornings, have been cancelled since March 2020 due to the pandemic.

But on Friday afternoon parkrun UK announced it had secured permission from the majority of land owners for events to return on Saturday, June 26.

This includes Haigh Woodland parkrun and Pennington Flash parkrun, which have been given the green light by Wigan Council.

However, it is subject to the Government's announcement planned for Monday about the relaxation of coronavirus restrictions and the next step on the roadmap.

Tom Williams, chief operating officer of parkrun UK, said: "We know that, on Monday, the Prime Minister will be confirming the details and timing of step four, and that his announcement may have a material impact on our ability to reopen on June 26.

"However, we are celebrating today, as we now know that parkrun will return in England before too long, and we cannot wait to see the magic of parkrun enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of participants every week, very soon."

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