Sh!t Runner Club from Preston awarded £12,000 through Sport England’s Movement Fund
The group also holds sessions in Preston.
A runners club with a rather unique name has been awarded £12,000 of National Lottery funding through Sport England’s Movement Fund.
The Sh!t Runners Club was founded by 60-year-old Shaun Fagan, originally from Fulwood, and instils the motto: Be Kind. Be Slow. Be Shit.
It ‘runs’ many sessions including in Preston with volunteer-led clubs operating and developing in towns across Cumbria, Lancashire and the North East.
Despite the deliberately irreverent name, the organisation has a serious purpose: removing the pressure, judgement and perceived barriers that prevent many people from becoming active.
Shaun said: “We’re delighted to have been awarded funding through Sport England’s Movement Fund - although we have to admit that a fund supporting the Shit Runners Club called the ‘Movement Fund’ feels almost too perfect.
“Behind the bowel-movement jokes, this is a significant vote of confidence in what our volunteers are building. It will allow us to give more people the training, equipment and support they need to lead safe, welcoming and inclusive sessions.”
He added: ”Our clubs aren’t about pace, personal bests or looking like a runner. They’re about helping ordinary people take that difficult first step, feel that they belong and discover that getting active doesn’t have to be intimidating or miserable.”
The Sh!t Runners Club’s sessions will remain free to attend. The new funding will help strengthen the volunteer infrastructure behind the clubs and support the organisation’s aim of making its welcoming, self-deprecating approach available to more communities.
The award has been made possible by National Lottery players, whose support enables Sport England to invest in projects helping people become more physically active.