Press Release: The Daily Mile comes home to Scotland as children run at halftime at Murrayfield

THE DAILY MILE COMES HOME TO SCOTLAND AS CHILDREN RUN AT HALFTIME AT MURRAYFIELD

  • 45 children from the primary schools Roseburn, Leithwalk and St Joseph’s RC will run The Daily Mile at half-time of the Scotland vs Argentina Autumn Test this Saturday 24th November at Murrayfield.
  • The Daily Mile is now in over 6,600 schools in 55 countries with over 1,300,000 children taking part and continues to grow daily.
  • With support from Scottish Rugby, the Minister for Children and Young People, Maree Todd MSP and the Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing, Joe FitzPatrick MSP, the first ever half-time Daily Mile will take place at BT Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh to celebrate the popular children’s fitness initiative going back where it first started.

Scottish Rugby , Minister for Children and Young People, Maree Todd MSP and the Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing, Joe FitzPatrick MSP will join the founder of The Daily Mile, Elaine Wyllie, in the first ever half-time Daily Mile at the Scotland v Argentina rugby match at BT Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh as the initiative returns to its home turf.

The Daily Mile was founded at a single primary school in Stirling by former headteacher Elaine Wyllie in 2012. Since then the initiative’s simple message that 15 minutes of daily activity in the school-day can have profound health and wellbeing benefits has spread to 55 countries across the world with over 1,300,000 children taking part. The ground-breaking campaign has enjoyed particular success in Scotland with over 40% of Scottish primary schools currently signed-up. Saturday’s run follows a momentous year for The Daily Mile in which the initiative has grown globally, been supported by high-profile stars including Mo Farrah and Andy Murray and been featured as a key measure in the Scottish Government’s Physical Activity Delivery Plan and the UK Government’s Childhood Obesity Strategy.

45 children and their teachers from the primary schools: Roseburn, Leithwalk and St Josephs, RC will run for fifteen minutes around the outside of the pitch during half time. A Daily Mile film featuring Andy Murray will be on the big screens during the course of the run to highlight the children’s health and well-being initiative and mark its success.

Celebrating The Daily Mile at a live sporting event in Scotland highlights how far the initiative has come since its first launch and the significant role it has played on thousands of children.

The Daily Mile is a fun, free and profoundly simple fitness initiative where children run or jog for fifteen minutes every day. So far, the campaign has had a remarkable year of growth in 2018. As well as achieving its highest ever public profile and playing a significant role in the fight against obesity, it has also been endorsed by significant media outlets and public figures including the Prime Minister, Theresa May. Since research findings from the Universities of Stirling and Edinburgh confirmed the initiative boosts activity levels in class and improves fitness and body composition, thousands of schools have signed up. In June the UK Government confirmed that The Daily Mile would be a key factor in halving childhood obesity by 2030.

Elaine Wyllie, Founder of The Daily Mile, said:

“I am very excited to be bringing The Daily Mile home to Scotland, where it all began, at such a prestigious sporting event. Since starting The Daily Mile six years ago whilst the headteacher of a Primary School in Stirling, the initiative has been on an incredible journey with a total of 6,767 schools now signed up.

 The lives of thousands of children have already been altered by this simple, free and effective activity. Together with the Scottish Government and Scottish Rugby Union, I look forward to encouraging more schools across our great nation, to get active by participating in The Daily Mile.”

Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing, Joe FitzPatrick MSP  said:

“Scotland’s Daily Mile initiative is catching the imagination of the UK and beyond. We want Scotland to be the first ‘Daily Mile Nation’, with nurseries, colleges, universities and workplaces joining over 800 Scottish schools regularly taking part.

I hope that the support from Scottish Rugby at the game today will encourage even more schools and workplaces to sign up and reap the benefits of becoming more active more often. Taking small steps by jogging, walking or running for 15 minutes, people can make huge changes to their health and wellbeing.”

 ENDS.

 

Media contacts

Chris Hall (Media Zoo)(+44)7739571634 / chris.hall@mediazoo.tv

Press Release: Dr Rosena Allin-Khan MP launches The Daily Mile in Tooting

Today, Dr Rosena Allin-Khan launched The Daily Mile in Tooting at Smallwood Primary and Gatton Primary schools.

As Shadow Minister for Sport, Rosena is keen to work with Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, to encourage schools across London to sign up to The Daily Mile. The Mayor of London has recently put his support behind the campaign to ensure that London becomes the first Daily Mile Capital City. This commitment was celebrated most recently when the Mayor ran a Daily Mile alongside Sir Mo Farah at a school in East London to encourage more schools to sign-up across the 32 boroughs.

The Daily Mile was founded in 2012 by Elaine Wyllie who will be attending tomorrow along with British middle-distance runner Adelle Tracey. Children who complete The Daily Mile have been found to be significantly healthier than those who do not. Cost neutral initiatives such as The Daily Mile are essential in combating childhood obesity and inactivity.

Dr Rosena Allin-Khan stated:

“The Daily Mile is a fantastic cost-neutral initiative for all schools which will make a real difference to the health of all children involved.

“As no specialist equipment or kit is required, The Daily Mile is easily accessible and acts as a real equalizer.

“With increasing levels of childhood obesity and inactivity, The Daily Mile ensures that all children in participating schools can get involved – this is ever more important now we are seeing increasing cuts to PE hours in school.

“I am proud to be working with Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, to encourage schools across London to take up The Daily Mile to improve fitness in our schools.”

Founder of The Daily Mile, Elaine Wyllie said:

“I am delighted by the support we have received from Dr Rosena Allin-Khan which will no doubt boost our presence across the borough dramatically. Support from MPs nationwide has been transformational for the campaign throughout 2018.

We have been praised by the Prime Minister, included as a key measure in the Government’s Childhood Obesity Strategy, and cross-party MPs including Deputy Labour Leader Tom Watson, have spread the word in their own constituencies by running their own Daily Mile.

This recognition is truly outstanding and has contributed to the success of the initiative which has seen over 6,700 schools sign up. There is no doubt that The Daily Mile’s growth in 2018 is a win for the health and well being of young people everywhere.”

 

ENDS.

 Smallwood Primary School
Gatton VA Primary School

Holyrood Nursery – Wigan, Manchester

As part of the Greater Manchester Daily Mile celebration day – on 17th October 2018 -, our founder, Elaine Wyllie, had the pleasure of attending Holyrood Nursery in Wigan, to see how they do their Nursery Daily Mile.

Video kindly provided by ITV Granada.

Newry Primary Schools sign up to The Daily Mile

Source: Newry Times

Date: 15-November-2018

A number of local Newry Primary Schools are benefiting from taking part in The Daily Mile programme.

The Southern Health and Social Care Trust in partnership with the Public Health Agency and local councils are promoting The Daily Mile and encouraging more schools to get involved.

Clare Drummy, Physical Activity Coordinator for the Southern Trust said, “Schools already taking part in The Daily Mile are reporting huge benefits for pupils and staff. As well as increasing activity levels and helping to combat obesity, the break outside and a bit of fresh air during the school day is also helping to improve children’s concentration during lessons.”

The principal of St Brigid’s Drumilly, Primary School, Mr Jeff Crimmins said, “The children are calmer and more relaxed when they come in from their Daily Mile. Without a doubt, children have benefited tremendously from a physical fitness perspective.”

Teacher, Colette Hicks from Cloughoge Primary School commented, “After The Daily Mile children are more settled in their work, concentration levels have improved, fitness levels have also improved. Children are really enjoying the initiative and the teachers and other members of staff are taking part also.”

Principal Stephen Moane from Roan St Patricks Primary School Eglish said, “Our children are generally fitter and healthier due to The Daily Mile. We have also found that they are a lot more settled and relaxed afterwards and able to focus a little more on tasks during class.”

Teacher, Micheal Brady from Gaelscoil na mBeann, Kilkeel said. “Increased fitness across the board, leading to benefits in other physical activities. Some kids showing interest in running outside school as a result.”

This article has been reproduced with the kind permission of the content creator, Newry Times. To read the article in full, please click the link below.

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Fit and Healthy Tom Watson joins pupils for mile challenge

Source: Express & Star

Date: 09-November-2018

As part of The #MPDailyMile Initiative, Tom Watson MP visited the pupils of Hargate Primary School in West Bromwich. 

Tom Watson said, “They are part of a national scheme called The Daily Mile, and it is simply that, they shake their legs, they walk, they run… which gets the adrenaline going, gets the heart pumping and helps keep you fit.”

“I have lost a lot of weight recently and I am trying to do the same in my own life so I wanted to come and celebrate this national campaign and work with Hargate and the other schools across the borough to help our fitness levels improve.

“It is one of my favourite schools in the whole of the borough. It is a great school and the kids are amazing.”

Mr Watson, who looks the picture of health after he battled his way back from 22 stone, said his ‘new mission’ as a politician is to help people tackle their unhealthy lifestyles.

Helen Penn, teacher and well-being leader, said the schoolchildren had an extra spring in their step after being joined by the MP.

She added: “They knew it was a big thing. I think they all pulled it out the big.”

“I think it is really important. If we can get children being active in school, it does stay with you into adulthood.”

This article has been reproduced with the kind permission of the content creator, Express & Star. To read the article in full, please click the link below.

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Press Release: MPs across the UK run The Daily Mile in their constituencies

MPs ACROSS THE UK RUN THE DAILY MILE IN THEIR CONSTITUENCIES

  • Members of Parliament across all UK countries will run The Daily Mile in the MP Daily Mile Initiative from 7th to 9th November, as part of the strategy to encourage more schools to sign up to the ground-breaking children’s health and well-being initiative.
  • Eleven cross-party MPs will bring The Daily Mile home to their own constituencies by each joining a primary school to run their own Daily Mile.
  • The MP Daily Mile Initiative is being launched following strong support from across Westminster and across all major political parties.
  • Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, has pledged his support to the MP Daily Mile Initiative.

MPs across all UK countries are running The Daily Mile as part of a nationwide campaign to raise awareness across the UK to get more schools adopting the health and well-being initiative.

Eleven cross party MPs will run The Daily Mile in their constituencies. Other MPs have pledged their support to the nationwide initiative which aims to encourage more schools to sign up to ensure all children have the chance to be “Fit For Life”.

The Daily Mile is now in over 6,500 schools, participating across 55 countries. Now, The Daily Mile wants every child in the UK to have the opportunity to participate in their primary school.

Elaine Wyllie, Founder of The Daily Mile says:Since I started this initiative just six years ago, we have seen grassroots support for The Daily Mile grow from day to day. Children get it, parents get it, and the teachers get it. This is a campaign that the British people are already getting behind, up and down the country.

Having the MPs’ endorsement would be a simple yet major step forward in improving children’s health and well-being across the United Kingdom. Unless we tackle this obesity crisis, today’s obese children will become tomorrow’s obese adults whose years of healthy life will be shortened by a whole host of health problems including diabetes, cancer and heart disease. The Daily Mile is ensuring our children’s future health and in the long run, we believe, will reduce the pressure on vital NHS services.

The MPs’ campaign is launched off the back of a successful advertising campaign on ITV and in cinemas. With the support of INEOS, The Daily Mile has experienced its highest period of growth ever in recent weeks, but we still have a majority of primary schools that could benefit from adopting this free, simple yet effective initiative.

New research from the Universities of Stirling, Edinburgh and the Highlands and Islands identified that The Daily Mile initiative has enjoyed worldwide success thanks to its simplicity, flexibility and adaptability for teachers. These findings come just months after research led by the same team confirmed that The Daily Mile – which involves children taking a 15-minute break from class to do physical activity – improves fitness reduces sedentary behaviour, and improves body composition in participants.

 ENDS.

 

To read about all MPs involved in our MP Daily Mile Initiative, click the button below.

List of MPs involved

Founder of The Daily Mile, Elaine Wyllie, visiting No. 10 Downing Street

 

Media contacts

Chris Hall (Media Zoo)(+44)7739571634 / chris.hall@mediazoo.tv