Hundreds of runners donned their trainers at the weekend to take part in the inaugural Marlow Parkrun.

The event, organised by kind-hearted residents, drew 283 runners in total, with co-organiser Dianne Smith saying 52 of those were making their debut in a parkrun.

She said: “It was fantastic – really good. We couldn’t have hoped for it to have been better than it was.

“We had way more runners than we were expecting.

“There were lots of new people and that was fantastic because that’s what it’s all about – getting people out of their houses and beds rather than staying in.

“It was really sociable – we all really enjoyed it.”

Ms Smith, who is moving to Saudi Arabia with her family this week, said the idea came to her after she and her husband moved to the Marlow and were surprised to find there was not one already in the town.

She told the Marlow Free Press it took “months and months” of talks with Wycombe district and Marlow town councils to find a suitable route for the runners, and then some time to fundraise for equipment.

She will continue to help organise the event “in the background”, adding: “I am now quite emotionally invested in it.”

Harry Turner, of the Cookham Running Club, was the first male to cross the finish line with a time of 16 minutes and 46 seconds, while Charmain Jones, of the Handy Cross Runners, was the first woman across the line with 23 minutes and 49 seconds on the clock.