Chelmsford saw a sea of Lycra and trainers on Sunday after more than a thousand runners were out in force to support local hospice care for children.

This year’s Chelmsford Marathon, sponsored by Beaulieu, took place on Sunday 15th October and saw runners from across the county and country crossing the finish in beautiful Central Park, after completing either 13.1 or 26.2 miles through the streets of Chelmsford and the surrounding villages.

By participating, runners have helped to raise vital funds for Havens Hospices, an Essex-wide charity that provides specialist care and support to babies, children and young people living with incurable conditions.

The fastest male of the Chelmsford Marathon Half was Ryan Willmott who finished in 1 hour, 16 minutes and 9 seconds. The fastest female was Hannah McGowan-Jones who finished in 1 hour, 21 minutes and 5 seconds.

Aaron Hudson was the fastest male who completed the Marathon route in 2 hours, 41 minutes and 16 seconds. The fastest female marathon runner was Nikki Woodyard in 3 hours, 3 minutes and 1 second.

Jackie Stretton from the Springfield Striders Running Club was the second female to finish the half marathon race despite breaking her foot earlier this year. Jackie who has completed the Chelmsford Marathon and half marathon route in previous years said after her race: “This year’s event was such good fun, the marshals are great, and there’s such good support out there.”

Chris Cook, a runner from Corringham and part of the Pitsea Running Club finished in the half marathon route in fifth place. He said, “This is the first time I have raced in this event, and it was really good, very well organised and marshalled, and I enjoyed the course. It was nice to hear at the start of the race what this event raises money for, it makes you realise how much you are helping a local cause.”

Beaulieu kindly sponsored the popular local event again this year, and members of staff joined in on the action including volunteering their time on the day.

Martin Leach, Managing Director, Major Projects, Countryside, said: “Countryside along with our development partner L&Q, are so proud to continue our support for the Havens Hospices through Beaulieu’s sponsorship of the Chelmsford Marathon and Half Marathon again this year.

“This is an important fundraising event for Havens Hospices which attracts runners from up and down the country. We would like to express our gratitude to the runners, donors, volunteers, and local community who, once again, have raised the bar in showing their commitment to raising awareness and much-needed funds for the invaluable care provided by Havens Hospices for its patients and their families across Essex. It has been a wonderful day out for the whole community.”

Lucy Lock, Community Engagement Manager at Havens Hospices added, “We are enormously grateful to everyone who turned out to support the Chelmsford Marathon, making it yet again another success in support of our specialist care and support which is a lifeline to local families.

“This event wouldn’t have been possible without the support of our sponsors at Beaulieu, the brilliant volunteer marshals and water station attendants who give up their time, Nice Work for the race management and all those who signed up and participated in took part in both races.

“Havens Hospices relies on public support to continue our work, and we hope to have raised a huge amount of money to continue making every day count for the hundreds of families we care for.”

To find out more about Havens Hospices’ upcoming local running events, follow @HavensEvents on Facebook or visit www.havenshospices.org.uk/events.

For more information about Havens Hospices and how they are ‘Making every day count’ for children and young people across Essex, visit www.havenshospices.org.uk/littlehavens