EVERY pupil at a school in Southbourne runs one mile every day to help them be active outdoors and concentrate in class.

Stourfield Junior School, on the corner of Stourvale Road and Cranleigh Road, have introduced the 15-minute challenge to the school programme for all 550 children aged seven to 11, says head teacher, Laura Rawson.

She said that it does not matter if the child runs or walks the mile, just as long as they take part. She believes that Stourfield is one of just a handful of schools in the UK that have introduced the idea.

She added: "We have been doing it since January and it was a new initiative for the new year. We saw it on TV about a school in Scotland whose children try and run a mile every day. There's also been a lot in the news recently about children being obese and eating too much sugar so working with a few of the staff, including Fiona Lord, from the PE department, who are runners anyway, we decided to give it a try.

"We worked out that running right round the playground eight times equated to a mile or three times round the field if the weather is good.

"The staff get to decide which 15-minutes works best for them each day, which starts from when the kids put on their trainers to when they get back to class."

She said that they told parents and carers that the children would need their trainers with them every day and they were unsure what the response would be from parents and pupils.

"We have been really overwhelmed by the response from parents and it gives the children a bit of a brain break from lessons and we find they come back more ready to focus on lessons.

"They're also very encouraging of one another. We have eight personal learning skills at the school and this supports the resilience and aspirational skills."

The school is currently in the process of applying to Bournemouth Council for permission to install an all-weather running track around the outside perimeter of the school field.

Miss Rawson said that if the application is approved, the school and the Parents & Friends Association (PFA) will need to raise around £15,000 to £20,000.