COLCHESTER Castle’s weekly parkrun will see volunteers and runners celebrate the event’s tenth birthday with cake and fancy dress costumes this weekend.

The 5k community event, which is free and open to runners of all abilities, has been running in Great Britain as far back as 2004 – but this Saturday will mark ten years since the first edition of the parkrun at Colchester Castle.

Gazette: All ages – even the very young can enjoy the junior parkrun, which takes place on Sunday morningsAll ages – even the very young can enjoy the junior parkrun, which takes place on Sunday mornings (Image: Newsquest)

As it will be held on Easter Saturday, participants are likely to show up in fancy dress, and there will be plenty of cake to go around for runners and volunteers after the final runner crosses the finish line.

Katherine Burke, who is an event director, first started started participating in the parkrun in 2017, before she then went on to help organise the event her the now event director, Sue Croft.

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When asked why it has thrived since starting in Colchester a decade ago, Mrs Burke said: “I think it’s because it’s so inclusive – it doesn’t matter how fast or slow you are.

“Everyone is welcome and you don’t need expensive kit – you can come along and enjoy the social aspect and get a time to improve on if you wish to.”

The event will begin at 9am on Saturday morning at Colchester Castle.