Dozens of four to 10-year-olds gathered at Wycombe Rye on Sunday morning to take part in the junior Parkrun, which has restarted after being suspended for more than 14 months.

All junior Parkruns, along with Parkrun’s headline Saturday morning 5km events, were put on hold in March last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Junior Parkruns started reopening nationwide on April 11 but this was delayed in Wycombe while organisers waited for permission from Buckinghamshire Council.

The free, timed 2km run or walk – which is led entirely by volunteers – normally welcomes four to 14- year-olds but is currently restricted to under-11s until the main Saturday 5km events can restart.

Parkrun organisers say they have had to delay the reopening of their 5km runs due to problems with getting permission from landowners for a number of their courses. A decision is expected to be made on June 11 about a possible restart date of June 26.

Rosemary Brereton was at the junior event on Sunday with her son, William, aged four. She said she had been taking him to the Maidenhead junior Parkrun while waiting for the course at the Rye to reopen, and that it was good to be back in Wycombe.

She said: “I run with a local running club and there are a lot of volunteers, so it was really nice having them cheer him on. It’s sort of a bit of normal isn’t it?”

Ms Brereton added she had often volunteered at the 5km Saturday run, saying: “It doesn’t happen without volunteers and we get so much out of actually doing it, and volunteering sometimes is more fun than actually running it.”

Sean Wilson, who runs for Wycombe, attended on Sunday with his two daughters, Isla, eight, and Eilidh, aged six. He said they had been coming to the event since it started 4 years ago and had missed it during the last year.

He added: “We very much enjoy it on a Sunday morning, to get out and about, a little play and a run around the park. It’s part of our weekly routine really.”

Morris, aged seven, also said he had missed the run while it had been closed and that it felt nice to be back. “It did hurt… but I think it was definitely my record [today] because I was about six last time I did it,” he said.