I am disappointed to see that your paper published a letter of complaint from “Mike of Cam” regarding Dursley Running Club without seeking our views on the incident or allowing your readers to put the incident in context.

The club accepts that on this occasion members of our running club, briefly, did not achieving the standards of safe running that we have set ourselves as a club. I have already apologised directly on behalf of Dursley Running Club for this.

As a club we have taken the return to activity extremely seriously.

We have carried out risk assessments and pilot runs with our leaders to help us meet these standards and have been working hard to achieve safe activity in-line with national governing body guidance so we can begin activities again.

Our approach is set out on our website.

However as a club we totally appreciate that this work did not prevent the incident. We are acutely conscious that we have a responsibility not only to our members but also to the community at large. To achieve this the club is meeting in small numbers in a variety of locations at different times in the evening and trying to ensure we use routes that will minimise the chances of contact, totally avoiding pedestrians is unlikely to be achieved.

I would like to point out that in his letter to the club he both threatened our members and denigrated them. Our members are young, old, big, small, male and female, some are seasoned athletes and some are just starting on a journey of healthy activity as a club we are proud to promote active lifestyles and help our community stay fit. I am sure this won’t be the last time our members will be insulted by someone who has a distorted view of what people who do sport should look like.

Such attitudes are unlikely to help a nation that needs to become more active. We have organised a range of sessions once guidance allowed group activities. We have seen the benefits this has brought not just physically but also to our members mental well-being. In particular a return to some semblance of normality has been very much appreciated by our junior athletes.

We take responsibility when we don’t achieve the standard we set ourselves but at the same time you readers should be aware of the hard work we are putting into make our activities safe and also the benefits we as voluntary organisation bring to our community. Covid-19 has not only taught society the importance of social distancing but it has also highlighted the importance of people being fit and active.

We will continue to make our best efforts to do so in a safe way in line with the appropriate guidance from Government and our National Governing body.

Yours Sincerely

David Durden

Chair

Dursley Running Club