PUPILS at Tadpole Farm Primary School were so keen to take part in the national schools Race for Life day that they could hardly wait for the off.

Even the risk of a downpour on the day failed to put them off their stride. As it turned out the rain stopped just in time for the run on Friday.

“It was brilliant,” said organiser Laura Harrison. “They were raring to go. They were very excited. They had been asking their parents and teachers all week if it was they were going to do it.”

Their aim was to raise £1,000, but shortly after the event they had already raced past that figure with more sponsorship money still to be handed in.

“I wouldn’t be surprised if we actually doubled our original target, which would be nice.”

In fact the race was such a success that the school is looking at making it an annual event.

She said all the children knew what they were running for and in preparation for the event they were told a little bit about the work of Cancer Research.

They were then split into years groups with time slots and all ran for 10 minutes before being awarded medals for participating.

The schools Race for Life is a national event for primary and secondary school children and helps to raise money for research into cancer.