STUDENTS have put on their running shoes to raise more than £1,000 for good causes.

Nine Durham University students completed the Great North West half-marathon in Blackpool on Sunday (February 22).

The students, all members of Van Mildert College’s junior common room (JCR) executive committee, tackled high winds along the 13.1-mile course to raise money for outreach projects run by students in local primary schools.

Van Mildert College JCR president Fraser Burt, one of the nine, said: “These projects represent a really important part of many students’ experience of university.

“Opening ourselves to this kind of friendship and interaction with the community is an extremely rewarding experience.

“The projects are hugely popular among our students and the funds raised from the half-marathon will enable us to have more volunteers working in the community.”

The team, Andrew Below, Ella Mulligan, Emily Crisp, Frances Loring, Fraser Burt, Hannah Pittaway, Jake Mitchell, Lewis Martins and Sophie Tucker, hope to raise at least £1,500.

To support the students’ fundraising efforts, visit justgiving.com/van-mildert-outreach