Running can be life changing. For some, it rebuilds confidence. For others, it becomes a lifeline – improving mental health, reducing loneliness and opening the door to new opportunities.
In this guide, we spotlight some of the most inspiring UK and US running charities tackling homelessness, loneliness, inequality, food poverty, environmental damage and more – one step at a time.
With the right support, a single run can become a turning point. With your support, many more people can get that chance.
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From PBs to Purpose: Running Charities Worth Supporting
From free group runs for young people in crisis and “plogging” trail clean ups, repurposing old kit to empowering women, or supporting people with visual impairment – these charities show that every mile can make a difference.
So, whether you lace up to volunteer, donate, or join in yourself, there’s lots of different ways for you to give back through the sport you love and pay it forward for the next runner.
#1: The Green Runners - Cleaner, Greener & Speaking Up
Running should be one of the planet’s most sustainable sports. All you really need is a pair of trainers and an open road. Yet modern running tells a different story: fast fashion gear, race-day waste, short-life trainers, air-miles to destination marathons and a sea of plastic bottles at big events. The environmental footprint adds up fast.
That’s where The Green Runners (TGR) come in. Founded by ultra runner Damian Hall and sustainability campaigners, the UK-based movement is on a mission “to run without the footprint.” What began as a small WhatsApp group of around 50 like-minded runners has grown into a movement of 3,000+ members, united by a shared commitment to shrinking running’s environmental impact while keeping the joy, community and performance of the sport intact.
The Green Runners offer guidance rather than guilt, built around four accessible principles:
How you travel: Prioritising local racing, car-sharing and public transport over unnecessary flights.
How you kit up: Buying less, choosing sustainable brands and repairing instead of replacing.
How you fuel: Cutting back on meat and dairy, reducing packaging and choosing lower-impact nutrition.
How you speak out: Challenging greenwashing, raising awareness and pushing for change across the industry.
Changing Running From the Inside Out
In partnership with England Athletics, TGR’s Greener Clubs pilot has already helped dozens of grassroots running clubs commit to sustainability pledges – from cutting plastic cups to rethinking race merchandise and transport.
The need for change is clear. The global trainer industry emits CO₂ on a scale comparable to entire countries. The London Marathon alone has historically used hundreds of thousands of plastic bottles in a single day.
The Green Runners prove that collective action beats individual blame. By mobilising everyday runners, clubs, brands and event organisers, they are reshaping the culture of running itself – making sustainability part of performance, not a compromise.
If you care about the future of running as much as your next personal best, The Green Runners offer a powerful way to protect both.
Learn more: thegreenrunners.com
#2: The Running Charity - Engaging Young People Through Sport
The profile of The Running Charity has skyrocketed thanks to Russ Cook (aka The Hardest Geezer) as he became the first person to run the entire length of Africa, working out at two marathons a day for over 8 months.
The Running Charity unleashes the power of running to help young people experiencing homelessness or managing complex needs.
We all deserve a strong start. However, access to support and a route out of homelessness aren’t universally available. That’s evidenced by the face that there are around 103,000 young people affected by homelessness right now in the UK.
Using sport’s unique ability to engage otherwise disenfranchised young people, The Running Charity lays on free group running sessions with qualified fitness professionals coupled with practical development workshops aimed at supporting participants’ goals for the future.
Learn more: therunningcharity.org
#3: GoodGym - Good Deeds in the Local Community
GoodGym combines DIY SOS with physical activity to lend valuable support to local communities and isolated older people.
Every week, an army of GoodGym volunteers perform heroic acts ranging from running to collect essential supplies for an older person or helping around their home, to local park makeovers and litter pick ups. All that’s needed to take part is a warm heart and a pair of trainers.
To date, 350,000 ‘missions’ have been completed by GoodGymers up and down the UK. Why not join them and make running fun again?
Learn more: www.goodgym.org
#4: Preloved Sports CIC - Saving Run Gear From Landfill
It’s estimated that 300,000 tons of sportswear reaches landfill every year and as the global appear of sport grows, so does the waste.
Preloved Sports CIC is reducing the amount of disposal sportswear heading to landfill by reselling your used-but-otherwise-fine gear to other runners. In the process, they also raise money for Talking About Loss to pay forward the support Preloved Sports’ founder, Michael Hill, received after losing his father.
I first encountered Preloved Sports CIC at the Marathon du Malton event and made a promise to myself to help spread the word of their good work, and here we are.
Since September 2022, their proud efforts include:
- 6,866 (74.85%) items has been redistributed to charity
- 1,001 (10.91%) items resold online and via pop-up stalls at running events
- 846 (9.22%) items have been repurposed
That’s almost 10,000 items, and counting!
Learn more: prelovedsports.org.uk
#5: Soles4Souls - Collecting and Redistributing Gently Used Running Shoes
The average pair of running shoes costs $/£100 and lasts 500 miles. Meanwhile, there is global footwear poverty with significant implications 1.5 billion people worldwide without shoes. Plus, over 2 million shoes are thrown into landfill every week.
Soles4Souls aims to change that by unwanted sports shoes and clothing into opportunity.
So, instead of gathering dust, your unused athletic shoes could provide much needed comfort and eliminate a major barrier to one person’s educational and economic potential.
Learn more: soles4souls.org
#6: 261 Fearless - A Global Movement of Empowering Female Run Clubs
This network of local women-only running clubs double up as social opportunities to discover your self-worth and potential.
The global community of female runners meet up once a week for female-led running drills, games and strength exercises. In turn, the coaches who lead each session receive the fitness, social and emotional education to support members and maintain a thriving community.
Why 261 Fearless? Since 1976, the number 261 has stood for women’s ability to break barriers in running—it’s the bib number Kathrin Switzer wore when she became the first registered woman to run the Boston Marathon.
Learn more: 261fearless.org
#7: Trash Free Trails - Runners Unite to Clean Up Our Trails
Raw, exhilarating, and often unforgiving, trail running is the ultimate outdoor exercise. Trash Free Trails aims to keep our beloved off-road routes litter free.
Channeling the plogging movement into purposeful adventures, your bite-sized action can inspire countless others to do the same. Ploggers also feel a deeper connection to the world around them.
I love how fun they make the whole process. Download the Clean Trails Purposeful Adventure Bingo Card and complete challenges such as ‘Fill A Bag’ full of rubbish, ‘Take Public Transport’ to a rural route, or bring a friend along.
Learn more: trashfreetrails.org
Add more Joy to Your Runs 💌
- 1 Challenge p/m
- Run your way
- 100% Free
#8: British Blind Sport - Become A Guide Runner
Did you know: Anyone can become a guide runner for blind and partially sighted people?
England Athletics and British Blind Sport (BBS) have teamed up to train you up to provide much needed guidance to blind and partially sighted people wanting to take up running in the UK.
The 2-hour England Athletics Sight Loss Awareness and Guide Running Workshop covers:
- Different types of visual impairment
- safety tips for guide running
- how to lay on fully inclusive sessions and running clubs
- practical demos and dry runs
Learn more: englandathletics.org
#9: Run Talk Run – Peer Support Running Groups
Jogging every day doesn’t just do wonders for your body – it’s kind on the mind too.
Run Talk Run meetups are a great way to meet new people and support your peers on a weekly non-competitive 5km jog.
Some people find traditional running clubs a little intimidating. Run Talk Run’s peer support groups try their best to make both movement and mental health support less intimidating, and more accessible. There’s zero pressure to “keep up” on runs. Go at your own pace and the conversations and friendships will flow naturally.
Learn more: runtalkrun.com
#10: parkrun – A Beloved Weekend Tradition of Free Community Runs
A health and wellbeing charity and movement, parkrun not only transforms lives, it saves them.
In the UK, 4 in 10 adults and more than half of children and young people aren’t physically active enough. 9 in 10 adults in the UK experienced high or extreme stress in the past year. Many people live without company and companionship on a daily basis.
The parkrun concept is simple: meet at one of 2,000 parkrun events in 22 countries across 6 continents, at 9am on Saturday, and walk, jog or run your way to 5km with like-minded souls.
I love parkrun and to say parkrun is inclusive is an understatement.
A weekly show of enormous public altruism the UK over, everyone is welcome and clapped their way round. All ages. All abilities.
Learn more: parkrun.com
#11: &Mother - Supporting Female Athletes at Every Stage of Life
Running’s beauty is its simplicity.
Runners come in all shapes in sizes, and from all backgrounds and budgets.
This opportunity should equally extend to women in motherhood.
Set up by Olympian Alysia Montaño, &Mother challenges the sports industry to better support female athletes before and after pregnancy.
This ranges from shaping industry advertising and product development, to direct sponsorship of expectant athletes, and greater standardisation of support across the industry.
Alysia brought worldwide attention to the barriers and bias that professional athlete mothers face with her viral New York Times op-ed: Nike Told Me to Dream Crazy, Until I Wanted a Baby. The rest is history.
Learn more: forallmothers.org
#12: Team Hoyt - A More Inclusive Society Through Sports
The Hoyt Foundation aspires to build the individual character, self-confidence and self-esteem of America’s disabled young people by making organised races more inclusive.
In the spring of 1977, Rick told his father that he wanted to participate in a 5-mile benefit run for a Lacrosse player who had been paralyzed in an accident. Far from being a long-distance runner, Dick agreed to push Rick in his wheelchair and they finished all 5 miles, coming in next to last. That night, Rick told his father, “Dad, when I’m running, it feels like I’m not handicapped.”
This realisation was just the beginning of what would become over 1,000 races completed, including marathons, duathlons and triathlons (6 of them being Ironman competitions). Their continued fundraising facilitates inclusion in all facets of daily life for young people with disabilities; including in family and community activities, especially sports.
Learn more: teamhoyt.com
#13: Kitsquad CIC - Giving Outdoor Gear a Second Life for Greater Access
Kitsquad makes outdoor adventures as accessible as possible, by providing donated gear to those less fortunate.
To date, they’ve helped 1000 people in poverty to access the countryside with the right equipment.
Donations come from kind souls in the outdoor adventure community and drop-off points at Rohan stores. By opting to donate clothing that you no longer reach for when heading out on an adventure, you’re providing that extra bit of support to organisations in ensuring their participants can enjoy safe, valuable outdoor experiences.
Learn more: kitsquad.co.uk
#14: Girls on the Run - Building Confidence for Life
Girls on the Run takes to the track – and beyond – to inspire, encourage, and build lasting confidence in the next generation of women.
Reaching girls at a pivotal stage in their development, Girls on the Run strengthens self-belief at the very moment society often begins to challenge it. Through a fun, experience-based curriculum that blends movement with meaningful life lessons, girls build emotional intelligence, resilience, empathy, and self-respect.
More than just a running programme, the initiative nurtures both physical and emotional well-being. Guided by trained volunteer coaches in a safe, supportive environment, participants develop friendships, learn to set goals, and celebrate their growth through a joyful 5K challenge – planting the seeds of confidence, optimism, and self-belief that last a lifetime.
Learn more: girlsontherun.org
#15: Back On My Feet - From Homelessness to Independence Through Running
Almost 650,000 people are experiencing homelessness in the US right now.
Back On My Feet encourages participation in running and walking groups 2-3 times per week as a means to integrating back into society and achieving economic independence through fitness and community. Alongside physical exercise, participants receive access to workshops, personalized support, and a one-on-one mentor.
Since 2007, Back on My Feet has served more than 15,000 individuals experiencing or at risk of homelessness, boasting an 83% employment rate. Their members have run a whopping 950,000 miles, and secured over 10,000 jobs and homes.
Learn more: backonmyfeet.org
