RUNNERS have raised £50,000 for equipment to help newborn babies at Oxford Children’s Hospital.

But organisers of the OX5 Run, which takes place each year at Blenheim Palace in Woodstock, want fundraisers to keep their sponsorship cash pouring in.

This year’s five-mile race took place on Sunday, April 18, and was started by singer Jason Donovan.

More than 850 runners took part in the race around the grounds of the palace, the biggest field so far since the charity run began in 2002.

The £50,000 raised so far will go towards new equipment at the hospital, which treats more than 60,000 young patients a year.

The money falls short of last year’s total of £57,000 and this year’s goal of £65,000, but staff are hoping more will come in in the coming weeks.

Penny Hambridge, children’s development officer at the Children’s Hospital, said: “The run in April was a tremendous success, with 1,000 people signing up and 850 running on the day.

“The atmosphere was really special, as so many of those taking part have had their lives touched by Oxford Children’s Hospital.

“It was also great to have so many teams from businesses and organisations across Oxfordshire taking part.

“We are delighted that OX5 runners have raised £50,000 so far and, with money still coming in, we would love to reach last year’s total of £57,000.”

Ms Hambridge said the money raised would buy specialist equipment to treat babies.

She said: “We are hoping to be able to buy two cerebral function monitors and a cooling machine, which will help newborn babies who have suffered from a lack of oxygen to the brain.

“The monitors help diagnose the area of the brain which may be affected, and the cooling machine lowers the child’s temperature over a period of several days, which reduces the risk of the child developing cerebral palsy. This equipment would make a huge difference to the many babies who will use it over the coming years.”

She added: “I’d like to take this opportunity to once again thank all the runners and their sponsors and to ask that if you are still collecting your sponsorship money please send it to us as soon as possible.

“We are incredibly grateful to the Oxford Mail which backs the event, and event sponsors Allen Associates – and all the readers who took part.”

Kate Allen, managing director of Allen Associates, said: “It’s brilliant news that the OX5 Run has raised a total of £50,000 so far, and this is a good time to remind runners that if they are still gathering funds they should collect the money as soon as possible.”