RACING around the field in a blur of motion, these pupils are among the first in Oxford to pioneer a pulse-raising project aimed at slashing child obesity rates.

Windmill Primary School in Headington has become one of two schools in the city so far to sign up to the Daily Mile, a national scheme in which children run or jog at school for 15 minutes a day.

Parents initiated support and the school has launched a trial of the scheme with Years 4 and 5.

Children had the chance to run off some of their Easter eggs with an energetic start to the term on Tuesday, sprinting around the field before class.

Headteacher Lynn Knapp said the scheme was part of a wider school improvement plan focusing on health and fitness.

She said: “The national statistic is that one third of school children are overweight or obese. We fit into that and need to do something to address that.

“Parents have bought into it in a big way and a few had been talking about the Daily Mile and how they would be pleased to get it up and running.”

NHS statistics show that in the 2016-17 school year, 35.1 per cent of Oxford’s primary leavers were overweight or obese, and 29.7 per cent county-wide.

Mrs Knapp said: “I think children do less running around – it comes back to the curriculum, they get overloaded and in many schools it’s easy to ease out PE time. We are being proactive in getting them to learn in an active way.”

Acknowledging some children do not enjoy running, the headteacher added: “I think running with your friends is different to just going out for a run.”

She said activity in the morning was beneficial mentally as well as physically, adding: “Their brains are more oxygen-fuelled and they are more ready for learning.

“There’s a lot of research in other schools that have done it that children attain more highly.”

The trial will run all term with a potential view to roll it out across the whole school if it goes well.

Children enjoyed a warm-up on the first day of the trial, led by teams from the Oxford branches of David Lloyd gym and Spirit Health Club, which both supported the scheme.

The Daily Mile hopes to get every primary school in the UK taking part, and already runs at 3,200.

A spokesperson said 10 Oxfordshire schools have signed up so far, including two in Oxford.

Founder of the scheme Elaine Wyllie said it had ‘changed the lives of many children for the better’.