We’re excited to announce The Daily Mile Foundation is set to become part of the London Marathon Foundation, in a significant move to strengthen efforts to improve children’s physical activity levels across the UK.
From 1 August 2026, we will take on stewardship of The Daily Mile Foundation, which delivers one of the most successful and widely adopted school-based activity programmes in the world.
The Daily Mile encourages children to spend 15 minutes each school day walking, running or wheeling outdoors. As part of the enrichment framework in schools in the UK, the initiative has become a simple, inclusive way to help embed regular movement into children’s daily routines.
By bringing The Daily Mile Foundation into the London Marathon Foundation, the aim is to enable more schools across the UK and beyond to adopt The Daily Mile – building sustainable, active habits into the school day.
Nick Bitel, Chief Executive of the London Marathon Foundation, said:
“The Daily Mile is a brilliantly simple idea with proven impact, and our work together so far has helped millions of school children to become consistently active. I want to pay tribute to Elaine Wyllie’s vision in creating The Daily Mile, which has transformed the way primary schools think about children’s physical activity by making movement simple, inclusive and part of everyday life. I am delighted that Elaine will continue as a Trustee of The Daily Mile Foundation as we enter this exciting next chapter.
“Bringing The Daily Mile Foundation into the London Marathon Foundation is a natural step forward in our mission to help more children and young people across the UK lead active, healthy lives. At a time when too many children are not meeting recommended activity levels, collaboration like this is essential if we are to create lasting change and reach those who need it most.”
The move marks a first for us and builds on our role as an Official Implementation Partner of The Daily Mile in England since 2025. That partnership helped accelerate The Daily Mile Foundation’s growth through the creation of three new regional roles covering the West Midlands, the North West, and London and the South East. London Marathon Events, our events company, has also supported The Daily Mile Foundation through a long-standing partnership dating back to 2018. Together, these partnerships have helped The Daily Mile reach 8,000 schools and two million children and young people in England, while connecting school-based activity with wider opportunities such as the TCS Mini London Marathon and junior parkrun.
Despite growing awareness of the importance of physical activity, less than half of all children in England currently meet the Chief Medical Officers’ guideline of 60 minutes of daily activity, according to Sport England’s Active Lives Children and Young People Survey (2025). This underlines the urgent need for simple, scalable solutions like The Daily Mile.
Gordon Banks, CEO of The Daily Mile Foundation, said:
“We are delighted to be taking this next step with the London Marathon Foundation, a partner equally committed to creating simple, inclusive opportunities for children to be active. We have already demonstrated the impact we can achieve together, and becoming part of the Foundation will enable us to extend The Daily Mile’s reach to even more children while remaining true to the values that have made it so successful: being free, inclusive and easy for schools to deliver.”
Elaine Wyllie MBE, Founder of The Daily Mile, said:
“The Daily Mile has always been about making it easy for every child to be active, regardless of ability or circumstances. I’m proud of the impact it has had in schools across the UK and beyond. The London Marathon Foundation shares our vision and commitment, and this next phase will help ensure even more children benefit from the power of movement.”
The move reflects the importance of collaboration within the charity sector, particularly in tackling complex challenges such as physical inactivity. By joining forces, we aim to maximise our collective impact and accelerate progress towards a shared ambition of improving children’s health and wellbeing.
The Daily Mile Foundation will continue to operate as a separate charity, with its core principles – free, inclusive and easy to implement – unchanged, ensuring schools can participate without the need for equipment or training.
From 1 August 2026, The Daily Mile Foundation will become a subsidiary of the London Marathon Foundation, with a shared commitment to continuity for schools and partners, and a clear focus on future growth and development.
