BUSINESS and staff across the county have been urged to sign up for the OX5 Run to support the community and raise money for Oxford Children's Hospital.

The event is less than four weeks away and a number of firms have already pledged to take part and called on others to do their bit for a 'special local cause'.

Those who take on the five mile course at Blenheim Palace will be raising money for a new 62-bedroom facility for parents to stay close to their sick children.

Recruitment firm Allen Associates, which enter a team every year, have sponsored the run for nine years,

Managing director Kate Allen said: "This event is without question one of the highlights of our calendar.

"It’s a wonderful way to get everyone together for a memorable day out joined by family and friends, while raising money for Oxford Children’s Hospital.

She added: "We would love to see even more businesses getting involved - the staff benefits are clear and we all know that happy, motivated people are good for business.

"In my view, it’s hard to think of a better way to engage with and support the local community."

Witney-based Siemens Magnet Technology - which designs and manufactures magnets for MRI scanners - will also be entering a team, as it has done for the past five years.

Senior engineer at the firm and the fastest woman in the OX5 last year, Hannah Hale, said: "Siemens has entered a team for the last five years and it’s been fantastic to be part of it.

"The key thing is that when you are part of a team you have a shared experience and an opportunity to bring colleagues together from across the business for a day out, away from work."

She added: "The OX5 RUN also ties in with Siemens’ staff wellbeing programme and of course we all feel good about helping to support Oxford Children’s Hospital which provides such a wonderful service to so many people in our community."

The 15th annual Oxford Mail OX5 Run will take place on Sunday March 26, with £150,000 needed to hit £1m for the Children's Hospital since the run was launched in 2003.

It also coincides with the hospital's 10th Anniversary Appeal to raise £2m for a new Ronald McDonald House building, outdoor play area and vital equipment - money from the OX5 will feed into this fund.

Sarah Vaccari, from the hospital's charitable funds team, said: "This year's run is central to our fundraising so we really hope businesses will come out in support of this special local cause and help us make life in hospital that little bit easier for our young patients."

To sign up to the run go to hospitalcharity.co.uk/ox5run.