KIRKCALDY PARKS RUNNING FESTIVAL 2026 

5K RACE - 29th August

The 2026 Running Festival **New Event**. 

Alongside the Half Marathon that started us off in 2019, we’ve also had a terrific response to our trail events in the last few years and we're delighted to be doing it all over again in 2026 with All events happening over the 2 days of the festival weekend.

Our idea is to encourage people to explore and enjoy the parks around Kirkcaldy. In keeping with that concept, we are holding this year’s event at Dunnikier once again, where Race HQ and the start/finish will be within the grounds of Dunnikier Park, Kirkcaldy.

The route will consist of a 5k loop, starting in the grounds of the park before heading out through the gently undulating surrounding woodland areas and the tracks around the outside of the golf course, finally returning to finish in the park itself.

The route will be a mix of grass, tarmac, gravel, soft trail and field edge so consideration must be given to the appropriate footwear.

The race will be run under UK Athletics Rules and will be a Scottish Athletics permit event, minimum age on the day is 12.

We are a non-profit organisation and one of our key aims is to make the running festival as inclusive as possible.

This relates to a lot of aspects of course but financial inclusivity is one of them.

Our key sponsors wholeheartedly agree on this and their generous contributions help to cover as much of the costs as possible, keeping the entry fee as low as possible. 

START 

The race will start at 12 pm within Dunnikier Park, Kirkcaldy. 

We ask all runners, marshals and helpers to NOT park in the Council, Golf Club or Oswald House car parks, but to leave these free for other park users. Please follow the instructions from marshals on the day.

There will be ample parking on the day at the nearby NHS Overflow Car Park at Whytemans Brae, only a road crossing away from the park. More parking information will be shared soon. 

We encourage use of public transport with bus links nearby, but please leave plenty of time to arrive for the race start.

Please check with the park and/or Fife Council regarding access to facilities/toilets in or around the park on this day. 

ENTRIES 

Entry opens on Saturday 25th April at 7pm.

TRANSFERS 

Transfer of race entry to another person should be agreed by the runners and details changed using the original sign up. Transfers are available up to the closing date. Please follow our Facebook page for up to date news.

Runners arrange payment for person transfer between themselves; this is not a function of KPRF or Entry Central due to banking privacy laws. We hope you understand. 

Unfortunately, neither refunds nor deferrals are available. 

REGISTRATION 

Information on collection of race numbers will be updated on our webpage, via social media and by email in the lead up to the event. 

HEALTH AND SAFETY 

Safety of the runners and the public is paramount to us; therefore, runners must adhere to marshal instructions at all times.

There will be a time limit of 1 hour for the race (approx. 19 minutes per mile).

Runners who expect to take longer than this are still welcome to attend and will receive a medal upon completion; however, we cannot guarantee an official time after this point. 

Any questions regarding any of this should be directed to enquiries@kprf.run where we will respond asap.

Important Note:  

This year our charity partner, Maggie’s Fife, will be celebrating a milestone birthday! Opening in November 2006, they have been here delivering cancer support for people with cancer and their friends and family in our local community for 20 years. On average, it costs £2,400 per day to run this incredible service and we hope to help by raising funds and awareness to support the vital work that they do. You can use your entry to run for Maggie's; fundraising and helping them to be here for us all for the next 20 🧡

This festival year let's get 20 runners fundraising for Maggie's 20th birthday!! If this is something you'd like to be part of you can do so by setting up your Just Giving page.

Kirkcaldy Parks Running Festival is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SC051403)

Proud to support our official charity partner, Maggie's Fife