Whether you're a light jogger or willing to get splattered with mud, everyone is invited to take part in Carlisle's Race for Life.

Cancer Research UK's much-loved event is returning to the city this month, in partnership with Tesco, with the brand-new Pretty Muddy Kids obstacle course open for boys and girls under 13 to take part in.

Youngsters will face everything from scramble nets and space-hoppers to mud chutes and pools to crawl under, clamber over and charge through.

The new event will run alongside the traditional 5k, 10k and Pretty Muddy Race for Life events, which will take place at Bitts Park on July 12, and are open to people of all ages and abilities.

Lauren Robertson, Cancer Research UK's event manager for Carlisle, "can't wait" to introduce the new muddy course to the day, and promises plenty of "fun, thrills and spills" – and laundry for parents, of course.

"Whether they plan to wade their way through the mud or make a big splash, every muddy step they take will help to bring forward the day when all cancers are cured," she said.

"Our Race for Life events are open to everyone and we're sending a heart-felt message to anybody who's thought about signing up in the past but for one reason or another hasn't got round to it. This is your year – please seize the opportunity to register in January and become part of the Race for Life community.

"We're urging mums, dads, nans, grandpas, brothers, sisters, friends and workmates to show their support by joining the Race for Life. It's a perfect example of everyday people doing an extraordinary thing – uniting in a common cause to beat cancer."

She added: "Our events are fun, colourful, emotional and uplifting. Participants take part at their own pace – taking as much time as they like to complete the course. For some people, the Race for Life is literally a walk in the park. For others, it's a jog or a run.

"Although 'Race' features in the name, our events are not competitive. Instead, 'the Race for Life' is about our doctors, nurses and scientists working as hard and fast as possible to help more people survive."

Each year, 41,700 people in the North West are diagnosed with cancer, and as Cancer Research UK receives no government funding for its ground-breaking research, every mud-smudged face counts.

All donations fund research to help beat 200 types of cancer, including bowel, breast, prostate, lung, testicular, brain and children's cancers, and leukaemia.

Lauren said: "The Race for Life is a powerful, inspirational movement which unites participants in Carlisle with people across the North West and the whole of the UK.

"People get together and remember loved ones lost or celebrate the lives of those who have survived. At the same time, they are helping to make a difference to people with the disease, right now.

"Please go to the Race for Life website, choose an event, and sign up today."

Visit raceforlife.org to enter, and claim 30% off the entry fee with the code RFLJAN30.