Sarah Ackland – architect, feminist and runner – talks about the need for much more progress when it comes to liberation for all women who want to run safely and without fear on the streets of London

Words: Rachel Ifans

Finding a space to run when she moved to London wasn’t easy for Sarah

“WE NEED TO ASK OURSELVES WHAT PROGRESS LOOKS LIKE… ISSUES FOR BLACK AND BROWN WOMEN ARE OFTEN UNNOTICED, AND THERE ARE SILENCED VOICES ELSEWHERE, LIKE AGEING WOMEN WHO RUN, MOTHERS WHO RUN, MENOPAUSAL WOMEN WHO RUN”

Sarah Ackland is an architect who started running 12 years ago while at university and quickly became a passionate hobbyist. However, when Sarah moved to London, she struggled to find the right space for herself and her running.

“I found the city pretty limiting,” she says. “I didn’t know where to run, not even from the classic women’s safety angle, but I literally just didn’t know where to go. In the end, I joined Run Dem Crew, after hearing their take on

the politics of running, which I hadn’t ever considered before, and it really interested me.”

The run crew gave her a whole new lease of life and a different community, and it helped her to find a sense of belonging in London. “Back then, I also felt the need to wrap myself up with people who weren’t always wanting to go for a drink. I think that’s a really important thing about running that is sometimes overlooked; it creates a space where you can be social and have fun, but not in a pub.”

Sarah still runs a lot and trains for half marathons, and runs track weekly. She’s a big social runner, a pacer and she also likes to run races with her mum and sister. She says: “Saying that makes it sound like I came from a running family, but it’s not true. I honestly was the girl at school who was always on her period during PE, but we’ve all taken up running in the past 10 years, so it’s a big deal for us to run together.”

Sarah’s PhD looked at the intersection of running, women’s politics and city architecture