Leeds Parkrun attendees mark White Ribbon Day in Woodhouse Moor

The Woodhouse Moor Parkrun event saw 720 runners attend on Saturday morning, with many wearing white ribbons

Runners in Leeds were encouraged to wear a white ribbon in a stand against male violence towards women and girls.

The weekly Woodhouse Moor Parkrun saw 720 people attending on Saturday morning to mark White Ribbon Day.

Leeds' Lord Mayor, councillor Al Garthwaite, volunteered at the event as part of the charity day.

The event aimed to highlight "the need for women to be able to run and exercise without the fear of violence", Leeds City Council said.

"Many women feel unsafe running alone or in the dark and parkrun events provide a friendly and safe environment for women to run," the local authority added.

Eliza Taswell-Fryer, 24, a Masters student in Leeds, says she sticks to running in "busy" parts of the city.

"I go running four times a week, but during the winter I mainly go in a running group," she said.

"I probably wouldn't run more than five to 10 kilometres by myself in the dark just because that's the number of streets I can get round before it gets a bit suspect."

White Ribbon Day invites men to vow to never use, excuse or remain silent about men's violence against women and girls, said the council.

Several female runners told the BBC they decided to join running clubs during the winter to feel safer

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service staff also attended the Parkrun event to show their support for the campaign.

Lucy Jobson-Wood, 24, who works in Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, also joined a running a club "to feel safe running in the dark".

"I ran along the canal one day and it was getting dark, I thought it was terrifying and I didn't want to do it on my own any more," she shared.

"I'm grateful for the running club to stop that fear."