As the charity for London's eight Royal Parks, we're proud to announce the launch of our new Half Marathon on Sunday 12 October 2008, starting and finishing in Hyde Park. The route winds through Hyde Park, Kensington Gardens, The Green Park, St James's Park and along the River Thames amongst avenues of beautiful autumnal trees, taking in superb views of Buckingham Palace, the Houses of Parliament, Marble Arch, the London Eye and the Royal Albert Hall.

We'd love you to consider running on behalf of the Royal Parks Foundation. If you'd like to compete and raise funds for us in this way, please email Sally Barney.

We're working with our local community and hundreds of charities, large and small, to help make the Half Marathon a fundraising success. So if you'd like to run or find out more, visit www.royalparkshalf.com and we hope to see you there on what promises to be a very exciting day!

Visit our official on-line kit store supplied by Crew Room, for a selection of sustainable Royal Parks Foundation branded running kit.

The Royal Parks Foundation is celebrating the launch of its 2008 collection of Deckchair Dreams - a series of fabulous designer deckchairs. Our theme this year, "The Rare & Wonderful Things of the Royal Parks", has inspired 23 top artists and celebrities to pledge their support for the Parks and each design an original canvas. Our new collection is now available for you to sit on and enjoy in Hyde Park, Green Park, St James's Park and Regent's Park between June and October.

This year, we're delighted to welcome visionary artists, cartoonists, book illustrators, fashion designers, thespians, soldiers and taxidermists to our list of generous contributors. These include Tracey Emin, Marc Quinn, Keith Tyson, Matthew Williamson, Raymond Briggs and Joanna Lumley - plus many more.

Bloomberg is once again delighted to sponsor Deckchair Dreams, which includes a community programme with over 100 pupils from six schools neighbouring the Royal Parks, plus a group of soldiers from the Household Cavalry! A winning design has been chosen from each group and these chairs will also appear in the Parks alongside the celebrity collection this summer.

Visit www.deckchairdreams.org to view the full collection and purchase a limited-edition chair.

Diana Playground in Kensington Gardens

Another project we're focusing on is the restoration of the Diana, Princess of Wales, Memorial Playground in Kensington Gardens. Inspired by the stories of Peter Pan, it opened in 2000 and with its Pirate Galleon, Wigwam Camp, Treehouse Encampment and many other features, it encourages interaction and play in a safe, imaginative environment.

After seven years of lively use and over 5 million visitors, the playground is in need of some care and attention to bring back its magical shine. The Foundation is raising funds to help restore this wonderful playground, so that thousands more children can do what they do best and let their imaginations run wild. If you’d like to contribute, please send a donation to us at: Royal Parks Foundation, Diana Memorial Playground Appeal, Old Police House, Hyde Park, London W2 2UH. Every penny counts!