RCUCRC Statement 08-Sep-2026
At a meeting with the British Red Cross and RCUCRC on 23-Jul, the British Red Cross wholeheartedly thanked each and everyone and your efforts have been recognised at the highest level in their organisation. The British Red Cross value the RCUCRC and wants us to carry on with our excellent work as we near £20,000 of fundraising since the conflict began.
The RCUCRC thanks you too, our supporters, our followers on Strava and social media, those who run with us virtually or in person, fundraise or have donated; you are all doing an amazing job in raising awareness of the British Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal.
The RCUCRC was founded by Pierre Laubscher in 2023 and has grown to over 1,100 members on Strava and Facebook. We organise virtual and in-person runs twice a week and take part in fundraising at road and trail events in the UK. The RCUCRC was formed to raise awareness of the work of the British and Ukrainian Red Cross societies, and to increase fundraising potential through our JustGiving donation platform at https://justgiving.com/team/rcucrc. We buy anything we need with personal donations from the team, and 100% of cash donations received or placed into our Red Cross tins is paid into the British Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal. We also produce T-Shirts at cost, with a donation included in the selling price, so there is no profit.
We have been considering for some time how the RCUCRC will develop when peace comes to Ukraine. In 2025, we briefly outlined proposals to the British Red Cross Events Team on how the RCUCRC could be incorporated into a worldwide club known as the ‘Red Cross United Community Running Club’, under the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC). The British Red Cross recognised the potential of their own network of running clubs in all major cities, which could increase their fundraising potential. The timeline for consideration will be significant, and we look forward to any Red Cross initiative.
The British Red Cross also tabled that they had recognised an issue with the RCUCRC using the official 'Red Cross emblem'; that is, the two red lines that form a pattern of a cross. This issue affects all organisations worldwide, and this is because of the Geneva Convention of 1949 and international law, which permits only certain parties to use the ‘Red Cross emblem'. This is to ensure compliance with international law and neutrality.
The registered emblems include the Red Cross, Red Crescent and Red Crystal. The authorised organisations only include: -
- Medical services of the armed forces
- Civilian hospitals at times of conflict
- Religious personnel (armed forces and civilian)
- Members of National Red Cross Societies in their auxiliary role
Whilst the British Red Cross provided us with their official logo, ‘Supporting British Red Cross', with its 'Red Cross emblem’, the RCUCRC has agreed to a request from the British Red Cross to change its current practice. That includes renaming the club, and we have launched a new logo, designed by one of our Ukrainian members. We are retaining the RCUCRC acronym, and the British Red Cross has approved our new name and logo.
We are now the ‘Run Corp Ukrainian Crisis Running Club’, where 'Corp' is short for Corporation, so you pronounce the 'p', and we are also known as the 'Run Corporation'. With approval of the British Red Cross, we are using a new 'Supporting British Red Cross' logo without the 'Red Cross emblem’, but with the word 'Red' in a red font. The RCUCRC will also change its printed artwork, banners, T-shirts, and logos on our social media. There is no concern about the existing T-Shirts, nor other existing artwork, which will be phased out when reprinted in due course.
Nothing has changed about the RCUCRC values, our running activities, and the work we do in fundraising for the British Red Cross Ukraine Crisis Appeal, which helps the hard work of the Ukrainian Red Cross.
When peace is firmly established in Ukraine, fundraising will continue for some time for repatriation. At that stage, it is our intention to rename it the ‘Run Corp Ukrainian Community Running Club’. When fundraising is concluded, we intend to rename as the ‘Run Corp United City Running Club’ as we spread a global message in running for peace and wellbeing.