Who we are
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@PRWoTTA
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The Walton-on-Thames Trading Alliance (WoTTA) was established in 2016 as a Community Interest Company and new business group for the town. Our aim was to bring the focus back on Walton and make it a better place to live and work. Everyone working at WoTTA is a volunteer (Meet the Team)
In the beginning we connected with local businesses, gathering members, and meeting at our Big Breakfasts events. We established a very active social media presence with Facebook and Twitter accounts and this comprehensive website.
We took over running the long-established Festival of Light which the town had missed the previous year. We then got involved with Heritage Day - historically run by the Walton Society - and went on to take over the organisation of that event. The British Legion got in touch as they were running short of members, so we took over organisation of Remembrance Sunday.
One of our first decisions as a volunteer-run business group was to try and implement a Business Improvement District. This was a long-term aim - we had to establish credibility as a new organisation first - but we believed it essential to ensure our events would be sustainable in terms of funding, and to also have the scope to grow those events as well as improve many other aspects of the town. In 2020 we were delighted when the town businesses voted positively for a Business Improvement District which means the town centre will be taken care of by the new Town Centre Manager.
Our focus has been on business, but also on community, forging very strong links with all local churches, schools and community groups. These continue to flourish. For example, in late 2020 we saw the completion of the Ashley Play Park, a new play area for the town centre, which WoTTA had instigated in a coalition with Elmbridge Borough Council, Walton Charity and the BID. We have a regularly updated Latest News page on the website to keep local residents informed of changes in the town. We were instrumental in setting up Meet Up Mondays, held at the Riverhouse Barn and hosted by ten different local charities. We also run Walton-in-Flower, working with volunteers to enhance the green vision of the town. We created the Walton History Trail and more recently the Post Box Trail, both favourites with locals and visitors alike. We have four A1 totems; two in town and two at Walton Railway Station. We offer these free of charge to local charities and community groups to promote their events. We also ran a very efficient service connecting people living in isolation with local volunteers during the recent Covid lockdowns.
At our Annual General Meeting in 2022, , a name change to Walton-on-Thames Town Alliance and a new Constitution were agreed. WoTTA will continue to focus on community but in terms of business we are now, due to the implementation of the BID, able to turn our attention to the outer-lying trading areas such as Terrace Road and Halfway. We hope to grow membership in these areas which would allow us to invest and invigorate in line with the town centre.
GET INVOLVED :-) We are always actively looking for new volunteers, with roles as diverse as running an event, to planting flowers, to wearing a hi-vis in a parade, to administrating the Meet Up Mondays group. Please get in touch if you'd like to get involved and let us know what interests you; Volunteering
In the beginning we connected with local businesses, gathering members, and meeting at our Big Breakfasts events. We established a very active social media presence with Facebook and Twitter accounts and this comprehensive website.
We took over running the long-established Festival of Light which the town had missed the previous year. We then got involved with Heritage Day - historically run by the Walton Society - and went on to take over the organisation of that event. The British Legion got in touch as they were running short of members, so we took over organisation of Remembrance Sunday.
One of our first decisions as a volunteer-run business group was to try and implement a Business Improvement District. This was a long-term aim - we had to establish credibility as a new organisation first - but we believed it essential to ensure our events would be sustainable in terms of funding, and to also have the scope to grow those events as well as improve many other aspects of the town. In 2020 we were delighted when the town businesses voted positively for a Business Improvement District which means the town centre will be taken care of by the new Town Centre Manager.
Our focus has been on business, but also on community, forging very strong links with all local churches, schools and community groups. These continue to flourish. For example, in late 2020 we saw the completion of the Ashley Play Park, a new play area for the town centre, which WoTTA had instigated in a coalition with Elmbridge Borough Council, Walton Charity and the BID. We have a regularly updated Latest News page on the website to keep local residents informed of changes in the town. We were instrumental in setting up Meet Up Mondays, held at the Riverhouse Barn and hosted by ten different local charities. We also run Walton-in-Flower, working with volunteers to enhance the green vision of the town. We created the Walton History Trail and more recently the Post Box Trail, both favourites with locals and visitors alike. We have four A1 totems; two in town and two at Walton Railway Station. We offer these free of charge to local charities and community groups to promote their events. We also ran a very efficient service connecting people living in isolation with local volunteers during the recent Covid lockdowns.
At our Annual General Meeting in 2022, , a name change to Walton-on-Thames Town Alliance and a new Constitution were agreed. WoTTA will continue to focus on community but in terms of business we are now, due to the implementation of the BID, able to turn our attention to the outer-lying trading areas such as Terrace Road and Halfway. We hope to grow membership in these areas which would allow us to invest and invigorate in line with the town centre.
GET INVOLVED :-) We are always actively looking for new volunteers, with roles as diverse as running an event, to planting flowers, to wearing a hi-vis in a parade, to administrating the Meet Up Mondays group. Please get in touch if you'd like to get involved and let us know what interests you; Volunteering