Meet the amazing founder of the Walton Lea Partnership

Owner of an MBE, Dorothy Pritchard has left her stamp firmly on Warrington since she moved to the town in 1970 at the age of 33.

The Warrington Guardian sat down to speak to Dorothy in the beautiful grounds of the walled garden to hear how it all started.

Originally from Manchester, Dorothy moved to Woolston with her husband and had two children. Her first born, Jonathon has down syndrome.

Dorothy said that after Jonathon had gone to college in Northumberland, when he moved back home, there were few avenues for him to follow, which seemed to be an issue for many young adults with SEND at the time.

Pictured: Dorothy with one the 'magnificent seven' original members Gary (Image: Supplied)

“There was very little for him to do after college and there was nothing very much in occupations apart from day centres,” she explained.

“The council wanted someone to run and take over this area,” she said, gesturing to the grounds of the partnership.

Dorothy and co-founder Patsy Hodson paid a visit to the council-owned land which had been empty for an entire decade.

“It was a huge job, a big area covered with weeds. There were weeds growing through greenhouse roofs.”

Initially just planning to clear the overgrown jungle, Dororthy and Patsy organised for a group of prisoners from Thorn Cross prison to help them and other volunteers with the huge task.

The grounds are unrecognisable to how they were when Dorothy first visited them in 1998. (Image: Newsquest)

Some young adults with disabilities and additional needs including Dororthy’s son Jonathon joined the project which lasted six months.

“The magnificent seven we called them,” she said. “Three of the original members who first came to help still attend the charity.”

To generate profit, Dorothy and all the other volunteers would take huge trays of plants to Disability Awareness Day each year in Walton Gardens and sell them at a stall.

Dorothy and Patsy applied for Lottery funding to repair the old buildings, glass houses and the damaged polytunnels.

“We managed to repair all three glass houses, there was not a single pane of glass in any of them.”

They also received funding from major companies including Great Sankey-based United Utilities and the backing of the town’s councillors at the time to help refurbish the land.

In Dorothy's recent visit she helped the charity members bury a time capsule to mark 25 years since it began (Image: Supplied)

But one of the main supporters of Walton Lea from the get-go was transport service Dial-a-Ride whose staff offered administrative support, while also providing free transportation for the members to and from the gardens.

“We had a great relationship with the company, and they would come every day to take the members,” she added.

Dororthy even applied and was granted funding from the European Social Fund, which she said paid for a manager to begin running the site, this is how the partnership began to grow.

“Most of the members all went to school together and all the parents of the members were involved too,” she said.

“We used to do all our own fundraising and we had some stables at Walton Hall that we used to sell plants that we grew on site.”

Pictured: Dorothy and an original member of the charity Gary who joined when it first began and still attends each day 25 years on (Image: Newsquest)

After setting up the partnership, Dorothy’s volunteering continued as she became heavily involved in the disability charity, Warrington Mencap, running the social clubs, where her work earned her the MBE that she was awarded back in 2002.

Speaking of the honour, she said: “It was delivered by Charles. He started off by saying, ‘apologies from mummy that she cannot be here today’- It was a lovely day.”

In partnership with Mencap, the mum-of-two managed to set up a supported housing scheme for people with SEND, including her son.

The first of a string of accomodations started at a house in Latchford.

Explaining her and Patsy’s aspirations for the Walton Lea Partnership, Dorothy said: “We wanted it to be place for people with disabilities and additional needs, somewhere they could go which had some purpose.

“I am so happy that it is still that place today.”

Dorothy and current Walton Lea site manager Karen met this year at the Disability Awareness Day event (Image: Newsquest)

Founder, Dororthy and the current site manager Karen Moore met recently at the Disability Awareness Day event last month.

Karen said: “I have found it really emotional to meet Dorothy. I think the history of Walton Lea is so important and all the original members still talk about Dororthy.

“I hope she keeps visiting and helps us to keep it going for another 25 years.”

The charity is in the process of trying to secure funding to update the buildings, build a new café and update the facilities on the site – something that could equate to more than £1 million in funding to achieve.

Dororthy has agreed to get on board with helping the partnership in its next phase.