ABOUT WELLINGTON H2A

Wellington H2A (Heritage & Arts Alive) is a voluntary group that organises community events such as Sounds in The Square - the name we still go by on our official documents. But Sounds in The Square is now just one part of our activities, and as H2A we are working to promote the town more widely through access to arts and heritage.

The main aim of H2A is to encourage enjoyment of local heritage, music and other creative arts in Wellington and the surrounding villages. We want to increase people's awareness of the area and what makes it distinctive - the history and landscape, the musicians and artists, the community groups and their activities; all of which are there for everyone to enjoy, but which many people never experience.

To this end, we publicise local arts, cultural and community events through this website and through a leaflet produced in May. There are still many groups whose activities and events we don't know about - if your's is one of them, let us know. We also organise our own events including the Wrekin Barrel Race, the Midsummer Fayre and in The Square, which runs through July and August. This is a programme of live music which gives local people and visitors the chance to see a range of musicians, free of charge, in a series of outdoor performances.

We maintain the website ourselves at our own expense. Our free events are funded by one-off donations, primarily from local businesses (we ask for £30 per business, and most are very supportive), with further funding from Wellington Town Council and other organisations such as Wellington Civic Society. We are also grateful to Wellington Market Company and Wellington Chamber of Commerce for their continued practical support.

In 2008 we were able to extend our activities and reach more people thanks to a grant from the National Lottery Awards for All scheme, which supported our historically-inspired Midsummer Fayre in June. In 2009 the Fayre was part-sponsored by Wellington Market Company, and in 2010 a grant from the Borough Towns Initiative enabled us to buy some new costumes and equipment.

We are always looking for further sources of funding to help us maintain the work we currently do and develop more exciting projects in future. If you would like to make a donation, please email us at [email protected].