u3a

Ealing

ABOUT US

INFORMATION on the u3a

(*) U3A stands for 'University of the Third Age' but this is generally abbreviated and no qualifications are needed to join. The 'Third Age' is a time to learn for the pure pleasure and joy of learning. We are not guided by traditional universities and 'second agers' but our learning is led by our members themselves, and we learn for the sheer enjoyment of discovery, with others. The u3a is different from most other adult learning organisations - rather than paying people to teach us, we encourage members to share their talents and knowledge with other members.

The motives for joining are a desire to improve and share your knowledge and experience, to keep your mind active, to enjoy leisure pursuits and to socialize with like-minded people. No qualifications are needed and none are given. You share learning and leisure experiences across a wide range of activities through a network of self-managed interest groups.

Ealing u3a Members have access to our talks which are held at Ealing Green Church (W5 5QT - opposite Ealing Film Studios). These talks cover a wide range of topics - see the MEETINGS page for more details.

Our Members can also participate in the various interest groups (see the GROUPS page), in leisure activities such as rambles, gardening, crafts, table tennis and visits to interesting places. Additionally, we run the occasional outings and short courses on topics such as film studies; see the EVENTS page for info.

As an Ealing u3a member, you also become part of the National u3a movement that has about 600,000 members in the UK. The Third Age Trust is the national organisation for the u3a and they also arrange an annual Conference and hold various meetings and study days in London and elsewhere. They also hold National Summer Schools which our members can attend. To see further information on the THIRD AGE TRUST, please click on the link. The Third Age Trust also runs both one-off talks/lectures and longer courses which are open to any u3a member - the Third Age Trust Events page has details of these Events.

As a member of Ealing u3a you also can take part in activities organised by the London Region of u3a's (accessible through this link - LONDON REGION u3a). These activities include Shared Learning (Research) Projects in partnership with different Institutes, Universities and other establishments, as well as Study Days, special meetings and a non-residential Summer School. The London Region of u3a's also run various Events - Talks and Outings, usually one-off - which are open to any of our members to take part in; see the LRU3A EVENTS page for more details on their Events.

EALING u3a COMMITTEE for 2024-25

The Committee positions for this year are as follows:

  • Chair - Jill Stern +
  • Vice-Chair - Derek Atkinson +
  • Secretary - Sylvia Stirling (temporarily co-opted)
  • Treasurer - Liz Major +
  • Groups Co-ordinator - Sue Peach +
  • Membership admin - Lyn Duffus (special expertise)
  • Webmaster & Beacon Admin - Phil Broomsgrove +
  • Deputy Webmaster & Beacon Admin - Jurek Narozanski (special expertise)
  • Committee Member - Jenny Sturt + (responsibility for Communications/Planning and other matters)
  • Committee Member - Jim McWilliams + (responsibility for Summer Picnic and other matters)
  • Tea Parties organisation - Julia Buckland (co-opted)
  • New Members liaison - Margaret Procter (special expertise)
  • Talks Arrangement - Patricia Plummer (special expertise)

Where indicated (+) these are full members of the Committee as elected at the 2024 AGM.

Ealing U3A Policy documents

There are a number of Policy Documents relating to the way that Ealing U3A is run; these are:

Help with running Ealing U3A

Thank you to all those members who already contribute to the running of the many different activities and groups within Ealing U3A. We hope that every member will find a role, whether small to larger, to help continue and increase our activities.

To find out more and how you might assist, please look at the Help run your U3A document available on this page, along with links to contact the relevant person. This document will be updated regularly as new tasks arise and volunteers have stepped forward to help.

Help is needed with various roles, including

- someone with admin/secretarial experience to take on the Secretary role for the Committee

- members who would be interested in joining the Committee

- any members with marketing/publicity/advertising knowledge

- help with organising/running our Thursday morning talks, particularly as part of the Chairs team

- assisting with running Groups

[Request updated Sept 2024]

EALING and District U3A ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING for 2024

The Annual General Meeting of the Ealing and District u3a was held on Thursday, 21 March 2024 at Ealing Green Church and on Zoom with the following matters resolved.

1. The Minutes of 2023 Annual General Meeting held on 23 March 2023 were approved - click on the link to view the Minutes

2. Derek Atkinson, Co-Vice Chair gave the Annual Report 2023-24 (for the period April 2023 - March 2024) which was approved - click on the link to view the report

3. Liz Major, Treasurer presented the Treasurers Report 2023 and Annual Accounts for the year ending 31 December 2023 which were approved - click on the link to view the report. The Annual Accounts were available to members for the meeting; if you would like to see a copy of these, please email the Treasurer . There are also Pie charts showing the Income for 2023 and Expenditure for 2023 - click on the links to view these.

4. Colin Easton was re-appointed as Accounts Examiner for 2024

5. The Ealing u3a Committee for 2024-25 was elected and the roles of the new Committee are shown above.

6. There was no Any Other Business, as none had been notified to the Secretary beforehand.

EALING u3a NEWSLETTER

Introduced during the Covid pandemic, our u3a Ealing News bulletin is very popular and will continue as a monthly publication for the time being.

We are always looking for more members to get involved in the production of this bulletin, or to write an article for it. Anyone with appropriate experience (e.g. journalism, publicity, magazine production) would be particularly welcome but enthusiasm and a willingness to help are just as important. If you are interested, contact the Vice-Chair , Derek Atkinson as soon as possible.

CARING FOR OUR MEMBERS

The Committee is very aware that many of our members live alone and, like us all, are ‘getting on in years’. We were very glad that, for many years, John Deighton took on the role of Welfare Officer for our u3a and he kept in touch with members who were sick or house-bound, either by telephone or by sending a card.

Unfortunately, following John's death in 2021, this position has been vacant. If you feel you would be prepared to take on this role, please get in touch with our Vice-Chair , Derek Atkinson to discuss this.

Of course, we will not know who is sick or house-bound unless someone informs us; if you know of any member who is in the situation, please contact Derek at the moment and he will see what can be done to help.

Links