EDUCATIONAL - CREATIVE - LEISURE ACTIVITIES

WHAT IS THE THIRD AGE?

WHAT IS THE U3A?

NO Entrance qualifications
NO Formal syllabuses

NO Exams
NO Formal classes

The Third Age refers to the period after the First Age of childhood dependence and the Second Age of full time employment and parental responsibility.

A Non-Political, Non-Religious International Organisation for older people who are no longer in full-time paid employment, providing opportunities for their members to share learning experiences in a wide range of interest groups and to pursue learning not for qualifications, but for fun.

U3A takes its name from L'Université du Troisième Age launched in France in 1972. More recently, the French have adopted the titles of Université de Tous Ages or Université du Temps Libre or Union Française des Universités de Tous Ages or UFUTA. It is more a university in the original sense of the word; a co-operative of people interested in a particular activity or subject. U3As have members not students.

General meetings are held on the last Tuesday of the month at 2pm at the Cinema and the National U3A Newsletter is distributed there 4 times a year. Please bring your U3A Membership Card with you to all group and Monthly Meetings so that your membership can be checked - our U3A insurance can be invalidated if non-Members are included in these Meetings!

Membership application forms, as well as a full groups directory and recent newsletters, can be downloaded in the "Downloads" section of the website. The National U3A Website can be accessed by clicking HERE

U3A members can obtain a password for the Member's area which holds detailed information about U3A and the support that it provides for local U3A Groups. In addition, the National Website provides access to a wide variety of teaching material for U3A Group Leaders; additional access arrangements are needed for this. The Cotswold Link U3A site can be accessed by clicking COTSWOLDLINK.

This Malvern U3A website was designed and implemented by Alison Pickford and Dave Wardle




HISTORY

I remember well the inaugural meeting held in the main hall at Malvern Hills College on 8th August 1995 when it was hoped that about forty people might turn up to hear what the U3A was all about. Peter Asquith, who chaired the meeting, and other brave souls who formed the steering committee were overwhelmed when more than 150 enthusiastic members of the public turned up. The main hall was filled to overflowing, along the landing and down the stairs. Since those early days we havent looked back. By the September of 1995 several groups had started up and we had about 180 members, today we have around 81 interest groups and over a 1000 members! Members joining in the autumn get their membership for the year 2010 and are credited with the remainder of 2009 for free!

Committees since the beginning


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