Here you will find all the latest u3a news and Notices for your attention
The Local History group
invite all members to a talk
at St John's Church
Please come along to the Church on Wednesday 21st October at 3pm for a tour and talk by James Bradnock who gave us a very interesting morning at Wellington School chapel in August. No need to book but please be prompt, bring £2 each and a drink if you need one.
2 New groups have been proposed and are seeking members to sign up
Quiz Group - This group will seek to make up teams which will visit locally-run quiz events. These are generally held in the evening so this would be ideal for those members who would like to have some evening social time.
AI Group - A course for those members who want to dispel their fears and find out more about AI, how it works, what it can do for you, how you can use it to your advantage, etc.
If you would like more information about either of these groups please send an email to the Group Co-ordinator or Victoriana (Mike) who will run these groups
October Monthly Meeting review
What a super talk we had on Monday! Francis brought to life the story of glass which (unknown to most) started millions of years ago in the fusing of minerals to form this multi-use material which is such a big part of our daily lives from cooking pots to jewellery. He brought with him all sorts of intriguing glass objects - from a tiny Roman perfume phial to a simply beautiful triple decanter, trimmed with silver which set off the Bristol Blue glass bottles a treat!. He explained their history, how they were made and to top it all he handed them to our enraptured members in the audience to handle and pass around - what faith he had in us!
See some more pics on the Previous Events page here
New Group now open to members click to see more Boules Group
DATES FOR YOUR DIARY
Please sign up to help in the 40th Anniversary celebrations click for email here -40th Anniversary Sub-committee
OPEN DAY - September 14th 2026
Wow! A really buzzing and successful Open Day yesterday! Lots of lovely Wellington people came along to see what u3a can offer them and most of them signed up there and then to join our friendly community. Our membership secretary was almost over whelmed with members renewing their subscription as well as the new members registering. He didn't complain of course as we want to welcome as many new members as we can because more members mean more new groups - so watch this space! The group convenors were on hand to showcase their groups and sign up new recruits so a very busy time coming up. There were information boards for visitors to explore the full range of things on offer in our local u3a but also nationally and online. There was also a Tombola to raise funds for our 40th Anniversary party next summer which was very popular and I believe raised over £80. So a Big Thank you to all involved with making it such a great event and we look forward to lots of new events and celebrations in 2027!
(ps I was so busy talking to folk that I didn't get around to taking photos until the initial surge calmed down but it was still quite busy by then - some photos below)
Have you spotted the ad for our Open Day in the free Local Reach magazine yet? This is delivered to anyone in the TA21 area monthly and we have a free advertising slot which will be great to raise awareness of our u3a and to showcase what is happening especially in our upcoming 40th Anniversary year 2027! Keep an eye out for it and share with friends and acquaintances.
Can you help our community to run smoothly even though you may not have much spare time - or maybe you have lots of spare time and would like to find out how you can give something back to your u3a? Please take a look here to find out how in this new group. All abilities welcome.
Would you like to help us to keep your u3a run smoothly?
There is now a set of documents giving an overview of the roles within the committee. These are accessible on the "Documents and Links" page. If you would like a more in depth view of a role, please ask any of our committee members or you can log in to the members area of the main website and select "Support for u3as" then "Advice and Guidance" then scroll down to "Role Descriptions", where you will find full details. Please note that, although comprehensive, some of the content will not be applicable to Wellington and District u3a as all u3as have their own set of requirements and diversities.
Also check out the committee page.
New YouTube video advertising u3a - show friends what we do! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaUCIJhKU1w
Quick Check to see which day and week groups are meeting
See the Newly adopted Constitution of Wellington and District u3a 2026
We now have a QR code to enable direct access to our website which anyone can use. Download the image to your phone and you can allow anyone enquiring about us to instantly visit our site without the need to type in a web address - simple!
Please promote our Public Facebook page
Your new Public Facebook page is now live! Pop over and take a peek. You can use this as a tool to promote your u3a to friends and acquaintances or just somebody you bump into who is looking to do more with their time. There is a link to this website and more will soon be posted about what we do. Feel free to send the website manager anything you would like to be posted about u3a to help boost our membership numbers and give us more scope for new groups. Wellington and District u3a | Facebook
The croquet group are still meeting every Tuesday afternoon all year round and now back to 2pm start at Wellington Croquet Club - please go to the group page for more information. A venue map is here
NEW GROUP LISTS - There is now a dedicated table for group registration lists at the monthly meetings for you to register your interest with whichever groups you would like to join. These will sometimes be for proposed new groups or for groups looking to grow their numbers so please consider whether any of them spark your interest. If you would like to see a particular group started please let us know by using the Suggestion Box or sending an email to the Group Co-ordinator
We are very pleased to announce that this advertisement is now live at the Wellington Medical Centre on the TV screens in the waiting area and also in the Wellington council office reception area which will spread the word about what u3a can offer and hopefully increase our membership. Please let us know what you think of the ad and if you happen to see it. We hope to roll this out to other appropriate venues in the future.
SUGGESTIONS PLEASE - There is now a suggestion box which will be available at each monthly meeting near the sign-in table with paper and pens. Please use it to communicate with the committee (anonymously if you like) to give us your ideas, comments and feedback on anything relating to your u3a. The committee need to know your needs so we can do our best to fulfil them.
You may have already noticed that we also have a new logo exclusive to our own u3a. This can now be used on any stationary or publicity material. If you need to download a digital copy please contact the Website Manager
New Look Website!
Our new SiteWorks website has been up and running for over a year and we hope you find it more comprehensive and more user friendly than the old one. More importantly, it is more secure and able to be continually updated as our needs and the technology change. WordPress forms the basis for 40% of the World's websites and, as such, undergoes continual improvement by thousands of developers. All 700 u3as who used Site Builder have now moved to SiteWorks. A national u3a team of largely amateur members and very clever experts have been busy for over a year to allow all of us to migrate our existing websites to this system.
Please give us feedback on what you think of it and let us know any concerns or issues arising from using it by email to the Website Manager
Please note that most of the images on this website are copyrighted and must not be used without the permission of Wellington & District u3a. Please see the 'Website Terms of Use' at the bottom of this page - Thank you.
!SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENT FROM THE u3a OFFICE!
The u3a is now publishing a nationwide monthly newsletter. It will also include extra benefits for u3a supporters, and a new range of services to those who sign-up to receive the u3a Friends newsletter.
U3A FRIENDS EXTRA is a benefits website developed exclusively for members of the u3a Friends newsletter community. The website provides access to a wide range of offers, discounts and additional services.
Friends Extra is completely free to access. Anyone signed up to the u3a Friends newsletter can now also make savings on well-known brands, shopping, travel, days out and more.
Offers and services on Friends Extra include:
- Health and wellbeing
- Shopping savings on major brands and retail discounts
- Travel and holidays
- Leisure offers, like family days out, trips to the cinema and theatre
- Insurance offers on car, travel and medical insurance
- Access to financial advice and a legal helpline.
To become a ‘Friend’, simply sign up to receive the Friends Newsletter on the u3a website.
Each issue of the Friends Newsletter will include a link to the Friends Extra benefits website and highlight one of the offers.
This is just one element of the u3a Friends newsletter, which brings together stories from local u3a groups, learning opportunities and news of upcoming events to highlight the fun and learning within the u3a community.