CELEBRATE U3A NW 100!
Jacqui Owen, Vice Chair, writes:
Sitting on the NW Region Committee comes with a variety of activities in which you can involve yourself. I joined the team three years ago and have enjoyed participating in bi-monthly planning meetings. These are held to ensure that the U3As in the North West Region U3A have a varied number of workshops set up for them each year, one of which is held on the day of the AGM. For a lot of 2018 I was unable to have this involvement due to a health issue but just before this I attended a number of sessions where U3A National and our Trustee Gill Russell began training Volunteers to support Gill in her work with the 99 NW associations. One of the training sessions, in two parts, was on the Start Up of a new U3A. Early in 2019 I was lucky enough to have the chance to be a part of the Start Up of NUMBER 100 U3A IN NW ENGLAND, led confidently by our just retired Chair Neil Stevenson
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Neil describes below our third meeting with a group who were keen to set up a new U3A for the villages surrounding Chorley. This is part of the process recommended by National Office and is named the pre Launch Meeting.
"Jacqui and I attended the "East Chorley U3A" launch team meeting today.
Good progress was made. They are a determined and lively group.
They agreed the following:
● Launch meeting will be on Thursday 6th June from 10:30am at Withnell Fold Sports & Social Club.
● Inaugural meeting planned for Wednesday 4th September from 10:30am at Withnell Fold Sports & Social Club.
● Next Launch planning Tuesday 21st May at 11:00am at Withnell Fold Sports & Social Club.
● Working name for launch material and publicity purposes to be "West Pennine Villages". This is the geographical area and will be followed by a name decision at the full Launch Meeting."
The Launch Meeting was the next meeting held and was after a further prep meeting. The group had been very active in publicising the Launch with leaflets in libraries, doctor’s surgeries as well as the media and leafleting. June 06 was Launch day and Neil and myself were there early. Suddenly people started to arrive and when we counted later there were 67 attendees. There is a set proposed agenda and the meeting is led by NW Region Volunteers who introduce and inform the audience about U3A ethos and activities.
Part of the business is to ask everyone to complete a Questionnaire which is supplied by National Office. This was done and analysed later. There was no doubt a U3A was very much welcomed, with over 90 suggested group activities! It has to be said that about 30 of those were named only by individuals, with over 20 people volunteering to possibly take a lead on many. There was already a very keen active group taking the lead to become a Steering Committee but there was also a good response to the request for more people to fill extra roles. Trying to address the group requests all at once will be an impossible task so the Committee will draw up a roll out plan.
Since then Neil and I have held training for the Steering Group where all but one of committee roles have been appointed and the latest new Constitution has been adopted. This is needed so a bank account can be opened and these can take some time where multi signatories are required.
So, WEST PENNINE VILLAGES U3A is now officially signed up though Neil and myself will stay in a guidance role until their AGM next year.
The Inaugural Meeting is planned for September 04 2019 and although the original people who were in contact with Gill Russell did so in February it is a process which has to be taken steadily, following National Office guidance, rather than a rushed non successful route. Calendar timing has lead to keeping August clear for its traditional holiday role. The Steering Group’s great enthusiasm has carried them through this process and the North West Region wishes them all the very best with Inaugural (Sept 04) and going forward. So, WEST PENNINE VILLAGES has become NW Region U3A number 100, with Ann Furlong as Chair!
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INFORMATION RE NEW U3As. National Office has devised a process, in consultation with a number of U3As as follows:
PRE LAUNCH this acts as information findings on the ethos and administration of the U3A
LAUNCH MEETING often following 2 or 3 pre meetings
FORMAL STEERING GROUP MEETING usually minimum of 2
INAUGURAL MEETING U3A starts running after this
REVIEW MEETING(S) as and when
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING