About Us
East Antrim u3a has its own premises at 12 Nelson Street, Carrickfergus, BT38 8AR, which consist of a substantial hall and another smaller hall for meetings, office, kitchen and toilet facilities. There is wheelchair access as required. Group meetings are held there unless otherwise stated on the monthly activity programme. Our telephone number is 028 9336 1110, so if you are interested in joining or have any query you can give us a ring. Generally there will be someone present in the office to answer your call. Alternately you will be welcome as a visitor at our next general meeting (see above), and you can join then if you wish. There is a map HERE
Our monthly general meetings are held at Joymount Church Hall, beside Carrickfergus Library, on the 3rd Monday monthly, 2.00-4.00pm.
Pictured below is Margaret Franklin our founding member who kindly donated our premises at 12 Nelson Street to East Antrim U3A in 2017.
Our Ethos
u3a is short for University of the Third Age, in which the term University is used in the broadest sense meaning the University of Life. The u3a approach to learning is for fun, not qualifications. There is no formal approach to learning. We have been told it gives people a reason to get up and out on a daily basis and those who were lonely, no longer are because they have found friendship and interest in our groups.
Who we are
- The University of the Third Age started in 1981. It is a UK wide movement of locally run organisations. There are 100,000 u3as with over 400,000 members. Our ethos is LEARN, LAUGH, LIVE
- We are open to all who are no longer in full-time employment & are run as a charity on a purely voluntary basis.
- East Antrim is one of only three u3as in Northern Ireland with their own premises.
- The current Chair is Helen Eagleson chair@eau3a.org.uk
What we do
- We are operationally independent of our umbrella organisation, the Third Age Trust but our policies & procedures are bound by its ethos & governance guidelines. The Chair is Allan Walmesley & the CEO is Iain Cassidy, both based in England
- Self help is a key Trust principle – there is no distinction between interest group convenor/leader & members, knowledge & skills are shared equally, & everyone’s contribution is valued.
- eau3a has over 30 local learning groups, plus access to learning online & Interest
How we work:
Local u3a’s use the knowledge, experience and skills of their own members to organise and provide interest groups in accordance with the wishes of the membership. A general committee exercises a loose overall control, though activity groups are semi-autonomous under their own direction with a convenor leading the way. It is our aim to offer regular socially based activities run largely in daylight hours which works well to fill our days.
Office Bearer’s roles & Responsibilities
- Chair
- Identifies strategic aim & objectives for the year
- Chairs all committee meetings & general monthly meetings
- Agrees agendas with secretary
- Ensures eau3a governance complies with UKu3a Trust policy & procedure
- Currently also fulfils Safeguarding Office role inline with current legislation
- Secretary
- Agrees agendas with Chair, minutes all relevant meetings & distributes these prior to each meeting
- Deals with correspondence
- Oversees administration, especially re membership
- As premises trustee, brings all issues re premises to committee
- Vice Chair
- Deputises for Chair where necessary
- Treasurer
- Ensures transparent & efficient financial operations in line with the Trust & NI Charity requirements
- Supervises review of quarterly accounts
- Groups Coordinator
- Supports all existing Learning Groups
- First contact for all new group proposals
- Reports to committee re any Learning Group issue
Our Constitution:
While each local u3a group is completely autonomous, our constitution falls in line with the Third Age Trust and may be viewed here.
Principles of the u3a Movement
This document describes the 3 main principles behind the u3a Movement. Principles of the U3A Movement
Member Code of Conduct
This document describes the code of conduct for u3a members. Member Code of Conduct
Our Data Protection Policy
The policy details how personal information will be gathered, stored and managed in line with data protection principles and the General Data Protection Regulation. East Antrim U3A Data Protection Policy
Our Privacy Policy
In collecting information about you, we are acting as a data controller and, by law, we are required to provide you with information about us, about why and how we use your data, and about the rights you have over your information. East Antrim U3A Privacy Policy