The u3a (formerly University of the Third Age) is a members for members organisation for people no longer in full time employment. There is no age limit but members tend to be in their more senior years usually 50 plus, however, there is no rule regarding the age of members. We are a registered charity and are run by an elected committee of members who serve for a three year term. The Third Age Trust is the umbrella organisation and they are responsible for arranging legal items such as our public liability insurance and various licences that we require to operate within the law. They also oversee the terms and conditions for our Beacon database system and our Siteworks websites that are all managed at local level by individual u3a's and their committees.
1972
University of the Third Age (u3a) started in France at the Faculty of Social Sciences in Toulouse. It was started by Prof. Pierre Vellas. The French model is more academically based. In 1990 it changed its name to Union Francaise des Universites des Tous Ages but retained the acronym u3a.
1982
The University of the Third Age concept arrived in the United Kingdom in 1981 but was not formally set up here until 1982 by Peter Laslett, Michael Young & Eric Midwinter. (There are equivalent organisations around the world in Spain, Australia, Canada, Italy, Turkey, Central & Easter European)
1988
Epsom & Ewell University of the Third Age started in September 1988 with a meeting at Epsom Playhouse organised by a group of enthusiasts assisted by Len Lamerton from Banstead u3a. Those who attended the meeting were invited to volunteer and before the end of the day they had an Executive Committee and ten group leaders. Read the full story via the link to the booklet produced for their 30th anniversary called Reflections.
2019
A lot has happened in relatively few years between the 30th anniversary and 2025, not least a global pandemic which has changed our lives as never before. We've put together some words that describe what has changed and how it has affected us and the members that have been involved in making a difference. Read more in our publication: The Covid Years and Beyond.