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Welcome to West Oxford U3A
The West Oxford branch of
the U3A, (the University of the Third Age), was created
in 1995. The U3A exists for a group of people to get
together to do things with everyone taking equal responsibility.
We meet on the 2nd and
4th Mondays except for July, August and December. Our year begins in September and ends in June, with the AGM being held
at the second meeting in May. Once the
membership fee is paid there is no further charge, although visitors make a
donation. Membership of West Oxford U3A does not cover membership of
Oxford U3A or Headington U3A.
The meetings take place at Dean Court Community Centre, Pinnocks Way,
Botley. The proceedings start at 2.15 pm and (fairly short)
notices are given before or after a talk as set out on your
programme. Tea and biscuits are always served after the talk. Please stay and use this time to
get to know new people and meet friends.
What’s happening? Recent & Upcoming
events. At our
meeting on 24th November, we received a fascinating talk from
Gillian Cane about the planning and training of a resistance army at Coleshill during
WWII. We were amazed to learn of the bravery displayed by a group of ‘ordinary
people’ who would have made the ultimate sacrifice if the country had been
invaded by the enemy, something which was thought likely at the time. Gillian, a
former Army Officer in the Royal Green Jackets, brought the story to life, by
recounting the experiences of some of the individuals who were there, including
a very courageous Post Mistress.
Gillian
with Janet, who arranged the talk
This
was our last meeting for the year, and we finished it off with a Marathon
Raffle Draw of prizes donated by generous members.
Helen,
pleased with her raffle prize We
will start our 2026 programme of meetings on 12th January with a
talk from Yvonne Crane whose subject is “Assistance Dogs”. Yvonne will be
accompanied by two guide dogs. Do join us for a heart-warming afternoon.
Seventeen
members of the Churches & Pubs Group visited the Church of St Nicholas in
Fyfield on 7th November. Our guide, Ian Bensted, told us that the first part of
the Church to be built was the nave, in around 1170. The Domesday Book recorded
a church in 1086, so it was assumed that there had been an earlier, Saxon
church at Fyfield, though no trace of it survives. Later, in ca 1170, the
chancel was built by Sir John Golafre.
Our
guide took us on a tour of the Church and pointed out several interesting
features, including the tomb of Lady Katherine Gordon, a Scottish Princess who
married Perkin Warbeck, one of the pretenders to the throne of England; and the
“memento mori” monument to Sir John Golafre’s grandson (also Sir John).
The Church visitors posing before the
Victorian stone porch on the south wall (quite different from the rest of the
building).
We
concluded a very interesting visit – the last for 2025 - with lunch at The
Doghouse in Frilford.
Contact Person: Lis Froggatt – l.froggatt66@outlook.com
The
Lunch Group held its final 2025 visit to The Bystander at Wootton. This
Pub was new to many of us and we were very impressed with the pleasant
atmosphere, the friendliness of the staff and the quality of the food – not to
mention the reasonable prices. 
A really nice lunch at The Bystander in
Wootton
Contact Person: Beverley Birmingham – beverleyu3a@gmail.com
The Gardening Group had a useful and enjoyable event in Mary
Gregory’s beautiful garden. She writes: “With summer giving way to autumn,
Group members are sorting out their borders for winter, and for next season.
Clearly the right moment for a plant swap. The weather was kind, giving a warm
and sunny afternoon for 14 members to enjoy tea, cake and much conversation.
And several dozen plants were dispersed to new homes. Thanks to all who came
and contributed”.
A lovely afternoon: plant swap...
.... and tea
Contact Person: Mary Gregory
– mary@nandmg.me.uk
Mary
Chait reports that the Walking Group has had some lovely autumn
walks, including one around Burgess
Nature Reserve, which is situated off Port Meadow on the Jericho side. Members
much enjoyed their post-walk lunch at The Trout.
The animals which can
just about be discerned at the back of the photo are the cows in Port Meadow.
Contact Person: Mary Chait – smchait@gmail.com
SIGs
A list of the Special
Interest Groups (SIGs) is on your programme and they are open to anyone who would like to
join. Just contact the person referred to as arranging the
meetings. If there is a group you would like to start then, if you
think the Committee can give you some help, please ask. For information about each SIG, please see the Groups section.
Newsletter The
membership fee
entitles you to the West Oxford U3A Newsletter which is sent out three
times per year, by email or (for those without an email connection) by
post. The
Newsletter is also published on this website under the 'News' section.
It is full of information about forthcoming events, both those
arranged
by this branch and also those organised by Thames Valley
Network. Please
be certain to look at the notice board at the back of the meeting room
for additional
details of outings and study days and also on www.u3atvnetwork.org.uk as
well as this website.
u3a National A membership
subscription is paid annually to the National U3A office. You
are entitled to attend the Summer Schools and other events. Details and costs
are on the National U3A website.
Queries Do raise any queries when
attending the meetings or contact the appropriate person in the 'Contact Us'
section. To join
West Oxford U3A or to renew your membership:
The
current annual subscription is £20 and subscriptions are due in September
each year.
We
recommend that you use our online membership facility
which can be
found in the Membership section.
However,
you may prefer to complete a paper membership application form which can be
obtained by email or post or will be available at meetings. If you do not
have a form please contact the membership secretary listed in the 'Contact
Us' section. Each
year new members are invited to a 'welcome lunch', which
gives them a chance to meet each other, the leaders of the Special
Interest Groups, and other volunteers.
Gift Aid on Membership Subscriptions Maximising our net income,
for the benefit of members, is a consideration in everything we do.
One way a member can help us
achieve this is by Gift Aiding their membership subscription. This enables
WOu3a to reclaim the tax portion of the payment (25p for every £1 donated) from
HMRC. To be eligible for Gift Aid, the member must:
· be a UK tax payer; and
· have paid an amount of tax
(income and/or capital gains) in the current tax year which is not less than
the Gift Aid claimed on this and any other such donations across all Charities. The
relevant declaration and consent box is included in the online
Application Form which can be found in the Membership Section.
To send
an email to West Oxford U3A - please select the appropriate contact from the
'Contact Us' section on this website.
More information about how the U3A started, its benefits and services,
and other useful links can be found in the 'Links' section on this website.
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