Networks in the Region

Derbyshire

For more information on the Derbyshire Network go to the Derbyshire Network Website.

Leicestershire and Rutland

For more information please email the coordinator Helen Davison.

Lincolnshire

For more information please email the secretary Christine Anderson or telephone 01208 269642

Northamptonshire

For more information please email the county contact Chris Holden or telephone 01933 418684

Nottinghamshire

For more information on the Nottinghamshire Network go to the Nottinghamshire Network Website.

Article for U3A News by retiring chair Jean Hogg (December 2011)

Having reached the end of my 2 years as Chair of the Nottinghamshire Network of U3As provides a good opportunity to summarise what has been achieved in less than 3 years.

The Network held its first meeting at the beginning of 2009. Alan Morris, who was then the Trustee for the East Midlands, was very keen to develop a new structure that would enable U3As in the region to work more closely together for the benefit of all. By the end of September the Network had a constitution, a bank account, officers, a website in development and a clear statement of purpose. Two representatives from each U3A were invited to attend meetings, which they did, and right from the start there was a consensus that the Network meeting should be a place where decisions were made and action agreed; to do things, not just talk!

Our main aims were to provide support for U3As and their officers and group leaders and to create new U3As. In many ways the County was under represented in the number of U3As and it was felt that many communities would welcome the chance to form one.

The Network has held a series of workshops over the last 2 years, which have all been very well attended. A group of committee members from several established U3As agreed to become mentors, particularly for officers in new U3As but also for anyone who felt in need of some support. A workshop produced a code of practice for mentors and a list of those happy to take on this role. Since then there have been meetings for officers, website masters, computer group leaders and over a 100 interest group leaders have met to exchange information, experience and advice. In response to several requests guidance has been written and made available to help those U3As applying for grants from ‘Awards for All’. Feedback from the participants has shown that these workshops have been greatly appreciated.

In addition six new U3As have been established in Nottinghamshire and a seventh is planned. By coordinating the launches and agreeing on the best locations these have been extremely successful with 250 people attending the most recent launch. There are plans for at least six more.

All this has been organised in three years and in 11 meetings of the Network, each lasting 2 hours, together with a few separate planning meetings. This has all required a high level of enthusiasm, hard work and focus, and been achieved through cooperation and agreement!

Plans for the future are for more of the same, but also to find ways of best supporting those U3As that are not proving as successful as they might wish to be or once were. This level of success shows that we were right at the outset to emphasise the need to be active and not just a talking shop or extra layer of bureaucracy.

Jean Hogg