MONTHLY GENERAL MEETING – AUGUST 2026
Wednesday, 19th August: Our next meeting!
We can’t wait to see you at our next general meeting! Mark your calendars and come join us for an afternoon of catch-ups and a fascinating presentation.
- Date & Time: Wednesday, 19th August 2026 at 2:00 pm
- Venue: St. Andrew’s Church Hall, Merton Road, Slough SL1 1QW
🚗 Parking & Fantastic News for Ringo Users!
To make your arrival as smooth as possible, please take note of our parking arrangements:
- On-Site Parking: The small car park at the rear of the church is strictly reserved for members with mobility difficulties or those transporting heavy equipment.
- Alternative Parking: Other attendees are kindly asked to use the nearby pay-and-display car parks, or Upton Court Park, which is a pleasant 10-minute walk away.
- 🎉 Brilliant News from the Council: Slough Borough Council has generously agreed that you do not need to register with Ringo between 1:30 pm and 4:30 pm when attending our regular monthly meetings (third Wednesday of the month) or the Monthly Local History meetings (third Monday of the month). If you struggle with the Ringo app, this is a wonderful relief!
🌱 Guest Speaker: Dan Keel “The Swan: Portrait of a Majestic Bird
WANTED-a Groups Co-ordinator
The position of Groups Co-ordinator is still vacant and it would be wonderful if someone felt that they could take this role on. (Currently our Vice Chair, Christine Isles, is fulfilling this role and she would love to hand it over to someone else.) It doesn’t involve a lot of work but it essentially means keeping in touch with the Convenors of all our u3a groups and also directing new (or current) members to the convenors of the groups they are interested in joining. If you would like to know more about this important role, please have a word with Christine or one of the committee members
MEMBERSHIP RENEWAL TIME IS APPROACHING
Yes, it’s that time already, we hope that you will renew your membership and continue to enjoy the benefits of being a member of Slough u3a
I would also like to take this opportunity to ask you to help me in my role as treasurer
Membership renewal is always a very busy time for me, the current system is very cumbersome and takes up a great deal of my time and I’m talking days of work here.
We now have around 230 members, an increase of around 20% over last year so this year will be even worse.
Some groups in the Thames Valley have far more members than Slough, some in the thousands, how do they cope with renewals?
By using an online renewal system, this has been used very successfully for years by other u3a groups including Windsor.
Trevor, our web manager, spoke to Windsor’s committee and they have very kindly allowed us to copy their system and this year we have introduced it.
While the old renewal methods are still available, are you prepared to spend around 10 to 15 minutes using the new process to renew your membership, it would help me no end.
The new system uses PayPal to process your payment and I know some of you may be unsure about using it, but it’s a secure, widely used service with strong protections in place.
You don’t even need to set up a PayPal account to pay; you can simply pay as a guest using a debit or credit card.
PayPal will prompt you to create an account, but you can skip that step—our instructions will show you how.
Windsor members have been using these instructions for some years now so there shouldn’t be any problems but if you have any questions or suggestions, please get in touch. We want this to be as straightforward as possible.
You may have already received a renewal email, if not then it will arrive in a few days or it may be that you have only recently joined and your membership is valid until August 2027 Many thanks
Pete
A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS FOR MEMBERS
There may be members of Slough u3a who are on their own for one reason or another. Some may be bereaved, some divorced, some single by choice, while others may have partners who cannot, or simply do not wish to, socialise.
Whatever the reason, and regardless of gender, background or circumstances, some people may simply appreciate having company from time to time.
Many u3as across the country have set up groups often called MOTO (Members On Their Own). These informal groups give members the opportunity to meet others for a coffee and a chat, go to the theatre or cinema, enjoy a walk, or take part in other activities together. After all, most things are more enjoyable when shared.
Every MOTO group is different. Some meet regularly during the day, others in the evenings, on weekdays or at weekends. Some prefer to stay in touch through a WhatsApp group and arrange activities as and when they wish.
There is now an article on the slough u3a website giving information about these groups – please take a moment to look at it….
https://slough.u3asite.uk/benefits-of-a-moto-members-on-their-own-group
We’d like to know what our members think.
● Would you be interested in joining a MOTO-style group if one were set up in Slough u3a?
● If so, what sort of activities or arrangements would appeal to you?
The committee will be pleased to hear from you with any thoughts on this matter.
If you want your name added to the list of possible members of a MOTO group, please email Trevor webmanager@sloughu3a.com