January 2026 Newsletter

by Graham on 1 Jan 26

All Groups Upcoming Events Ash News Activities Timetable

January arrives quietly but with a powerful sense of possibility. It is the doorway to the new year, a month that feels both reflective and hopeful. After the noise and color of Christmas fades, January offers space to breathe, to look back on what has passed, and to imagine what might come next. The days maybe cold and slow, yet that stillness invites clarity. It is a time when routines can be rebuilt and intentions gently set.

The month reminds us that beginnings do not have to be dramatic. Like winter seeds resting beneath frozen ground, change can start invisibly. The new year encourages patience and persistence, asking us to trust that steady effort will bring growth. In this way, January is less about instant transformation and more about quiet commitment—a calm, determined step forward into the months ahead.

And now let us step forwards…

Help Still Needed

As mentioned in the last newsletter Eileen Monds will be ending her long stint as Secretary at the AGM in 2026. A replacement is necessary very soon to ensure a smooth handover of duties. If we do not have a Secretary Ash u3a will cease to exist as this role is mandated by both the Charity Commission and Third Age Trust.

Two other important roles also need filling: Equipment Manager and Document Controller. Neither are arduous, they entail keeping track of the equipment we own and making sure all the documents are reviewed on time. If either of these take more than a couple of hours each month there is something awry.

And finally, we need someone who has a digital artistic talent to help with images for the website.

Please get in touch if you are able to help.

The Christmas Monthly Meeting

60ish members enjoyed an afternoon at St Mary’s courtesy of the organisational skills of Diana.

See the Monthly Meeting details here

All the Walkers

All three ambulatory groups attended a lunch at the Sutton Green Golf Club. A convivial and enjoyable day despite the rain.

See the Walkers Christmas Lunch details

Winchester Ramble

Not content with a meal at Sutton Green the Ramblers headed off to Winchester for decent walk and more scoff.

See the Winchester Walk details

Ambling at Water’s Edge

A somewhat shorter walk than the Ramblers, the Ambling group had their last walk of 2025 in Mytchett

See the Ambling at Water’s Edge details

Photography Group

The photography group had their annual competition and the winner is quite stunning. No preview here as we don’t want to spoil the surprise.

See the winner of the annual photography competition

Line Dancing Do

A Christmas party with the line dancers. A fine collection of yuletide clothing.

See the Line Dancing details

Woodworking

Rod (he of the Thursday Lunchers) has a well appointed workshop in his garage and is proposing a new woodworking group. Rod says:

I have an underutilised large  double-garage/workshop which is reasonably equipped but not very well set up (lots of tools and equipment in boxes, mainly but not entirely woodwork related ).

Just wondering whether any of our members would be interested in forming a woodworking group, especially if they have an interest or experience in wood and/or resin turning. I don’t have a lathe but would be happy to buy one if there is a member who could offer help in setting it up and some basic tuition. I am sure that if there were enough of us we could get an experience wood turner to do some teaching.

I am thinking on the lines of Social Craft but more Saw and Jaw rather than Stich and Bitch!!!!!

Open to all suggestions and interests such as:

• Wood turning
• Resin composit turning
• Wood carving
• Furniture making, repair and restoration
• Model making
• Fretwork
• Toy making
• Upcycling
• Tool repair and sharpening

If this is something you would like to get involved with please give Rod a call on 07747 622723

Third Age Trust Friends Newsletter

News and updates from the Third Age Trust

u3a Fiends Newsletter (opens in a new tab)

SE Region Council Representative

From Sally Ingledew:

As you may know the Council Representative Elections take place next February. 

After a problematic start, the role of both Council and CRs is now clearly defined, resulting in working arrangements with both Office and Board becoming much improved. Now is the time to consolidate this even further.

Here in the South East Region (SER) we have one vacancy.  As it is one of the biggest regions we really do need the second one.

If there is anyone in your u3a that would be interested in volunteering for the role of CR which is now both rewarding and very interesting please download the Candidate Pack (pdf).

Alternatively if anyone would like to chat to me about the role, my number is 07772 368919.

I really hope there are potential candidates, as there has been progress in the SER over the last year, which has laid the foundation, but there is still a lot to do.

And Finally…

Well done for getting to the bottom of the page.

Some numbers for 2025

We have 380 paid up members. Of these 43% are members of just one group, 19% of two groups and 11% are not a member of any group.

Breakdown by registration

Groups	0	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10
Members	43	165	74	42	23	21	4	5	2	0	1
Percent	11.3%	43.4%	19.5%	11.0%	6.1%	5.5%	1.1%	1.3%	0.5%	0%	0.3%

Breakdown by group

Ambling	Art	Badminton	BTL Book	Book Circle	Book Worms	Creative Writing	Family History
45	26	14	8	8	10	3	13
Garden Visits	Healthy Walking	Line Dancing	Mahjong	Petanque	Photography	Poetry	Quiz Team
61	63	41	28	20	33	6	34
Rambling	Reading	Science & Technology	Scottish Dancing	Scrabble	Singing	Social Craft	Social History
36	9	23	33	8	13	5	24
Spanish	Table Tennis	Tai-Chi (& Sabre)	Theatre Visits	Thursday Lunchers	Travelogue	Yoga
9	18	18	52	41	9	17

Is there something you would like to do that isn’t listed above? Maybe a new activity, social event, days out or even a mid-week break. Let us know by email or in the comments below.