SEE THE EVENTS PAGE FOR 'DATES FOR YOUR DIARY'
LETTER FROM THE CHAIR
Greetings and welcome to our February Newsletter
There are some significant and exciting events to look forward to this year. The first one is very important. The 2026 AGM set for 10th March in the Coro. You will soon receive a mailing from the Secretary, inviting you to submit resolutions to the AGM. All resolutions received by 18th February will be voted on by yourselves, the members, at the AGM in the Coro, this year by a show of hands in the Coro. True democracy in action!
Later in the year is our 20th Anniversary. If you feel you can add something to this event, please contact Duncan on the Committee.
News from the North West Region reminds us of the Summer School in Manchester , 11th-14th August, featuring a wide range of activities.
Don’t forget that there are loads of goodies on the u3a Friends Newsletter and website!
Keep warm and see you soon,
Richard Lewis
Chair
Richard Lewis Chair Furness u3a
ADVANCE NOTICE OF MEMBERSHIP RENEWALS FOR 2026-7
For the majority of Furness u3a’s 656* members, the membership renewal period will start immediately after the Monthly Meeting and AGM on Tuesday March 10th has taken place and will end on April 30th, a period of seven weeks. The membership fee for 2026-7 will be agreed at the AGM so please do not attempt to renew beforehand because you may be paying an incorrect amount and it cannot be reimbursed.
Linda Marshall Furness u3a Membership Secretary
* At 24/01/2026
Help keep Furness u3a Running
As we approach the AGM it is a good time to remember that Furness u3a is a volunteer-led charity and, at all levels, volunteers are dedicated to bringing learning opportunities to its members. Furness u3a is run and activities are delivered by volunteers. This may involve being on our friendly committee, running interest groups, organizing meetings and events, and taking on smaller roles and tasks to facilitate the smooth running of our u3a. It is vital that we have a substantial pool of volunteers with varying skills and experience who are willing to get involved.
If you are interested in playing a significant part in this thriving organization, please contact the Membership Secretary.
GROUP NEWS
Garden Visit Coach Trip Update
The price for the trip is confirmed at £32 and if those going could put their money in a envelope with their name and where they would like to be picked up from.
The coach starts at Barrow 8am Strawberry, on to Dalton - Tudor Square, Ulverston - Main Bus Stop (Victoria Road), and Greenodd at the village bus shelter. There is a café in the gardens or lots of places for picnics. The gardens are card payment only in shop and café. I will be at the Coronation Hall Monthly Speaker Meetings in February and March for last payments. If anybody finds they can't go, please can they let me know as I have a reserve list thankyou. Sabina
.Contact Sabina Garnett
QUESTERS
The first Questers visit of 2026 took place, twice, at the Blue Light Hub in Ulverston where three Emergency Services are based.
We were welcomed by Alan Spiers, Fire Station Crew Manager, who, along with his colleagues showed us around the facilities. A very impressive building that houses a Police "control centre" where we were given a talk about local policing. We were shown well equipped meeting rooms and discussed what they were used for, as well as training rooms.
We also briefly saw where the Cumbrian Ambulance Service operate from.
There is a well-equipped (and well used) gymnasium which is an indication of the physical fitness required by each member of the Fire and Rescue team. To maintain a position on the Fire Rescue Team, each member is required to undergo a physical fitness test annually. In the event of a diminished fitness level, a programme is put into place to get back to the standard of fitness required and the individual is taken off the active service roster until fitness is restored.
We visited the relaxation and cooking facilities until finally being introduced to the fire services department and its equipment. We discovered the extent of training required by each member of the fire fighters and was shown much of the specialist equipment used for rescue operations. It included a thorough tour of a fire engine, the command structure within each crew (of three and up to six members) and the equipment that each fire engine carries. Demonstrations were given of very powerful mechanical cutters, stabilisers to secure overturned vehicles, hoses, the water pump, and foam generator.
We were shown the attire, that Fire Rescue Officers are required to wear and were treated to a rescue demonstration (with commentary) of a "victim" from the first floor of a smoke-filled building. Visibility within the smoke filled building is less that 1m (3ft)!!
The tour lasted 2 hours yet it was gone in a flash as the information we were taking in, was so interesting and entertaining.
Questions were fired at the tour guides "right, left and centre".
Due to the interest in visiting the Blue Light Hub, a second visit was swiftly arranged, and has already taken place. (Lower pictures). It was the best visit(s) so far this year!!
Before this visit, the participating Questers were asked to take a look at their smoke/fire and CO alarms in their home. During the visit, the Fire Offices spoke of the importance of having and regularly testing these devices to confirm they are in a functioning condition. The Fire Service offer a free service that involves a Fire Officer visiting your home and offering advice on which alarms are required and the best position for them. They will even supply the alarms free of charge. It is simple to arrange such a survey by phoning the fire service and making the request. They will note your request and pass it onto the people in the Ulverston Blue Light Hub, who in turn will contact you to make an appointment. Many of the visiting Questers put their names on the list to have a home visit and survey made.
Our February Questers visit is on Thursday 12th to Lancaster Castle and is being arranged by Margaret Helm (a big thank-you to Margaret). We'll be travelling by train to Lancaster and walking from the station to the castle. (Of course, if you prefer to travel by road that's great). We have 24 Questers on the list so far and should you wish to be included on the list, please drop a line to Margaret Helm to let her know. The cost of the castle tour will be £7. An email will be sent in February with final arrangements for this visit.
Sue and Tim
Please see the Questers Group page for details, or contact Tim Evans
ENVIRONMENT MATTERS
At our last meeting of 2025, one of the areas for discussion was ‘major environmental problems facing the world’. We compared our thoughts with a list from Earth.org. From melting ice caps, plastic pollution, biodiversity loss to cobalt mining, it is easy to understand how folk can feel ‘eco-despair’ and a feeling of helplessness.
However, the Environment group would rather take positive action! Over the years we have examined our own behaviours and made admittedly, small changes. We have looked at our local area to examine and share environmental stories, engaging with groups and individuals who are taking steps in the right direction.
From the list of issues facing us all, we decided to start 2026 considering food waste. Thinking locally, we arranged a visit to Ulverston Food Project, presently based at The Ellers. And what an inspirational visit this turned out to be.
Project Manager, Linden Grieve, greeted us and gave a detail account of the project’s achievements since it began, just before Covid, as well as showing us around the building where it all happens. The aim of the charity is ‘saving food from landfill and re-distributing it within our local community’. Briefly, in the early days, Linden and a small group of volunteers engaged with FairShare in Preston, travelling to pick up food to share with local households. Twenty-five households joined to start with, contributing a fee of £3 for £30 or so worth of food. When Covid hit, a bubble of four or five volunteers continued with the collection and the twenty-five households increased to one hundred and twenty. Realising the opportunity to collect surplus food locally, the Food Share project began. A small group of friends and family were ‘recruited’ to collect food from local stores which was taken to the Parish Centre, Church Walk, from where those who needed it could take food for free or a nominal fee. Moving to larger premises in The Ellers offered greater opportunity to reach out. Linden was keen to express that the Food Project is not a food bank. Food Share is for everyone. Anyone can visit and take what they can use, a nominal cash contribution being welcome or join the Food Club - £6 membership at present.
What was also impressive is the work that goes on ‘behind the scenes’, from ensuring goods are in date, to storing food appropriately in the array of fridges and freezers , to maintaining equipment, checking the rotas of volunteers, paperwork involved in running a charity of this kind, seeking out funding for essential running costs such as utilities and rent – a seemingly endless list.
The group are looking forward to moving to a permanent base in The Spot which will afford even more opportunities. And Linden has many ideas as to how the Project can expand, reaching even more of the community and its needs.
Should you wish to see for yourselves, Linden would be happy to make your acquaintance at The Ellers, Monday – Thursday, 10.30 – 11.30.
SEQUENCE DANCING
Sequence Dancing Group's First Session
The first ever session of the u3a Furness Sequence Dance Group took place on Wednesday 21st January and was very well received with an attendance of 20. A few members were unable to attend that session, so the numbers are looking to increase further, which is great.
There was a mix of experience and abilities, which meant the more experienced were able to assist those new to Sequence Dancing.
We learnt the Sweetheart Waltz from start to finish and enjoyed dancing it through to music a few times. We also had a look at the Square Tango and the Rumba One, which will the next dances we focus on learning.
A big thank you to Pat, Grace and Joanne for volunteering for kitchen duties. And to Gill and Ste for taking the photos, and volunteering to collect the money each week. A true team effort.
As we know, dancing is good for us physically, mentally and socially, but most of all, we had fun, and that is what really matters.
New members are very welcome!
Adrian and Dawn Morris
VISITING GARDENS
Our January meeting was at Ulverston Golf Club where we put together our provisional programme of garden visits for the year, as well as enjoying lovely views and an excellent lunch. The programme was e-mailed to all group members on 22 January, so if you did not receive it, please check in your junk e-mail folder.
Our first garden visit of the year is to Conishead Priory on 17th February, when the snowdrops should be out. Please note that we will not be meeting in Victoria Road beforehand and members should travel directly to Conishead Priory. If you need a lift, please arrange it with another group member if possible. Further details, including arrival time will be send out to group members by e-mail. I look forward to seeing you there.
Jeni Sarson , Visiting Gardens
INDUSTRIAL HISTORY GROUP
This month, approximately thirty members attended an informative and entertaining talk on Coniston Copper Mines, given by Stephe Cove.
Stephe illustrated his talk with a wide variety of diagrams, photographs and models that reflected his experience as a teacher, member of the mountain rescue team and enthusiastic mine explorer. I particularly liked the splendid specimen of chalcopyrite on display. This copper-iron sulphide rock was the main type of ore mined in the Copper Mines Valley.
Work in the valley above Coniston began in 1590 when the Company of Mines Royal was set up and Austrian miners and smelters moved into the area. The first tunnels were hand-chiselled and called coffin levels because of their shape. They were widest at shoulder level and tapered towards the feet. Some of these early tunnels reached 180 feet. In the late sixteen hundreds gunpowder was used to blast down to over 300 feet. The shot holes were hand driven and had a triangular cross-sectional area. When dynamite was being used in the 1880s and the shot holes were made by compressed-air drills, and the holes were circular. Mining declined at the end of the nineteenth century when copper prices dropped. Today, the valley is honeycombed with old mines, and some of the shafts are around 1,100 feet deep.
Stephe took us through the history of the methods of draining water from the mines, extracting ore from the deep shafts and crushing it on the surface. This was beautifully illustrated by photographs and video of working models built by Stephe and his pupils at Coniston Primary School during the Copper Mines Project ten years ago. I wonder how many of those children were inspired to go on to study engineering?
Next month Kevin Grice will give a presentation entitled "Millbeck – a mill hamlet through time". This will cover the history of the mills along the banks of the river Greta, near Keswick.
Jo White Industrial History Group
SOME OTHER SOURCES OF WIDER U3A NEWS
North West Region u3a Summer School 2026
Tues 11th August – Friday 14th August
Manchester Metropolitan University, M15 6GX
The 8 courses on offer are:-
Archaeology Explorers (now full)
Making sense of everyday Mathematics
An introduction to Geology
Photography - Beyond the Snapshot
Art challenges - the history of colour
The UK and USA Political Scenes
Operatunity – opera appreciation
Intermediary Ukulele
An Application form and further details are available online at
There are several places where you can catch up on U3A news from further afield.
There is a U3A Friends Group who send out a regular newsletter. You can see the January edition here, and if you would like to subscribe there is a link at the bottom of their newsletter.
There is a U3A YouTube channel U3A
The North West Region of the U3A have their own website, and a quarterly newsletter.
This is the November 2025 - January 2026 copy.