West Wolds u3a

West Wolds u3a Mkt Rasen organisation committed to making the most of life once you’re no longer working full time What is the u3a (University of the Third Age) ?

Founded in 1982, u3a is a UK-wide movement of locally-run interest groups that provide a wide range of opportunities to come together to learn for fun. Members explore new ideas, skills and activities together. There are 1,057 u3as with over 450,000 members; membership costs less than £20 on average per year and is open to everyone who’s no longer in full-time work. The West Wolds u3a

It is a th

riving organisation serving Market Rasen and the surrounding area. There is a wide range of interest groups ranging from activity groups for walking, cycling and dancing to artistic groups for creative writing, music making and photography to more educational such as foreign languages, local history and many more. Groups are run on a self-help basis and there are no formal academic attainment levels or exams. Once a month there is a get together in the Market Rasen Festival Hall where you can meet other members and find out what's going on. Also on the monthly meetings there is usually a guest speaker who will talk on a particular topic of interest. Cost

The u3a is an official non-profit making charity. Activities are organised and run by members for no fee. As such annual membership costs are very low (currently less than £20) which covers things such as room hire, consumables and guest expenses. Social

Having fun is part of the shared u3a vision. As well as the interest groups there are regular group visits and longer trips on offer as well as an annual Christmas dinner. The West Wolds u3a is a great place to make new friends and have fun. Covid-19

Since the summer 2021 our monthly meetings have recommenced and our groups are operating normally again. Please however be respectful of others and please do not attend any of our face to face gatherings if you are feeling unwell or have recently tested positive for Covid-19

To find out more visit the West Wolds u3a website https://westwoldsu3a.org/
To find out more about the u3a watch the video https://youtu.be/HDrvORbqz3o

29/04/2026
25/03/2026
Holidays soon . Learn to speak Spanish
17/03/2026

Holidays soon . Learn to speak Spanish

Next month's u3a meeting
14/03/2026

Next month's u3a meeting

Afternoon Disco 💃 🕺📀. Interested? We are thinking of starting a new Group subject to enough interest and a suitable loca...
10/02/2026

Afternoon Disco 💃 🕺📀. Interested?

We are thinking of starting a new Group subject to enough interest and a suitable local venue. 🙂

One of our members has volunteered to DJ and another has a glitter ball so that’s a start!

As we are a non-profit charitable organisation, the cost would be for the venue only and would likely be monthly, on a Tuesday or Thursday afternoon.

Interested? A bit of fun! Dance it out! Relive your youth!

Comment below or
Email: [email protected]

ARCHAEOLOGY IN OUR LOCAL AREAThe first meeting of the new u3a Archaeological Group was held on the 27th January, with 10...
05/02/2026

ARCHAEOLOGY IN OUR LOCAL AREA
The first meeting of the new u3a Archaeological Group was held on the 27th January, with 10 members present. Our hosts, Helen Wilson, and Elizabeth Holmes, revealed the surprising story of an industrial revolution that hit their village in the mid 1800’s.

Claxby is a village just north of Market Rasen that is seldom in the news, however in the 1800’s the discovery of ironstone deposits in the parish prompted an upsurge in interest from several major ironstone mining organizations locally and in the Midlands. There are remains of a Roman villa locally, and they may have been aware of the deposits, however there is no record of extraction taking place.

In the early 1860’s, viable quantities of ironstone were identified and from1867 until 1885, the enterprise developed, attracting about 250 workers from as far away as Cornwall, the Newcastle area and the Midlands. The population grew rapidly and 20 houses were eventually built by the landowner to house that growth, similarly the school was extended to provide for the extra children.

Production peaked in 1873 at about 70,000 tons and then production reduced, and the number of miners fell to under 100, signaling the contraction of the industry, parts of which were described by the Rev. Sumner as a “gloomy cavern of disaster” due to the high levels of injuries and deaths. In 1885, the mines became uneconomic to operate, resulting in their closure. Interestingly, in 1934, the same ironstone strata, from the early Jurassic period (c. 190–180 million years ago), started to provide output to the Nettleton ironstone mining activities, which continued until 1968 when mining there ceased.

Little surface remains of the mining are evident as the Claxby area became a military training site in early 1970. However, perhaps one day parts of the underground “pillar” mining activities will be revealed to display the energy expended by those pioneering miners.

If you have any interesting archaeological information, finds or stories from the local area please forward them to me, and perhaps we can reveal another page of subterranean history!
David Ebbage-Group Leader.
Taken from our February newsletter.

Address

Caistor Road, Market Rasen, Lincolnshire
Market Rasen
LN8 3HT

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when West Wolds u3a posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organisation

Send a message to West Wolds u3a:

Shortcuts

Share

Category