Our groups

An index to the Groups operating within Lostwithiel u3a is included on this page.

Each Group has its own web page providing more information about that Group including contact details for the Group Leader.

Click on the appropriate link below to find information about a particular group.

Acoustic Guitar for Beginners

I have now been playing both the electric and acoustic guitar for over six years with the emphasis being on the acoustic. I am probably classed as an intermediate player. I make no claims to being better than that. I can take the group a considerable way into their guitar learning journey but then it will be up to the individual member to find their own way as they will by then have learnt enough to decide on a path that they want to follow, be it a particular genre of music; classical, jazz, folk, rock whatever and the kinds of songs that they would like to learn within that.

The group is aimed at people who want to start learning to play the guitar. They will either have had one in the past, didn't get far with it and it is now gathering dust in the loft or they don't have one as yet and would like to learn. Either way the group is aimed at total beginners and not intermediate or advanced players.

We will be meeting in the Scouts Hut in Lostwithiel on the 2nd and 4th Thursday of the month from 10.00am until 12.00pm.

Art & Craft Experiments

The main aim of this group is to encourage creativity in any medium you want, and not to be afraid of “giving it a go”. I like to pass on the knowledge I have learnt, and as I have almost everything, it is a safe place to try before you buy!

Art Appreciation

Art Appreciation We visit exhibitions galleries, stately homes with collections, craft shows, sculpture gardens, locally and further afield. We want to interpret Art as widely as possible, and see and learn about new works as well as those we already admire and love.

Beverage ’n Banter

Teapot
"Beverage 'n Banter" will meet up on the first Monday in the months that alternate with our usual "Open Meetings"

The first is Monday 6th February 2023 (then in April/June/Aug etc).

Bridge

Bridge Group On Wednesdays we play rubber bridge from 2.00pm until 4.30pm (bringing refreshments if required ). We are a happy bunch and very helpful if anyone is unsure of their bidding.

We also have Bridge magazines with advice and bridge quizzes. English Bridge Union books to aid learning are available. If you have an elementary knowledge of the game or are a regular player and would like to be part of this group please get in touch, it's good to welcome new u3a members.

Creative Writing

Creative Writing Group This very informal writing group meets on the second Tuesday of each month in the Royal Oak. Members write on an agreed topic and then share what they have written. Some examples of the group's work may be read on our blog by clicking on the "Short Stories" link on the left.

Unfortunately the Group has grown to a size that we cannot accept any more members at present. We will keep a waiting list, so please contact me if you are interested.

Creative Writing 2

Creative Writing Group 2 is now full up.

We will be operating a waiting list, so please contact the co-ordinator via the U3A web site if you would like to be on it.
I don’t check the site very regularly, so please be aware there is very likely to be a delay in responding.

Our meeting dates for 2025 are all at 2pm in the Community Centre on these Wednesdays:

Jan 15th

Feb 19th

March 19th

April 16th

May 21st

June 18th.

Thank you

Day Trippers

This new group aims to arrange day trips using only public transport. For that reason it is useful to have a Senior Rail Card and a Bus Pass.

We would envisage trips happening once month.

Electric Bikers

All of our riders now have Electric Bikes which means that we can cycle further and don't have to bother about hills. At the moment we are trying to do a ride every week usually on Wednesday's. For further information please read the notice on our Group Home Page.

Family History

We are a friendly group who help each other with our "brick walls"; sharing information & the use of various web sites to help our research. We now meet - either physically or by Zoom - on the third Wednesday each month at 10:00. Please also see the "CORONAVIRUS" update below

If you would like to join our group do please get in touch; you are welcome whether experienced or completely new to Family History as 1:2:1 guidance can be given.

CORONAVIRUS UPDATE

Update October 2022: As from our 19th October 2022 meeting we're moving to a mixed format of meetings - some "physical" face-to-face & others Zoom - the latter mainly when we have Speakers. Our next Speaker meeting is 16th November 2022!

We're also trying out a new venue & have booked the Lerryn Memorial Hall for October as it now boasts good wi-fi connection!

The likely format will continue to be a speaker event every 2 or 3 months with an "experience-sharing session" about our various research experiences in between. We will also be looking at visiting Kresen Kernow, the Cornish archive centre for a guided tour on the 8th February (this will replace our usual Feb meeting)

Please contact David Platt for details.

French

French Group New members very welcome! The group is very informal and of mixed ability, but not really suitable for absolute beginners. Most of us have some school French.

We share our knowledge of the language and experience of French life and culture with each other. We look at grammar points, topics and current news - whatever anyone suggests. The aim is to have fun whilst learning and to refresh our rusty French. There is always a lot of laughter and "déviation" along the way!

We have so much fun and laughter that we considered renaming ourselves "French Farce!" So come along and have some fun and refresh your French at the same time.

Most of our members have some school French, so it is not really suitable for absolute beginners.

À bientôt

Garden Visits

Garden Visits Group There are times when you need to stop working in your own garden and get inspiration from other people’s creativity and hard work. Does this apply to you? In that case, you would fit in well in our group! We do not have a waiting list, so get in touch if you would like to join us. Our programme of visits to gardens, usually in Cornwall and Devon, starts in February to visit a snowdrop garden and ends in October to admire the autumn colours.

Lunch Group

We are a friendly group of singles and couples who meet for lunch on the 4th Wednesday of each month at as many different locations as we can find within 30-40 mins drive of Lostwithiel!

Between us we have discovered some really good places to eat and are always keen to try new ones. The lunches usually start at 12.30 for 1pm.

Members take it in turns to organise and host the lunches with the help of the group leaders if required but if no one volunteers then there is no lunch!! As yet luckily this has never happened!

Since our 10th Anniversary Open Day, we have welcomed new members to join this friendly group. We have become so popular that we have a decided to have a waiting list. We currently have 28 members. Some venues will not accommodate more than 20 and in order to be fair to current members we have taken this decision. If you are interested in joining our group please contact us to have your name put on the waiting list.

Nature and Bird Watching

Bird Watching Group A hardy group of keen amateur bird and wildlife watchers who hold regular field trips, weather permitting, to reserves and other bird-watching sites in the region.

Photography

Photography Group

We are a friendly photography group with a wide variety of skill levels and interests. The group meets three times each month. One of our meetings sees us out around the county and sometimes further afield, taking pictures and helping each other to try new photographic techniques and challenges. There are also two meetings held online - in one we share and discuss images based on a monthly theme, whilst in the second we explore a variety of topics related to camera techniques in a little more depth. Over the last ten years we have also held four successful exhibitions . We welcome members with all ranges of ability and equipment - most of us started using our phone as a camera!

There is an annual fee of £10 to join this group to fund the Zoom licence which is used for our online meetings and allows us to post recordings of the meetings on our webpage.

To see many wonderful images from our members please view our two Flickr Albums by clicking on the title below:

Vol 1 (to July 21)

Vol 2 (August 21 onwards)

Poetry

Poetry Group Currently, our meetings are held monthly every 1st Friday of each month at 10.15am in the Reading Room at the Lostwithiel Community Centre.

Pop and Rock Music Appreciation

Group discussing Pop and Rock music from the last sixty years

Scrabble

We would be delighted to hear from any new members. We are a friendly little group and not over serious. We play for enjoyment and to keep our brains alive (just).

Strummers Ukulele Sing Along Group

Strummers Learn a few easy chords and sing some songs it's great fun! Meeting starts at 2pm every Monday in Lanhydrock Memorial Hall Absolute beginners are given basic instruction from our Start Up Book. We have a spare Ukuleles Why not give it a try!

Theatre

Theatre Group We are a very lively, active and friendly Group meeting every 3rd Thursday morning of the month when members choose and help organize trips. We go to live and live-streamed theatre, music and dance in and around Cornwall and beyond.

We use public transport where possible. When cars are required transport depends on availability of drivers.

u3Art

Members use a variety of drawing and painting media and we would welcome new members of all abilities. We are a non-teaching group but offer the use of reference books and members are always ready to share their experience and expertise if required. We compile a list of themes or projects to work to, for those who wish a more structured way of working, but that is entirely up to the individual as some people prefer to work on their own projects.

We meet at Lostwithiel Community Centre Oasis Room on the 2nd and 4th Wednesday of every month at Lostwithiel Community Centre between 2 and 4pm

We charge a small fee (£2 or £3 depending on attendance numbers) which pays for the hire of the room

Ukulele Workshop

Ukulele Workshop Initially set up by the Strummers Ukulele Fun and Sing Along Group we are a small group of enthusiastic, like-minded ukulele players who enjoy music and who are keen to develop and progress our musical ability. The emphasis is on playing the ukulele and singing with the occasional inclusion of other instruments to enhance particular songs.

We see ourselves as a group which is complementary to the Strummers Ukulele Fun and Sing Along Group which meets each Monday. Sessions are conducted in a helpful and supportive way. Meetings are held every Friday at the 1st Lostwithiel Scout Hut, Pleyber Christ Way, Lostwithiel PL22 )HA from 2.00 to 4.00 pm. We perform as Lost Chords.

Walking

There are two walks scheduled each month: Locally based walks are on the second Tuesday of every month with Carol and Sue or Dave and Chris leading the walks. Walks starting at places some distance from Lostwithiel lead by Chris and Janet or Annie are on the last Tuesday of every month. Members are contacted by e-mail, normally 7-10 days prior to the planned walk, giving details of the walk, meeting times, difficulty of walk, whether picnic is required, possibility of tea and cake stop etc. We sometimes meet at the Community Centre but individuals can travel independently if desired to the pre-arranged starting point. This information is also updated onto the walking group page of the website.

Wine Appreciation

Wine Appreciation In the past few years we have tasted wine from all over the world as each month a different member hosts the group and chooses which wines we should taste - sometimes by country or region, and sometimes by grape variety. We have all enjoyed trying wines which we would not normally have chosen so we like to feel our tastes have widened through belonging to this Interest Group. Whenever we can find a teetotal driver we love to take the Lerryn Minibus out for a spin to a local vineyard or wine merchant.

Contact Michael Furminger for more details.