This page may help you answer any questions you may have about Peterborough U3A or maybe save you time using the Contact Us facility and writing out a long email

PU3A is a “self help” organisation, and where possible we have made it as simple as we can for you to be able to solve most things for yourself.  

If your query is not in our listed below then at the bottom of this document there is a link for you to be able to contact Peterborough U3A.

Click on a topic in the index to jump to the answers

When you become a member PU3A issues you with a Membership Number (4 or 5 digits long) and a System Generated Password. 

These are possibly the most useful pieces of information that you should keep safe for your time as a member. 

 If you are likely to forget the System Generated Password, then once logged into the member section you can change it to something more memorable for yourself.  As a reminder for your Member Number you can print or download a Membership Card (see video here), which contains your Member Number.  If you feel confident using electronic methods then log in and see  My Detail > Print My Member Card option.  There are videos on how to do this

   1.   here (for a paper card)
or
  2.   here (for keeping the card on a smartphone)

 As said above, your password is one of the most useful pieces of info for PU3A.  It is your gateway to so much information about PU3A via the website.  However, sometimes you may forget your password, or wish to change it to something else - Members can reset their password as long as you know the email address you have provided us with.  See this video for how to go about doing a reset.

Unfortunately, we are not allowed to display telephone numbers to the general public under GDPR legislation - however, if you are a member of PU3A then you can log into the members section (see video here),  and in cases where a group leader has given permission we display their contact details on the specific group page.  If no number is shown then there is always an option to contact them via email.  If you are a non-member then you can use the "Contact Us" facility (see bottom of page)  to request a call back from the Group Leader - the administrator for the Contact Us facility will ask the leader to call you.

If you are a member then by logging into the Member Section of the website (see video here) you can request to join (or add yourself to a waiting list if the group is currently full) from a link on the group page.  The Group Leader should then contact you to confirm membership or give a reason as to why this isn't possible.  If you are a non-member and wish to know more about joining a group then use the Contact Us link to ask the admin to request a call back (as above)

We tend to use an "online ONLY" joining process (available by the Join Our U3A link on the home page).  However, if a person is not internet-able, then they can ask a friend to complete the online form for them.  It is only in extreme circumstances that we resort to a paper form - and in this case contact the Membership Secretary (see the link "Who are the Committee" on the home page for details) and they will talk to you about a paper form.

We only take electronic payments for our membership fees (Credit Card, BACS, Direct Debit), but we realise that not everyone can achieve this themselves.  It is always possible for someone else to pay fees for another person, but if this is also not possible then contact the Membership Secretary (see the link "Who are the Committee" on the home page for details) and they will talk to you about a solution that suites you.

Our email communication is sent from a "Bulk Emailer" facility, and sometimes your email provider may be a little over cautious about thinking we are sending Junk or Spam emails, and either reject our mails or send them into your Junk/Spam folder.  You can stop this happening by viewing the advice at this link which lets your software and/or provider know that our email address is a "safe sender".  There is nothing we can do from our end - this has to be solved by you.

Every member has their details logged in our Membership Database (which is fully secure), but sometimes your details may change, such as your home address/telephone number/email address.  In these cases the Member is expected to update their own detail by logging into the Member Section and following the My Detail > Check My Details link.  From there you can change the vast majority of what we know about you.  If you fail to keep these details up to date then you may miss out on important communications sent by PU3A.  There is a help video here to guide you through the process

As said above, we only take electronic payments for Membership Fees.  This does not mean that you have to miss out.  If you are unable to pay electronically then a friend or relative can pay your fees for you using their Credit/Debit Card and you can pay them back in cash.  This applies for both New Membership requests and Membership Renewals as a new year starts.

We now have a central telephone number (0300 102 1399) where you can select from 7 options on who to speak to, or just leave an answer machine message which will end up with the correct person.

If you are reading this article, we would assume you have internet access, however, if you are viewing for a friend then the answers to queries that cover most questions are shown above

PU3A ONLY runs a "Single Membership" system. 

Some U3As run Associate Membership and/or Joint Membership - but this has proved too administratively complex for a U3A of our size. 

However, from a payment aspect we do have a "Linked Members" process(once you are a member)  that allows a single person to make one payment for a couple (usually living at the same address) once the members have joined. 

For information on linking with another member see the video here

If you are a member with an idea or question about a new group, then the Group Coordinator is the person to speak to.  Follow the link to "Who are the Committee" on the home page for details of the phone number or email contact for our current Group Coordinator.

If you are a member with a suggestion for a good speaker you have heard about - or if you are a speaker wishing to speak to PU3A about being a speaker at one of our Tea and Talk meetings then you need to speak to the Speaker Meeting Coordinator - details can be found on the "Who are the Committee" page for details

Our groups tend to be on a rolling calendar basis, in the main, where you can join at any time of the year without being at a disadvantage.

However there are a few groups (Languages being the obvious ones) where there is a progression throughout the year (or term).  In these cases it is best if you can join the group at the start of a year (September) so you are not left scratching your head about what is going on.

If none of the above answers solves your problem, then please click the link below to send us an email, which we will respond to as soon as possible 

CONTACT US VIA EMAIL