THE University of the Third Age in Oxford is celebrating its silver jubilee.

A lunch will be held at Rewley House in Wellington Square on Thursday, July 2, to mark the anniversary.

The name U3A was adopted by the French in about 1972, and the movement started in England in 1982.

Oxford was there from the start.

A steering committee was formed in September that year, with the aim of providing educational and leisure activities to retired people.

A public meeting was held in the Lord Mayor’s Parlour at the Town Hall on April 11, 1983, at which a constitution was approved.

A council, executive committee and a series of working panels were established to get the organisation on a firm footing.

By January 1984, there were nearly 150 members, a summer garden party and Christmas celebration were planned and guest speakers arranged.

A year later, with the Oxford branch thriving, other U3As had sprung up in Abingdon, Banbury, Henley, Wantage and Witney.

Today, the Oxford branch continues to flourish.

Former chairman Albert Eastman writes: “We have 300 members, we meet weekly in term time for lectures/talks in Rewley House, we have more than 20 special interest groups, and we organise visits to National Trust properties, cathedrals and cities.”

Although the group celebrated its 10th anniversary in 1993, it has since been agreed that a more appropriate date for the start of the branch was 1984, hence the silver jubilee is taking place in 2009.