Getting the most from your membership of the Isle of Man u3a

Membership of the u3a Isle of Man for the year 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2027 is £20.00. Your membership also gives you access to a vast amount of information and support in the u3a nationally.

National u3a

Founded in 1982, the u3a is a charitable organisation which aims to promote non-formal learning through self-help interest groups covering a wide range of topics and activities. There are over 1,000 groups throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland with about 400,000 members . For more information the national u3a website is at National u3a

The u3a(IOM) is included in the North West Region of the National organisation and the Region organises many events including a Summer School which you can attend. For more information the NW Region website is at North West Region.

As a u3a member you can attend events at any one of the other u3as in the UK. To find a local u3a Find a u3a. Once you have found the u3a that you are looking for then you can contact them through their website to check what is available.

Online Learning & National u3a Workshop Events

Additional groups, workshops and events are offered online from the u3a and available to all members of the IOM u3a.

Open the u3a Learning Page and select the following options:

Events - these are usually led by a u3a member and held on a stated date/time. Attendance is via ZOOM but you need to register for tickets. You can attend as many as you wish and all are free to u3a members.

Online Groups. These cover a wide range of interests - Literature, Music, Languages, Writing, History,Art, Exercise, IT and just Chat groups. Great if you can't attend a similar group on the island. Online Groups have an additional cost of £12 per year (£6 if you join from October). Once you've joined Online Groups you can select your group or groups. Again you will need ZOOM to attend. These groups encourage participation via ZOOM and give opportunities to socialise online with like minds.

Puzzles, Competitions, etc - check them out, even some quiz options if you need to set one!

Subject Networks & Advisors - excellent sources of information to help expand your knowledge or help if you want advice on how best to run a specific subject matter group.

Member Portal

Beacon is the national u3a Admin System and contains basic information about our members, for example names and contact details. By registering for the Member Portal, you can view your data held on Beacon, update it and view your records of group membership and membership fee payment. You can also join or leave certain groups which allow online joining/leaving.

How To Register:

You need your unique Membership Number. If you don't know it then please contact the Membership Secretary who will email it to you.

• Click here to take you to the IOM Beacon registration screen.
• Type in your email address - this must be the same one you used for your u3a membership
• Click Confirm Email
• On the next screen type in your Membership Number, set a password and complete the other details
• A message appears asking you to check your inbox for a confirmation email
• Open the email from Beacon and click where requested to verify the account
• For further help a step by step visual guide can be found here.

You are now registered and can check your information and update it.

To open your account at any time, click the Beacon link and type in your user name and password

If you don't use Email:

The Membership Secretary will of course continue to update your information on your behalf. Use the Contact Us Page to let us know any changes.