Norton and Radstock U3A held their Annual General Meeting in March at The Somer Centre, Midsomer Norton, when Chairman Andy Green presented a cheque for £2,100 to Stephen Chesworth of Julian House.

Julian House, a local charity situated in Bath, was set up some thirty years ago to offer food and shelter to society’s most vulnerable people, the homeless. They now run around twenty different projects, including addiction recovery, work experience and training, and refugee services to name just three.

This challenging work is changing and saving lives in many counties in the South West, including Somerset, South Gloucester, Dorset, Devon, Wiltshire and Hampshire.

A particularly interesting project is the Bike Workshop, where bikes are available for sale or maintenance services can be carried out. There are four such bike workshops in Bath, Bristol, Trowbridge and Exeter, offering a chance for marginalised people to train, gain confidence and make progress towards independence and employment.

Steve’s interesting talk about the work of Julian House was followed by the formal AGM, attended by around 150 members.

Ginny Edwards