We are getting a third IGO Zoom account as the current two accounts are becoming quite full. I may change some groups’ bookings around to use the accounts more efficiently but will only do so if necessary.  The Zoom generic calendar is attached showing current availability – the third account has not yet been added so effectively all slots are free.

The Group Leaders Informal Meeting is an opportunity for IGO Group Leaders to have conversations with other leaders - sharing experiences, advice and tips on a range of issues involved in running and sustaining an Online Interest Group.

Please note that the Informal Group Leaders Meetings are not the same as the Group Leaders meetings scheduled by the IGO staff, usually annually.

The Informal Group Leaders Meetings will be scheduled 2 – 3 times a year, depending on levels of Interest and meeting for a maximum of 90 minutes. It is intended that the Informal Meetings will be kept to a maximum number attending of 12, so that there is time for everyone to contribute.

To join, visit the Beacon Members portal and find Group Leaders Informal Meeting.

If more Group Leaders are wanting to attend, there could be further Informal Meeting dates scheduled.

Mike, one of our group leaders, put together a document providing guidance on the use of Zoom for people new to the technology.  While there are thousands of videos online with Zoom advice, it is not easy to find ones which are pitched at the appropriate level for us, and he has also selected some suitable ones.  We will send this out to new members when it is ready and will also host on the website in the Help and Information section. 

From time to time IGO members who are entrepreneurs wish to market, promote or sell their products via the u3a – this is against the policy of the U3A. Group leaders should be alert to this kind of behaviour and whilst it is acceptable to provide a link to a company website at the end of a session, a direct promotion during U3A sessions is strictly a no-no.

I have been updating the Beacon calendar entries for those groups where this has not been done by the leader but have not got to the end yet.  The calendar for October is attached.  If you want to do this yourself, you should use the “Schedule” tab.

When you send an email to your group members, your email is visible to them. If you would prefer to keep your personal email private, you can set up another email address using any of the free services (gmail, yahoo, outlook, icloud etc) and use this instead – for example IGOgroupname@gmail.com.  Several of our group leaders do this already.

You will need to use this as your IGO contact email – you can do this using “Update Personal Details” on the Beacon Members Portal. You can set this up to forward emails to your personal email, but you will need to ensure that you reply from the new email to avoid the recipient seeing your personal email address.

Please have a look at your group page(s) on the website and let us know if you would like it to be changed – use the Group Description form to do this.  If your page does not have an image, please send us one – make sure it is not copyright protected.

If a member does not attend meetings for three meetings without letting you know they will be absent, you can remove them from the group.  You should ask them if they want to continue to be in the group and advise them that if they do not reply, they will be removed.  If they say they want to continue, but do not attend for the next three meetings, you can remove them anyway.  There may be extenuating circumstances such as illness which should be addressed on a case-by-case basis, with appropriate discretion advised. 

 You do not need to this unless you want to!

We plan to hold a group leaders meeting on Wednesday 30^th October at 3pm. This provides an opportunity for the team and group leaders to exchange ideas, problems and solutions. Please let us know if there is anything you would like to discuss at the meeting.  The Zoom link will be sent out nearer the time.

We are very happy to welcome Alison Allison to the team – she has taken over Katie’s role.

Attachments with this bulletin

• Beacon Calendar October 2024;
• IGO ZOOM Generic Calendar October 2024.

To all our group leaders for your sterling work!