So exactly what can older people do with the Summerhill Active Retirement Group? For a list of our upcoming events, go to the noticeboard, and a general idea of what we do can be divided into these categories.

• Day to Day Support of Older People
• Opportunities for Life Long Learning
• Enhancement of Self Expression
• Promotion of Positive Ageing, Health and Wellbeing
• Representation of Older People
• The Contribution of Older Volunteers
• Building Links and Breaking Down Barriers

The Third Age Centre acts as the organising hub for activities and is an informal meeting point for older people. Services such as chiropody, laundry, library, internet cafe, information and advocacy are all provided. The welcoming atmosphere, sense of friendship and time for people is at the heart of what the Third Age Centre is about.
The Third Age Centre Bus is an integral means of ensuring that older people have access to the group’s activities.

Firmly believing that to keep the brain working we need to keep the brain challenged, we strongly support life long learning and the benefits that it brings. Innovative projects such as learning Russian through drama are among some of the programmes provided. Long stay residents from St. Joseph’s Hospital in Trim visit the centre each week to participate in arts and crafts, drama, go for life, reminescence sessions etc with members of Summerhill Active Retirement Group. This is followed by lunch in the community centre. Other activities include our annual “Older Women’s Health initiative” (courses are designed in consultation with older women). First aid courses, I.T. Classes, opendays and talks and presentations on various topics are all part of the cycle of activities in the Centre.
The development of our own ICT Centre has enabled us to promote the use of technologies among older people. Our computer training programme has been shaped by our participants needs, as has our Internet cafe for older People. This approach means that older people feel less threatened by technology.

The Third Age Centre is renowned for it’s social events such as our “Young at Heart” and "Bealtaine" concerts. Many other clubs and visitors also attend these celebrations. Group holidays and socials are also a regular feature of the Centre’s programme, and offer opportunities for older people to entertain each other and build strong social networks and supports. Song and Dance has proven one of the best ways of engaging with different groups and a combined Traveller/Third Age Centre group are currently working together through the mediums of Music (Combined Choral Group) and drama. (for more details see our Current Projects page).
Drama and art, always favourites with our members, have been used to raise awareness of the inadequacies and short falls in the Health System as experienced by older people. The Art Class has exhibited their work at various venues and have attended a number of nationally organised events such as IMMA, the National Concert Hall etc. The group has also engaged in a “movement to music” project and a “Textile” project with refugee women from Pakistan, Nigeria and other countries.

Facilitating the promotion of positive steps to enhance and improve overall health and wellbeing is extremely important. We have numerous projects and programmes that have this as a central theme, these are all developed in consultation with older people. Included within this category is our annual women’s health initiative, which inspired the development of two further six week long initiatives encouraging men and people with disabilities to take positive steps towards a healthier life style.
The Go for Life programme is a favourite with our members, long stay residents and members of the traveler community as it’s all inclusive exercise routines encourage older people of all abilities and fitness levels to take part. Participation in this activity has lead to our involvement in the Senior Games at European and World level on numerous occasions, (past successes included gold in the over 95 category of the World Senior Games and gold and two bronze at the European Games).
When it comes to challenging ageist attitudes and promoting positive ageing, our group is convinced that their actions speak louder than words when it comes to challenging stereotypes of ageing. A schools project involving our members in an intergenerational arts and crafts projects aimed at exploring the views of older people about young people and vice versa. Sharing of skills and experiences is seen as a key strategy for reducing segregation and promoting understanding in the community.

Many of the developments undertaken by the group would not have been possible without working through collaboration and partnership. Links with the North Eastern Health Board have enabled participation in conferences and other events. Long standing links with the national organisation Age and Opportunity have been key to developing good practice in work with older people.

We are actively involved with the National Council on Ageing and Older People, the Irish Senior Citizen’s Parliament, the Older Woman’s Network, National Disability Authority and the Equality Authority. Members use their own experience in conjunction with data from the Third Age Centre to illustrate the blocks to older people’s aspirations and needs. Our Members are encouraged to contribute to conferences and to make submissions. The Third Age Centre has also developed European and world links and partnerships with organisations such as RSVP (England), Nagusilian (Spain), AUSER (Italy) etc. We also have a keen interest in policies pertaining to older people accross Europe, and at one point our chairperson was the Irish Representative on the experp group on discrimination at the AGE Platform in Brussels.

Membership of the European Network of Older Volunteers gave our group a platform to focus on the contribution of older volunteers and how volunteering can reduce exclusion and isolation. Exposure to European debates regarding volunteering has helped to consolidate the view that older people are key contributors to local communities.

We are dependant on the hard work and commitment of volunteers to enable us to engage in a wide range of activities. Some of the projects that our Centre’s volunteers have been involved in include; The Knitting (Trauma Teddies) Project, The Senior Help Line (now running 7 days a week, with 12 centres and over 350 volunteers, providing a listening and sympathetic ear for the price of a local call), The St. Joseph's Hospital Project, Mentoring Programme. It is hoped that numbers of volunteers will be maintained and expand within the locality.

One of the main strategies behind the Centre’s work is making links with diverse groups. Several groups are now regarded as “Friends” of the Third Age Centre and where possible are included in the Centre’s activities. In the past we have worked with long stay residents from a local nursing home, members of the traveller community, lone parents, refugee’s and asylum seekers, people with disabilities, women’s groups and other groups of older people. Cross-border activities have also been part of the group’s activities since the group’s inception and included Arts Projects and cross-border exchanges with groups in Jonesborough, Beesbrook and Newry.

Summerhill Active Retirement Group are currently working with the Navan Traveller’s Training Centre, we have developed a combined choral group, who meet on a weekly basis for practice sessions in the Third Age Centre. A long-standing friendship with St. Joseph’s Residential Hospital in Trim means that residents have now become members and 18-20 travel to the Third Age Centre each week to partake in various activities and join our members for lunch.