It was sometime towards the end of February and beginning of March last year that the idea of a men’s shed for the community popped into my mind. I am not a very practical person, so it was a little unexpected. However, a week or two later the Men Shed ‘movement’ featured on TV and I was amazed! It turned out that others had had this idea a long time ago. In fact, the idea of a communal men’s sheds started in Australia in the late ‘80s. It was then ‘exported’ to Ireland and then Age UK took it on in 2001. After that the UK Men’s Shed Associaion picked up the baton and has been running with it ever since. There are now over a thousand communal men’s sheds in Australia and over 470 in the UK.
To understand the thinking behind men’s sheds do have a look at https://menssheds.org.uk. Our men’s shed was finally launched in September and is open to men who have retired, are unemployed or have time to spare – 9.30am till 12.00 noon each Thursday, but we will open other days to cater for growing numbers as the need arises.
Our ‘motto’ or ethos is to be ‘Happily Distracted’. Thanks to the Rotary Club and the Lions Club, we have a variety of tools, so we can cut, drill, shape, saw, sand and even dabble in electronics and computing. But not necessarily all on the same day! We can also talk the hind leg off a donkey! Sometimes we even get cakes delivered by the ladies who run Coffee Break opposite us in Globe Lane. We are grateful to those who have generously paid for various other tools and equipment and others who help with the rent.
Do come and see us if you are interested. We have a Facebook site https://www.facebook.com/TheHangarShed/ and we have a WhatsApp group for those who want to be updated when they join. First contact should be through messaging us on our Facebook site.