The Mens Shed ‘movement’ first originated in Australia 20yrs ago and is now a worldwide activity with over
120 ‘Sheds’ now in the UK. Men often find it difficult to deal with loneliness and isolation, often following bereavement or through poor health and not having access to facilities where they can meet others, socialise, discuss problems and enable them to seek advice. The Mens Shed aims to provide the environment and expertise where they can meet, chat with others over a ‘cuppa’ and have the facilities to undertake hobbies, projects etc, as well as have access to any necessary support i.e. as shared space for making, mending & mingling.
Fairford & District Mens Shed (FMS) is run in association with the ‘Fairford & Lechlade Working 4 Wellbeing’ charity which holds a very successful ‘Talking Cafe’ every week in Fairford, organises workshops and provides support and advice to local, largely retired, residents. However the large majority of the members are female with very few men attending, hence the need for a similar initiative designed primarily to support the men in the community - although a number of UK sheds also have female members.
FMS is a member of the UK Mens Shed Association whose website www.mensshed.org.uk provides comprehensive information on the background, setting up and running of a Mens Shed.
The type of activities undertaken by FMS members depends very much on the members wishes, expertise etc. However, as with many Mens Sheds, the initial request has been for woodworking activities including recycling pallet wood to make items such as planters, bird boxes, benches etc for sale; helping members repair items; supporting local community projects; model making, including model railways. Making items for sale will provide an important income source as well as enabling members to socialise and work together. Suggestions have also been made for holding workshops on subjects of interest to members which could include areas such as photography, computing, 3D Printing and even making U-Tube videos.
If you are interested in joining our Mens Shed please fill in the Membership Form and come along for a chat and see what we are involved in. We will initially be open on Wednesday mornings from 9.30 to 12.30, but if there is enough interested we hope to open for an additional 2 or 3 additional mornings per week