Words from our members:

“Doing something fresh. The space to work on messy projects. The shed prompts me to leave home, otherwise, I would stay home and sleep.”

“Learning about all the tools and feeling a sense of achievement even if it’s only a small thing like how to cut a piece of wood straight, makes me happy.”

“The relaxed ambience and knowing that if I need help the others are willing to impart their knowledge and know-how to help out.”

“I never knew I was good at carpentry, and it has given me lots of confidence in my ability”

“I really like coming in and working with my hands, especially with mobility restrictions on my arms. I’ve learnt a lot of new skills from people with different experiences”

“Socially I feel more confident to interact with a variety of different people. I love exploring my creative ideas and socialising during tinkering session”

“Everyone has been kind and patient with me which makes me feel really safe and happy in the shed environment”

“The social aspect is really good. Meeting people from different backgrounds has been great and I’ve learnt a lot from everyone”

“The Shed is like my second home, it’s a calming space for me. Exploring like-minded people and creativity, a retreat from the norm”

“In a word, ‘magic’. If you’re feeling gloomy, you show up there.”

“With the problems in my accommodation here, if I can get a day in the Shed, or a half-day in the Shed, it’s a pick-me-up. The issues are about the tools and materials and the work and that kind of thing instead.”

“You go in there with a problem, and you come out and you’ve forgotten the problem.”

“[I enjoy] chatting to other people. There’s already a standing topic of conversation, and that is the job at hand.”

“…There’s always a thing of satisfaction of doing something.”

“There are some talented people there, artists, all talented in their own way. I’m good with anything making, fixing, helping and it just makes you feel better.”

“I like to see Rasha because she’s always cheerful, and a couple of the other members are quite fun.”

“It does bring me out of my depression when I’m there and listening to the others talk. It sort of cheers me up, it’s something that I really look forward to when we go every week.”

Words from our funders:

“I feel that they reach parts of the community that are possibly quite hard to reach. So the Men’s Shed is quite unique.”

“I think it’s really interesting to see how, some of the things that they’ve done like whittling spoons…It’s a diversionary tactic for boredom. And it’s a great way of getting people to talk together. It’s more about the activity for the mental health…The demographic is not by accident. It’s all those guys of a certain age who basically are isolated, but used to perhaps work in industry, perhaps they used to do labouring and stuff like that, and don’t have the social networks now they’re no longer at work…There’s that sort of very lonely demographic that they’re looking for. And they’ve hit that demographic, and they’re using the service.”

“I see when I go there the camaraderie that comes with sharing the space…When they’re not there, they really miss it…There was a newsletter where they’re outside, working with their coats on and stuff [during lockdown]. It wasn’t ideal but they were there doing it, so that is a testament to the work that they’ve done and that the clients have a degree of ownership of what’s going on.”

Dr Oisin Brannick, Clinical Lead Self Care and North Kensington, NHS WLCCG, said: “we know initiatives such as this bring people together to learn new skills and as a result improve people’s health and wellbeing”

Cllr Sarah Addenbrooke, Lead Member for Adult Social Care and Public Health, RBKC, said: “The profound effect of loneliness and isolation has devastating effects on men’s health and remains a public health issue. The Council is committed to reducing loneliness and encouraging and supporting social interaction”