MEN’S SHEDS
The Somerdale Men’s Shed Penny Shrubb Aquaterra Operations Director
Having worked in the leisure industry for more than 25 years I have seen various approaches to encourage people to become more active to improve their general health and wellbeing. Yet in the UK, two-thirds of our population still remain inactive. It has been my personal mission throughout my career to focus on the inactive and those who are more vulnerable in the community, looking at the correlation between social interaction and health and wellbeing. Building someone’s confidence and getting them involved in regular activities that may not fit the mainstream ideal is far more rewarding than getting people to join a class or gym.
Introduction ‘A Men's Shed is a larger version of the typical man’s shed in the garden – a place where he feels at home and pursues practical interests with a high degree of autonomy. Members share the tools they need to work on projects of their own choosing at their own pace and in a safe, friendly and inclusive venue. They are places of … community projects, of purpose, achievement and social interaction.’ (http://menssheds.org.uk). The Somerdale Men’s Shed project is also at the heart of a health and wellbeing project.
© Journal of holistic healthcare
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Finding the right balance between physical activity and social interaction outside of mainstream norms is often difficult. However, a current project I have initiated that blends these two requirements perfectly is the Somerdale Men’s Shed programme. Health and wellbeing is not simply about how fit we feel. It is also about our state of mind and the things that make us feel positive about life. Connecting with other people and finding something that makes us feel needed and useful creates that positivity. It is that element of the human condition that drives me and it is why I felt that a men’s shed, with its ability to be a place of leisure that provides practical pastimes within a social atmosphere, was an ideal vehicle to address the issues of inactivity and social isolation. The word ‘shed’ conjures up pictures of a ramshackle, dilapidated outbuilding used to dump stuff that might be useful one day. But a shed can also be an organised place of calm, an escape from the hurly burly of the week, a place to potter and reflect. And to some degree that is exactly what the men’s shed provides – ‘… a larger version of the typical man’s shed in the garden – a place where he feels at home and pursues practical interests with a high degree of autonomy’. This is how a men’s
Volume 14 Issue 3 Autumn 2017
shed is described by the UK Men’s Sheds Association (UK MSA). Their description continues: A men’s shed offers this to a group of such men where members share the tools and resources they need to work on projects of their own choosing at their own pace and in a safe, friendly and inclusive venue. They are places of skill-sharing and informal learning, of individual pursuits and community projects, of purpose, achievement and social interaction. A place of leisure where men come together to work. The men’s shed idea started in Australia in the 1990s. It seems to have taken off particularly after the publication in 2015 of The Men’s Shed Movement: The Company of Men, by Professor Barry Golding of the Federation University of Australia. This book became the definitive account of men’s sheds in Australia. He described the movement as ‘being like the tributaries of a river that rose in different places but came together to create a powerful river of considerable force’. The men’s shed movement has now spread to the USA, Canada and the UK. At the time of writing, there are 432 men’s sheds registered with the UK Men’s Sheds Association
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