It was formally known as Hartford Men in Sheds, which was the first shed of this type to open in the UK. Unfortunately due to business reasons beyond our control our sponsors had to withdraw funding. We therefore decided that we would have to set up a new independent shed and hence Mid-Cheshire Community Shed was formed. We are a local charity based in Northwich and have recently managed to obtain
new premises for our charity to operate from, thanks to the help of Cheshire West and Cheshire Council. WHAT IS A COMMUNITY SHED? Community Sheds are similar to garden sheds – a place to pursue practical interests at leisure, to practice skills and enjoy making and mending. The difference is that garden sheds and their activities are often solitary in nature while Community Sheds are the opposite. They’re about social connections and friendship building, sharing skills and knowledge, and of course a lot of laughter. Sheds are whatever the members (or Shedders as we call them) want them to be. Although labelled sheds, they often aren’t sheds at all. They can be empty offices, portable cabins, warehouses, garages, and in at least one case, a disused mortuary. Some Sheds are purpose built workshops, but they rarely start out that way. Many don’t have premises at all in the beginning and instead form a group that meets regularly for the social connection, company and camaraderie until they can find somewhere to kit out with tools. Many Sheds get involved in community projects too – restoring village features, helping maintain parks and green spaces, and building things for schools, libraries and individuals in need. Activities in Sheds vary greatly, but you can usually find woodworking, metalworking, repairing and restoring, electronics, model buildings or even car building in a typical Shed. Sheds typically attract older men, but many welcome women and younger members too. Whatever the activity, the essence of a Shed is not a building, but the connections and relationships between its members. WHY ARE THEY NEEDED? For a long time research has shown the negative impact of loneliness and isolation on a person’s health and wellbeing. Recently we have seen more evidence come to light that shows loneliness and isolation can be as hazardous to our health as obesity and excessive smoking. Surveys from mental health charities are finding that millions of people report feeling lonely on a daily basis. Men typically find it more difficult to build social connections than women, and unlike women of a similar age, less older men have networks of friends and rarely share personal concerns about health and personal worries. It is not the case for all men, but for some, when retirement comes, it can feel like personal identity and purpose is lost. Community Sheds can change all of that. Sheds are about meeting like-minded people and having someone to share your worries with. They are about having fun, sharing skills and knowledge with like-minded people and gaining a renewed sense of purpose and belonging. As a by-product of all of that they reduce isolation and feelings of loneliness, they allow men to deal with mental health challenges more easily and remain independent, they rebuild communities and in many cases, they save men’s lives. OUR AIM
Our aim is to promote social inclusion for people over the age of 25, male and female, within the Cheshire area. We aim to prevent socially exclusion by providing a place to go and meet like minded people on a social level. We provide facilities in which they can
1. meet to undertake, jointly or individually, creative, physical or recreational activities.
2. Learn or pass on skills and knowledge and
3. Support each other in order to improve the health and wellbeing of our members. There maybe many reasons why someone would like to join us. It could be as a result of one of more of the following factors:
• ill health (physical or mental);
• financial hardship;
• bereavement or old age;
• loneliness;,
• or just plain boredom. Many surveys from mental health charities are reporting millions of people leading lonely lives on a daily basis. The effects of the recent Pandemic emphasises the need for charity community groups to provide social interaction, to share worries & rebuild identities and friendships. Whatever the reason, they will be welcome to join in and we will be happy to see them. Currently we have the facilities for woodwork and metalwork and are looking at other activities that will interest a diverse membership as well as facilities to enjoy tea, coffee and biscuits and a friendly chat. We are in process of creating different activities for our members, the more the merrier. WHAT DO WE NEED? We need sponsorship to support the costs of providing this environment, equipment and materials to use. We would love to promote our sponsors widely throughout our work.
