I started
Colwyn Bay Men's Shed in May last year and it has gone from half a dozen guys then, to over 70 members currently. We meet several times a week and have social sessions (guys coffee morning), Ukulele group, digital photography group, cooking, Facebook training, gardening group in addition to the general workshop meetings. It really has been a huge success.
When we started, there was just one other Shed in North Wales but now there are six, with others in the planning/talking stage. I would encourage anyone to pop along to their local Shed to see what they get up to (they are all slightly different). Our philosophy is that the men do what they want to do and no one is pressured to do anything, If they want to sit and sup tea then that's fine. If you don't have a Shed near you then consider starting one, you only need a nucleus of about three guys and there is plenty of information online to help you.
As for age, this again will vary with each shed so you would need to check locally. While the principle is aimed at the older generation there is no reason why younger members cannot be involved. Our shed accepts men over 18 years and we do have some members in their 30s. Be aware that some welcome women but we discourage this.
The
UK Men's Shed Association linked to above is a good starting point if you are looking for a shed in your area. If you are in Wales you should check out
Men's Shed Cymru and in Scotland the
Scottish Men's Shed Association is the place to look. For those in Ireland there is an extremely strong presence and more can be found from the
Irish Men's Shed Association.
The idea didn't start in the USA and in fact, as far as I know, there are only a handful of Sheds over there. It started in Australia and more information can be found from the
Australian Men's Shed Association.
I hope all that is of help to someone.
regards
Brian
