'We put the pressure on to join Men in Sheds'
It started out as a gathering to reduce loneliness and combat social isolation among elderly men.Now there are more than 1,000 Men in Sheds projects running across the country, where members get together, talk and learn new skills.But while many are aimed exclusively at men, one group in Loughborough, Leicestershire, has taken the decision to admit women and members' wives.Member Brenda Needham said: "I kept asking my husband all the while 'why can't we join?'"
The 74-year-old added: "Eventually they let us in, just one morning, eventually it became all the time, and now it's 50% women, and we absolutely love it."The group, which has been renamed Men and Women in Sheds - Charnwood, now has 80 paid-up members.It allows them to learn new skills, such as repairing and refurbishing furniture and other household items, which would otherwise be sent to landfill. The group then sells the items, with £800 being made at a recent farmers and crafts market.
Karen Arme, 64, believes joining the group has helped improve her mental health and said she was never interested in what were seen as traditional female skills. She said: "Not everybody likes sewing and baking."I think the men maybe were a little concerned at the beginning because maybe they came here to get away from their wives and were worried we were going to take over."But we haven't done that, we work well together."
When the women were allowed into the workshop, members decided to keep a quiet room with a model railway display in it, just for men. Andrew McNnerney, 70, admitted there was initially some resistance to becoming a mixed group. He said: "There was apprehension, but in all honesty, it's turned out well."We [the men] escape now and again [to the quiet room] and have a chat and weigh things up."But he added: "It's a lovely atmosphere, and it's been good. "Tony Donovan, executive director of Age UK Leicester Shire & Rutland, which runs the project, said: "Everyone has a story to tell about what life was like before they came [here], and in many cases it wasn't great. "It's a brilliant, brilliant project, and we are incredibly proud of it."
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