Men’s Sheds (or 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 Men’s Sheds are the opposite. They’re about social connections and
building friendships , 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 cabin’s, 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
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 have younger members and women too. Whatever
the activity, the essence of a Shed is not a building, but the connections and
relationships between its members.