Bexhill MP, Dr Kieran Mullan, recently visited Bexhill Men’s Shed located in Jameson Mews just off Jameson Road in Bexhill on Sea to meet its members and hear more about how this successful community group has grown to over 180 members and continues to expand its range of activities.
Despite its name, Bexhill Men’s Shed now runs sessions for men, women and mixed groups throughout the week. Members can learn new skills, pass on knowledge, work on projects and most importantly socialise at this friendly and welcoming group.
Traditional skills such as carpentry, wood-turning, upholstery and metalwork sit alongside new technology such as 3D laser printing, computing and laser cutting thanks to a wide range of equipment and knowledge and skills of members. Whilst the average age of members is in their 60s to 70s, they do have members as young as 18 who are working on technical courses at local colleges and want more hands-on experience. The Shed has also welcomed boys and girls from local cub scout groups who want to do their DIY badges.
During his visit, Kieran had a tour of all the different workspaces at the Men’s Shed, found out about projects they have worked on and heard how everyone sits down at 1pm to enjoy lunch and a chat together.
Julian Griffiths, Chairman and Trustee, told Kieran that the Shed had recently introduced talks with external experts for members on subjects including prostate cancer, will-writing & Powers of Attorney, Dementia, AAA (Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms). These sessions are free for members and their partners/friends and have proved very popular. They are looking to introduce further talks throughout the coming year.
Kieran said “It was a great pleasure to visit Bexhill Men’s Shed. We are very lucky to have such an amazing Men’s Shed in the town which relies entirely on volunteers to run it. I took the opportunity to thank everyone who plays a role running in the Men’s Shed for their commitment and enthusiasm which has made this group an important part of the Bexhill community.”
For more information about Bexhill Men’s Shed visit https://www.bexhillmensshed.org.uk/