Guidance – Page 3 – Scottish Menshed

Does your Shed’s constitution allow for virtual meetings/new Scottish law?

‘GRACE’ PERIOD COMING TO AN END: 3OTH MARCH 2021

During the course of the pandemic, many Men’s Sheds adopted new ways of conducting meetings by carrying these out virtually. The Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) is advising that the governing documents of some charities do not allow for this online approach and therefore must be updated.

On the 30th September 2020, the Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020 (Meetings of Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisations) (Coronavirus) (No. 2) Regulations 2020 made legal provision to enable ‘virtual’ methods whether or not governing documents permit this. These temporary provisions were extended until the 30th March 2021.

OSCR is advising charities that this is likely to be the last extension to these provisions. Therefore, it is vital that Sheds make sure they are ‘future-proofed’ in terms of being able to conduct meetings virtually by allowing for them in governance documentation.

SMSA’s Shed-specific Constitution template

SMSA has worked with OSCR to revise its Shed-specific Constitution templates available to Sheds across Scotland:

Generic – Men’s Shed Template Constitution – Available in the SMSA Resource Library (member log-in required) under Open Sheds and Shed Development.
Ownership – SCIO Community Asset Transfer building ‘Ownership’ Constitution – Available in the SMSA Resource Library (member log-in required) under Open Sheds and Shed Development.

The changes advised by OSCR were to include the wording ‘in person and virtual’ into four different places. The above templates have been updated to reflect these recommendations.

These documents are in an editable format for your benefit and are not to be changed in any other way than adding your personal Shed charity criteria for OSCR submission. If you have adopted our SMSA/OSCR approved Shed constitution you MUST update it to this format to remain operational and legal after the March grace period. Sheds then need to notify OSCR, send the Regulator a copy of the revised constitution and ideally, the Resolution (e.g. Minute of the Board passing of the change).

If your Shed requires support, please contact Jason Schroeder, SMSA Executive Officer at ceo@scottishmsa.org.uk or call 07397382533.

Consultation Complete: SMSA Reopening Guidance for Scottish Sheds

In lockdown, the SMSA is still advising all Sheds to remain closed—until further guidance is issued from The Scottish Government. The Association has taken this time to consult with its Shed members and partner organisations on its reopening guidance that it has been working on for several months.

The guidance (containing a 16-page document, risk assessment, new member registration form, shed visit rota, track and trace form and a cleaning checklist) provides advice and examples only for Men’s Sheds in Scotland on steps and safety measures in relation to Covid-19 to follow to safely reopen their doors again when the time is right.

SMSA wishes to thank everyone that took the time to respond to the consultation including our Shed members, Healthy Working Lives, Public Health Scotland, Age Scotland and the Scottish Government. SMSA is now currently collating all of the feedback received and will revise the document accordingly.

This guidance is by no means definitive and is something that will be reviewed and updated on an ongoing basis over time.

Men’s Shed ‘Covid-19 Poster Resource Pack’ Now Available!

Sir Harry Burns announced as patron of the Scottish Men’s Sheds Association

The Scottish Men’s Sheds Association (SMSA) is delighted to announce the appointment of Sir Harry Burns – Professor of Global Public Health, University of Strathclyde – as patron of the charity for the next three years.

Sir Harry Burns was the Chief Medical Officer for Scotland for nine years (September 2005 to April 2014) and became renowned for his accomplishments in addressing health inequalities. Sir Harry was knighted in 2011 in recognition of his outstanding achievement and service to society. He is a member of the Council of Economic Advisers in Scotland and, in December 2014, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon presented him with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the inaugural Scottish Public Service Awards, recognising his lasting contribution to public service.

Sir Harry joins the SMSA – the national charitable body of Men’s Sheds for Scotland – that supports and inspires men to set up and run their own Sheds in their local communities to improve health and wellbeing. A Men’s Shed is a shared space where men – from all walks of life – attend voluntarily to work on practical projects or simply find camaraderie, conversation and friendship.

Jason Schroeder, Executive Officer of the SMSA, said: “We are honoured to welcome Sir Harry Burns as our patron. The Men’s Sheds movement began in 2009 in Scotland and there are now 188 known open and developing Sheds (engaging over 7,000 men) across Scotland and they are continuing to grow at a rapid rate. Sir Harry’s support will be key to create awareness and gravitas of the vital work that we do to improve men’s health and wellbeing. We are very much looking forward to working closely with him.”

On his appointment, Sir Harry Burns said: “I have always admired the concept of Men’s Sheds and the growing grassroot movement in Scotland and am delighted to become the patron of the SMSA. I look forward to supporting the great work that they do in my new role.”

Health and Safety Executive – Welding Safety alert

Health and Safety Executive – Safety alert

Please be aware Shedders who are welding that a new safety alert has been posted.

There is new scientific evidence that exposure to all welding fume, including mild steel welding fume, can cause lung cancer because general ventilation does not achieve the necessary control.

There is also limited evidence linked to kidney cancer

Please see the complete alert and take the necessary precautions and preventions immediately.

Please pass on to all Shedders and your Shed board.

Thank you – Scottish Men’s Sheds Association

Click link for full details: http://www.hse.gov.uk/safetybulletins/mild-steel-welding-fume.htm

New SCIO online charity application

NEW ONLINE GUIDANCE FOR SCIO APPLICATIONS

The Scottish Charity Regulator (OSCR) are currently testing an online application form if your Shed is in development and will become a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO).

For the first time you can do it all online and not use the old postal system which will eventually be phased out. You can start your application by following this link: https://status.oscr.org.uk/

The form includes instructions and links to their guidance. Any applications submitted online as part of this testing exercise will receive early attention from our case officers.

We would be very grateful for any feedback you have for us once you have finished submitting your application. Your feedback will help us to improve the form.

If you have any queries about the form, please contact martin.tyson@oscr.org.uk or anne.storrie@oscr.org.uk

Updated GDPR Documents

At the Scottish Men’s Sheds Association, we’re committed to ensuring the privacy and security of your information. As part of that commitment, we recently updated our Privacy and Cookie Policy to address the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

There’s nothing you need to do – you’re all set. But if you would like to know a bit more we do encourage you to take a look at the revised policy to see how we protect your information and your rights under the GDPR. Just click the above blue links to download the Policies.

Happy Shedding