Stonehaven & District Men’s Shed (SDMS) started off after a meeting in 2016 by forming a steering committee, drawing up a constitution and achieving charitable status. Meanwhile, searching for premises.

In late 2017, SDMS learned that Aberdeenshire Council had plans to dispose of the Beach Pavilion, originally a concert hall and latterly a place for exercise clubs. The Shed initiated a Community Asset Transfer application for this facility. This was initiated and finally approved in late 2018. This led, In December 2018, to a lease being agreed for a period of 19 years at a nominal rent.

The CAT process required the Shed to justify to the Council their objectives and financing proposals which they proved with a full three-year Business Plan. The building was in a very poor state of repair and apart from renovation to address the structural problems, SDMS had to consider refurbishment to meet the needs of a Men’s Shed. Estimates showed that the minimum amount of work would cost around £65,000. This was for roof repairs, to replace around 30% of the external cladding, and internally to fit new ceilings, partitions, electrics and efficient heating panels plus some minor asbestos removal.

SDMS set about identifying how to raise the necessary funding and learned that major support could be available from the Scottish Government through South Aberdeenshire Local Action Group (SALAG), known as Leader Funding. However, to get access to this source of grants, you need to provide match funding and so the challenge to raise a proportion of the £65,000 began.

During 2018, the Shed applied to possible sources of grants and successful received monies from Big Lottery Awards for All, £10,000, Aberdeenshire Council, K & M Area Development Grant, £8,000 and NHS Grampian Health Improvement, £3,000. SDMS also initiated fundraising activities in the community and were helped considerably by donations of money, materials and equipment from individuals and local companies in the area. By adding a contribution from their own fundraising efforts, this enabled the Shed to provide match funding of £27,500 towards the Leader Funding of £37,500 thus achieving our target total of £65,000. SDMS took occupation of the building in December 2018 and the renovation works started in January 2019.

On moving in, it became apparent that it would be more prudent to replace the whole roof and 75% of the external wooden cladding and bring perform upgrades to other areas. This additional work required further funding and SDMS received grants from local oil related companies for this works. The original main scope of work was carried out by contractors, but the members have been enthusiastically involved in a variety of work scopes involving over 3,500 man-hours which even at a modest £10 an hour equates to £35,000 of labour. All this investment and added value has renovated a precious Community Asset which could have been lost. In addition, SDMS is extremely grateful for funding for workshop equipment a variety of entities including Age Scotland.

Achievements

This year, SDMS has made strenuous efforts to make Shed facilities available to members as much as possible to counter the likely effects of the COVID-19 lockdown structures. This has had considerable success.

SDMS re-opened in October 2020 after the initial COVID lockdown based on guidance from Grampian NHS and limiting the numbers to 10 onsite at any one time and utilising the Pathfindr Safe Distancing Assistant devices provided by the SMSA. SDMS closed again towards the beginning of December due to the rise in COVID cases and did not open again until March this year, again limiting the numbers and working to strict social distancing guidelines.

Achievements over the past year include:

• Raised substantial funds and contributed to recycling by refurbishing some 200 used bicycles which were donated by the public. An SDMS Trustee, who is a trained bicycle mechanic working from home, and their treasurer received the donated bikes and delivering the renovated machines to the new owners. As an extra bonus, around Christmas last year, and, over the course of this year, SDMS has donated circa 20 of these bikes to local charities for needy individuals in the community.
• Taken over the organisation and running of the local monthly Farmers’ Market from the Stonehaven Business Association.
• Recycled supports and planters from a demolished bridge and re-sited them on the promenade outside the Shed.
• Assembled and installed five picnic benches sourced by the Council, manufactured from recycled materials and manufactured and installed two of our own design, and installed one supplied by Stonehaven Rotary, all to enhance amenities on the recently refurbished Beach Promenade in Stonehaven.
• Contributed to Stonehaven’s successful bid for recognition by Beautiful Scotland by taking over a section of the Beach Promenade and ensuring it was in pristine condition for the event via a weeding, painting and cleaning programme.
• Manufactured and installed a new bench seat for the local Angling club to replace the original which was removed for the town’s flood prevention works.
• Revamped the garden attached to the local renal unit.
• Installing a solar powered water harvesting system to a newly installed poly tunnel at a local primary school.
• Issued a weekly newsletter throughout the pandemic and set up a welfare team to make regular contact with members.
• Initiated weekly walks for members to get some exercise and socialise at the same time.
• Created a new mechanical workshop area and a new hobby crafts room out of the two changing rooms and created stairs access to the empty loft area in the original Beach Pavilion which is now our home.

Challenges

Initially, SDMS looked at around 15 possible facilities, but could not find suitable premises. Instead of waiting, they booked a large room in the local community centre and held weekly meetings in there, with guest speakers, and open sessions. This helped build up interest with our members.

During COVID and Shed closure, SDMS has been faced with the challenge of raising operational revenue to meet its running costs. Fortunately, the initiative and ingenuity of two of our members in realising the potential for recycling used bicycles from home raised over £5,500 – almost half of their budgeted expenditure.

In addition, members volunteered to provide manpower to ensure that COVID regulations were adhered to at the monthly Stonehaven Farmers’ Market. This initially gave a revenue of some £150 per month but it has led to Stonehaven Men’s Shed being asked to take over the administration and running of the event and this will result in revenues of circa £2,500 per year.

Impact

• The Shed has a good working relationship with the local High School, Mackie Academy, and took over the school polytunnel enlarging the allotment round the polytunnel and installing a small greenhouse. The additional growing space has allowed pupils with learning difficulties to learn gardening skills, coached by the shedders and their teachers.
• At Mill o’ Forest Primary School the Shedders are assisting in fitting out a new polytunnel, with staging and paving and a rainwater harvesting storage system with a solar powered pump.
• The Shed Vice-Chairman represents the Shed in the Kincardine & Mearns (K&M) Wellbeing Network. He is also a member of two working groups, Mental Health and Connecting Communities. This aids co-operation with the NHS and local organisations to offer a safe place for lonely men to socialise, perhaps practice their core skill, learn a new skill or perhaps read the paper and enjoy a cup of tea and a chat.
• Aberdeenshire Council gave a grant to the Shed for the purchase of cooking utensils and a member of council staff gave Healthy Eating and Cooking for One demonstrations to inform Shedders not conversant with kitchens.
• During lockdown, one Shedder completed work on the construction of a metre long model of Titanic for the Maggie Law Maritime Museum in Gourdon. It will take pride of place when the museum reopens.
• The Shed has a good relationship with the Stonehaven Horizon Group which is responsible for the flower displays throughout the town. Horizon took the lead on this year’s Beautiful Scotland award and the Shed assisted by looking after a section of the Beach Promenade. The shedders also reclaimed cast iron stanchions and planters from a bridge demolished for the flood relief programme and re-erected them outside the shed to create a show of flowers for the Beautiful Scotland programme.
• The Shed is involved with the local Rotary Club in the Legs4Africa Charity where redundant prosthetic limbs, which would otherwise be scrapped, are stripped down and the knee and ankle joints reused in African countries.
• Shedders worked with Stonehaven Rotary initially to revamp the landscape around the new Renal Unit at the local hospital and now maintain the garden area.
• Over the past year or so, Shedders have produced a complete set of red, yellow and white tee markers for Stonehaven Golf Club, made out of tree branches from the golf club. They have also refurbished five benches which are situated on the golf course.

Leading Light

The Shed has had the good fortune to have a stable Board of Trustees which has seen few changes since its inception. The leadership of the Trustees and their participation in all facets of the Shed’s formation and development has contributed massively to its success, particularly in the early days when seeking suitable premises and facing the considerable challenge of raising the funds.

In addition, the requirement for adaptability during the pressures of the Covid-19 pandemic and the regulations to deal with it brought out the considerable experience and determination of the Shed team.

The Trustees maintain relationships with a wide variety of local, regional and national organisations whose interests complement its objectives. Two of the Trustees as noted elsewhere have generated substantial income while recycling bicycles thus avoiding landfill. Maintaining internal and external contacts during a period when mental health has been a major factor has been something all Trustees have kept in the forefront of their activities.

A group of Trustees has agreed to develop Shedder’s skills in the workshop while ensuring safe working practices. These are the basis of manufacturing new items to sell for fundraising, refurbishing cherished items and carrying out valuable work for the community. However, the main credit must go the Shedders who have given their time and talent to build the Shed. They ensured the refurbishment was completed in the shortest possible time to facilitate the start of activities. They continue to maintain the property and its facilities to ensure a safe, well-equipped workshop is available and that recreation accommodation with refreshments, including the monthly filled roll session, complements the objectives of the Shed.

Then there is Bill Emslie, our Ambassador, always ready to give advice, have a chat, express an opinion or just work away on craft items for sale. He typifies the general camaraderie and goodwill of the Shedders which is a founding factor in our success.

Going Above and Beyond

The onset of COVID came upon SDMS when they had just completed major renovations and were into their first actual year of operations. Estimated annual operational costs were £12,500 which they planned to cover with a variety of fundraising activities. Two members, Treasurer Tom Hannan and Trustee Peter Cooper got together and using Peter’s skills as a trained Bicycle mechanic and Tom’s background in logistics they took in used bicycles from the community and renovated them and sold them on.

The renovations were carried out by Peter in his garage at home and Tom used Facebook and the Web to source machines to sell them on. The result is that since the start of the pandemic, they have brought in circa £5,500 towards Shed operational costs. In addition, they were able to donate twenty bicycles to Barnardo’s who distributed them to needy families in the community last Christmas. An invaluable spin off from this is the contribution to recycling as most of the bicycles involved would have ended up as scrap in landfill.

Staying Connected During the Pandemic

When the first lockdown was announced, the Trustees discussed how they could keep in contact with members. A small Welfare Team was set up and the members were contacted by a routine of regular phone calls to check the members were well and if they needed anything.

The Shed also initiated a weekly members’ newsletter to keep them informed and Shedders were also invited to contribute to the newsletter to keep them involved. The Shed also has a website and a very popular Facebook page which is much appreciated by the members and local community. Many of the Shedders were able to work on projects at home and photographs of their achievements helped to enliven the newsletter and online content.

Future Plans

As the slow recovery from the impact of the various legislations on the Coronavirus front continues, SDMS will enforce the positive and welcoming aspects of the Men’s Shed ethos to encourage current members to return to normal, and, at the same time, communicate and inform new potential members through community contacts and familiarisation visits.

• The Shed will achieve this via ongoing communication with current members and reaching out to the community through social media and also through our continued presence at various local events like the Stonehaven Farmers’ Market. This communication involves letting them know what projects are ongoing so that they can decide how and where they can help out.
• The Shed will continue its engagement with the community carrying out projects in conjunction with local groups like Horizon, Rotary, Lions, Stonehaven Town Partnership, and Aberdeenshire Council.
• On the list of community projects is the reinstallation of the draughts board at the “Plainstones” in the town’s Market Square. This is being done in partnership with the local council. The Shedders are currently constructing a bench/storage box facility and making the drafts, and this will be installed in Spring 2022 on the “Plainstones” to bring back a little of the town’s history as well as providing an attraction at the Square. • In the easing of restrictions, the Shed will once again support local open-air festivals like the annual Fee’in market, Harbour Festival, Mid-Summer Beer Fest.
• The Shedders will get back to running the campsite for the annual Stonehaven Folk Festival once COVID has been controlled.
• The Shed will continue to earn revenue earning through the recycling and sale of bicycles, lawnmowers, and tooling for DIY and gardening.
• The manufacture and selling of various gifts, ornaments and decoration at Christmas and Easter will continue as a proven source of revenue and a service to the community.
• The Shedders are currently assisting Mill o’ Forest primary school with their new polytunnel. Over the Winter we will lay a membrane and paving and create staging internally. Externally, because it is sited 50 m from a water source, we will provide a complete rainwater harvesting system utilising a solar powered pump.
• The Shed will provide case-by-case support for small projects to assist people in the community who otherwise have difficulty in obtaining assistance due to challenges in their life circumstances. An example of this is a lady who is somewhat hampered had purchased a shed so she could potter around in her garden. Promises to erect it were made by others but not kept and the lady sought assistance. The Shedders provided labour, materials and assistance and she now has her place to potter around in.
• Post COVID we will restart classes in 3-D modelling, our weekly art classes, and continue with our weekly Thursday bothy ballads choir and speaker slots.
• Post Covid we will also re-instate our offer to other local community groups to make use of our social area at times when we are not using it.