Originating in Australia in the late 1990s, the Men’s Sheds movement has since grown to over 2500 Sheds in more than 12 countries, and the numbers keep growing! While each is as different as the communities they are found in, Men’s Sheds all share the same aim of improving men’s health and well-being by providing a space for social interaction, skill-sharing, and community engagement.
Early Beginnings
- The concept of a Men’s Shed emerged in Australia when it was recognized that retired men, feeling socially isolated and lacking connection and purpose, improved their well-being when they gathered in sheds to work on projects together. Informal precursors of Men’s Sheds were noted in the late 1970s and 1980s, for example, in gatherings of retired miners, and Vietnam Veterans. The first Men’s Shed was started in 1993 in Goolwa, South Australia as part of an activities centre for the elderly. The centre’s coordinator, Maxine Chaseling, is widely given credit for initiating the first Shed and kickstarting the movement. Her interest and motivation came from her experience in aging services and her own father’s depression following his retirement due to health problems. Maxine’s presentations at health conferences resulted in Men’s Sheds being established in a number of communities during the 1990s
Expansion and Formalization
- The Men’s Shed movement rapidly grew throughout Australia, particularly in rural and Indigenous communities. In 2007, the Australian Men’s Shed Association (AMSA) was formed to promote the development of new Men’s Sheds and provide practical support for all Men’s Sheds. That same year, Dr. Barry Golding co-authored the report Men’s Sheds in Australia: Learning Through Community Contexts
- Recognizing the importance of Men’s Sheds in promoting men’s health and well-being, the Australian government provided funding to assist their growth – support that has continued to today.
Global Spread
- The success of the movement in Australia inspired similar initiatives worldwide. Men’s Sheds started appearing in countries such as Ireland, the UK, New Zealand, and Canada.
- The Irish Men’s Shed Association was established in 2011, followed by the UK Men’s Sheds Association and Menzsheds New Zealand in 2013, the Scottish Men’s Sheds Association in 2015, and the US Men’s Shed Association in 2017.
- In 2015, Dr. Barry Golding published The Men‘s Shed Movement: The Company of Men, documenting the history, development, diversity, and evidence base about community Men’s Sheds, including in Australia, Ireland, the UK and New Zealand.
- In 2021, Shoulder to Shoulder: Broadening the Men’s Shed Movement (edited by Dr. Barry Golding) documented the continued spread across Ireland, Scotland, England, and Wales, and development of the now international movement to include several other countries, particularly the U.S., Canada, and Denmark, but also Iceland and Kenya. The book analyses new research (between 2015 and 2021) about impact and makes an evidence-based case for further broadening the movement. A chapter on the recent growth of Women’s Sheds is also included.
- A new International Men’s Sheds Organization has been established to promote Men’s Sheds and connect people with country associations.
Canada
- The first Canadian Men’s Shed was launched at the Woodhaven Community Club in Winnipeg in 2011, and the concept gradually spread to other provinces over the next ten years, with about 35 Sheds up and running by 2020. Just as momentum for the movement was growing, the COVID-19 pandemic struck, and although many Sheds stayed connected through Zoom meetings, there was a lull in the creation of new Sheds until the rescinding of social distancing.
- Provincial Men’s Sheds Associations in Manitoba and B.C. were instrumental in promoting the development of new Sheds, and the first provincial Men’s Shed Conference was held in Squamish, B.C. in 2021, followed by a provincial conference in Cold Lake, Alberta a year later. Along with funding support from an anonymous trust, United Way British Columbia, and the B.C. Ministry of Health, these conferences were instrumental in taking the Men’s Shed movement to a new level and instigating the incorporation of the Canadian Men’s Shed Association (Men’s Sheds Canada) and emergence of provincial associations in Alberta and Ontario. Many individuals and organizations working at local, regional, provincial, and national levels have been key partners and promoters of Men’s Sheds, and the current growth to over 140 Sheds and representation in every province is a testament to this collective effort.