WMS was originally formed in Menston in October 2018 with the intention of becoming a non-profit making charity. Jason Middleton, a psychotherapist with both personal and professional experience as to the challenges facing the well-being of men and also the lack of consistent and local access to physical, practical and emotional support venues and organisations, registered with the UK Men’s Shed Association as a ‘Shed in Development’. Within days, he was contacted by two men, one in Menston and one in Horsforth who had heard of the ‘UK Men’s Shed’ movement and the three agreed to meet and to explore how and what could be done to pursue the idea of a new ‘Shed’. As they had no premises, the three agreed to meet in a bar – The Bar T’at in Ilkley. In the meantime, another man, resident in Silsden had just retired and decided that he needed to buy a garden shed so did what everyone does nowadays and searched on the internet for ‘sheds’ and instead of finding a garden shed found the entry for a ‘Men’s Shed in development’ located in Menston. Dave decided that he too liked the idea so he decided to ring the contact – Jason. Thus was born the original committee consisting of the four founder members of what, at that time, was called ‘Menston Men’s Shed.
So, the Committee was formed and further meetings in the Bar T’at held, where discussions continued on how to go forward. The first decision made by the four was to change the ‘shed’ name as they felt that ‘Menston’ Men’s Shed appeared somewhat ‘parochial’ especially given that two of the members were from outside the area, so settled on Wharfedale as, covering a much wider area, it was felt to be more inclusive. Hence Wharfedale Men’s Shed (WMS) came into being!! The Committee structure was agreed on with Jason as Chairman, Dave as Treasurer and Bob as Secretary with Stuart as the fourth committee member. It was quickly established that they all had the same passion for creating a venue where men could be part of ‘something’ that promotes their well-being, mental health, friendship, community, a sense of purpose, and the learning of practical skills in a workshop environment. So began the search for a venue where they could make this happen.
After a short search, they chanced upon the ‘Maker Space’, part of the old Courthouse complex in Otley. This new workshop had very limited membership so needed to attract more people to make it viable. Jason and Bob visited the site and decided to make an offer to take over the space for one full day per week. The Courthouse quickly agreed and the following week on Monday 25th March 2019, the first day of the Wharfedale Men’s Shed was enjoyed by no less than six members – the committee of four plus Neil O’Brien and Lorenz Howitz.
The first project undertaken by the new ’Shed’ was the creation of the Wharfedale Men’s Shed plaque. Each member was tasked with making letters or numbers using a material they had never worked with before, and whatever skills (or lack thereof!) they had. The resulting board is still proudly on display in the foyer of the workshop unit. A metal plate was added and each new member stamps their name so that we have a permanent record of their membership. Please click the image for a larger version! In May, we were successful in achieving Charitable Status and became Registered Charity No. 1183609 with the four committee members as Trustees!!
Since then, WMS has been involved in a number of community-based projects, including the Santa Sleigh rebuild for Ilkley Round Table, bird table and nest boxes for Wildlife Friendly Otley, hedgehog pods for the Hedgehog Highway project in Otley a shelf fit-out of unused storage space for different groups based at Silsden Town Hall, and a complete re-build of the raised garden at the Westgate School in Otley to name just a few. We have also supported fellow members in completing personal projects, including planters, gates, etc. There are presently 17 active, registered members.
WMS also offers a ‘repair shop’ facility and is formally associated with the UK Men’s Shed Association. Since its conception in 2018 and despite the Coronavirus pandemic, WMS has continued to grow in membership and remains a profitable and viable organisation. It has an excellent track record of success from grass roots start up to the Registered Charity it is today. Sadly during the 6years of our existence, some members have passed away but the membership has continued to flourish with requests for membership coming in from a number of sources including referrals from social prescribers.