Who are we and what do we do?
Loneliness, social isolation, and depression are substantial risk factors amongst the elderly, reducing their quality of life and adding to the burden on the health and caring professions. Ore Village, where our Men’s Shed is situated, is one of the ten most deprived areas in the country where ill-health and social isolation are of great concern. Research based on national statistics has shown that the average life expectancy for men in the Hastings area is five years shorter than more affluent areas of the country and that men living in the most socially deprived areas of Hastings have a life expectancy 11.3 years shorter than more affluent areas.
This is why the Men’s Shed exists.
We aim to mitigate the problems of loneliness, social isolation, and linked health problems by providing fully equipped wood and metal workshops where members can pursue craft and social activities within the shed environment. We are a friendly, inclusive group that encourage fellow members, both men and women, to share their accumulated and varied expertise and allows participation within the limits of their ability. In this environment, there are opportunities to foster learning and improve basic skills. We also provide a low-cost repair service to the local community and our environmental credentials are also positive since we use donated and recycled materials whenever possible. All this benefits our member’s feelings of self-worth and improves their mental and physical health. As a bonus, we also help to reduce the impact on the local health and care services.
The Shed has members ranging from the able-bodied to the disadvantaged and vulnerable. We also provide support for those having autism, learning disabilities and early-stage dementia.
The Men's Shed has a proven record of success. It opened in 2016 and has expanded its services and service user numbers over that time in response to a growing need. Our membership now numbers around 180, no mean feat, since the charity is managed entirely by a small core of volunteers.
The reason for our appeal?
Originally the Shed was able to meet much of its operating costs from its independent income sourced through membership fees, repairs and refurbishment projects and goods made for sale to the local community, with the remaining operating costs coming from grants. Grants however are becoming ever more difficult to obtain and now, in recent years our rent has significantly increased.
If the charity is to be sustainable for the medium to long term, we need to purchase the building thus significantly reducing our operating costs by being rent free.
The Charity is fundraising as much as it can to subsidise the purchase of the building.
The building and grounds, in its current poor condition has been professionally valued at just under £100k. However, the owners are insisting on a significantly higher purchase price. On that basis we applied to the Community Ownership Fund (COF) for a grant of £90k to purchase the building, with the balance funded by us, the Shed. Our grant application passed Stage 1 of the COF process however, the General Election got in the way of our application advancing to Stage 2. The COF has advised that all applications are presently suspended, and we do not know when, or if the fund will reopen.
We have considered a mortgage option but, unfortunately, we have hit a brick wall with that because the specialist charity mortgage providers we approached will only offer a minimum of £100k mortgage at 75% of the property value, so we do not meet the criteria for a mortgage.
To bring the building up to a good standard of repair, improve the energy performance rating and to provide a better, more suitable environment for our mostly elderly service users, we estimate we need to find a further £40k to £60k. We hope to be able to source these funds from several smaller grants once the building is secured.
The Lord Lieutenant and the High Sheriff of East Sussex and our local MP have visited our charity and have said we provide extremely valuable support for the local community.
It would be a travesty if our charitable work just evaporated through lack of financial resources. We are extremely focused on ensuring that does not happen.
We acknowledge the sum of money we are targeting is significant, and we are realistic about how long it may take to achieve our goal.
We are hopeful that our Stage 2 grant application with the COF will be successful next year and, with a little support from many people we hope that much of our overall funding needs will be met.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read our appeal and we hope, like us, you believe our cause is worthy.
We understand times are exceedingly difficult for many people and your generous donation, of any size, will be very much appreciated.