Hands-On Group Hobbies: What Men’s Sheds, Repair Cafés and Bell Ringing Groups Say They Offer and How to Find One

Some of the most absorbing ways to unwind are practical, social and slightly unhurried: making, mending or ringing alongside other people. This guide looks at three kinds of group that offer a regular, hands-on reason to meet other people: Men’s Sheds, Repair Cafés and church bell ringing. It relies on their own published pages, so the claims about benefits are theirs, not independent research. Men’s Sheds are run across the UK through the UK Men’s Sheds Association, Repair Cafés are an international movement that includes the United Kingdom, and bell ringing is supported by the Central Council of Church Bell Ringers, a registered charity in England and Wales. This is general information about leisure activities, not health advice.

Men’s Sheds

The UK Men’s Sheds Association (UKMSA) describes itself as the support body for Men’s Sheds across the UK. It says Sheds encourage people to come together to make, repair and repurpose, supporting projects in their local communities, and describes them as kitted-out community spaces where men can enjoy practical hobbies, make friends and share skills. Its Find a Shed page adds that many men come just for the tea and banter, and that everyone is welcome.

UKMSA says it does not own or manage Sheds, which are community-driven and member-led. It reports that it was founded in 2013, when there were about 30 Sheds in the UK, and that by 2026 there are over 1,150 open, with 180 or more in planning at any one time. It says 33,000 people access a Shed every week and that between eight and twelve new Sheds are opening each month. A postcode or town search on its website finds the nearest Shed, and it offers guidance for anyone who wants to start one.

UKMSA quotes its 2023 Health and Wellbeing Survey, which it says suggests that 96% of attendees feel less lonely since joining. These are the association’s own survey figures.

Repair Cafés

The Repair Café International Foundation says Repair Cafés are free meeting places where people repair things together. At a Repair Café there are tools and materials for repairs on clothes, furniture, electrical appliances, bicycles, crockery and toys, and expert volunteers with repair skills in all kinds of fields. Visitors bring broken items from home and start making repairs with the specialists, which the Foundation calls an ongoing learning process.

Visitors with nothing to repair can have a cup of tea or coffee, lend a hand with someone else’s repair job or browse the reading table of repair and DIY books. The Foundation says there are over 2,500 Repair Cafés worldwide, including in the United Kingdom, and that the first was held in Amsterdam on 18 October 2009. It says the main aim is to show how much fun repairing things can be and how easy it often is, as well as to keep repair skills alive and cut waste. It also says Repair Cafés often advise visitors to use the few professional repairers still around, so the two do not compete.

Church bell ringing

The Central Council of Church Bell Ringers (CCCBR) describes bell ringing as a team activity that stimulates the brain and helps keep you fit, especially climbing tower steps, and that also makes a glorious sound. It says ringers come from all walks of life and generally range in age from ten to those in their eighties, and that almost anyone can ring, including people who consider themselves unmusical, bad at maths or not very strong. Some ringers have mental or physical disabilities, it adds, describing it as an inclusive activity.

According to the CCCBR, the initial learning takes several weeks, after which a learner can begin to ring with the rest of the band, the team that rings together. Most ringers practise once or twice a week and ring before or after the Sunday church service. The CCCBR lists reasons to learn to ring: making friends, lifelong learning, maintaining a traditional skill, serving the community, team activity, support and friendship in the pub after practice, and a mental workout. Interested people can listen for bells at a nearby church or register on its Learn to Ring form so a tower can be found in their area. The CCCBR’s Ringing 2030 strategy aims for 10,000 more active ringers by 2030, with half of them under 30.

Choosing and trying one

Each organisation offers a way to find or contact a local group, and all rely on volunteers, so contact details from each organisation’s own site are the best starting point. A first visit is a low-commitment way to find out whether the pace and company suit. For other social outdoor ideas the site has guides to group walking and building social connection.

FAQs

Are Men’s Sheds only for men?

UKMSA describes Sheds as community spaces where men can enjoy practical hobbies and says its mission is access to a Shed for every man who would benefit. Other groups in this guide are open more widely.

Do I need to bring something to a Repair Café?

No. The Repair Café Foundation says visitors with nothing to repair can enjoy a cup of tea or coffee or lend a hand with someone else’s repair.

How long does it take to learn to ring a bell?

The CCCBR says the initial learning takes several weeks, after which a learner can begin to ring with the rest of the band.

The bottom line

Men’s Sheds, Repair Cafés and bell ringing groups all offer a regular, hands-on reason to meet other people. Each organisation has a way to find a local group, but the wellbeing claims quoted here are the organisations’ own. Trying one session before committing is the simplest way to see whether it is relaxing. This is general information, not health advice.

Sources

• Find a Shed (menssheds.org.uk)
• About UKMSA (menssheds.org.uk)
• What is a Repair Café? (repaircafe.org)
• Learn to ring (cccbr.org.uk)
• Ringing 2030 (cccbr.org.uk)