Major boost for Community Shed

The Aylsham-based Community Shed is planning to grow further after being granted charitable status.

The group, which brings men and women together to learn new skills and socialise, has also changed its name to the Aylsham and District Community Shed to reflect it welcomes members from both the town and surrounding villages.

LOOKING FORWARD: Community Shed Chair Steve Pickering and Treasurer Carey Whiteman.

The Shed became a fully registered charity in August and a spokesperson said the process to gain approval from the Charity Commission was not easy, with only 53 per cent of applications approved in the last financial year. Being a charitable incorporated organisation brings with it more legal duties for the seven trustees.

Reasons for seeking charitable status were shared with members at a general meeting earlier in the summer. It was confirmed that the Community Shed relied significantly on donations and grants to provide funds for new tools, insurance and energy charges.

Shed Secretary Andrew Mullenger said: “In the past, the Community Shed has looked at other sources of funding but, in most cases, a condition of funding was that we should be a charity. So being a charity has the potential to open more funding doors and enable the Shed to grow in terms of facilities and membership. At the same time, it also made sense for us to amend our name to reflect the range of locations covered by our membership.
“In other words, we aren’t just a group for the town of Aylsham, but also for the surrounding villages.”

Shed Chair Steve Pickering added: “We are deeply indebted to the Co-op and other supporters for their help since the launch of active shed sessions in June 2023. We welcome new members and are grateful for the many donations of tools and wood since we started. These are exciting times for us as a Shed and we look forward to future growth!”

The Shed meets on Saturdays (9.30am-12.30pm) at Aylsham High School. For further information, visit www.aylshamcommunityshed.org.uk or go along and have a chat with the shedders on a Saturday morning.