The idea for a Dereham Men’s Shed was born on 13th December 2017. An open meeting was held in the town library to discuss forming a men’s social group along the lines of many other “Men’s Sheds”. Following the meeting, it was decided that Dereham should join other communities in the UK and abroad in having its own Men’s Shed. Early in 2018, the group started meeting socially at Dereham Baptist Church. A committee was formed to find suitable premises and put together the constitution.
Suitable premises were found in May 2018 and over the following weeks, the group started meeting on site. However, just a few months later, Dereham Men’s Shed’s landlord requested the space back, and our group had to go looking for new premises again.
After considering several premises over several months we were still without a permanent home. We continued to meet at Dereham Baptist Church while the search continued until the global pandemic COVID-19 reared its ugly head. We continued our weekly get-together on the Internet, like so many other groups worldwide, but it wasn’t the same.
Eventually, the COVID-19 restrictions began to ease and we took to the media to remind everyone in Dereham of our quest to find premises. Our prayers were answered when the Dereham Theatre Company responded to our post on Facebook with the offer of some space on their premises. After some negotiation, including the promise that the Men’s Shed would help to decorate the premises and make props for their productions, both parties agreed and we moved into our current home.
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