MEN and women from the Men's Shed community project got their hands dirty to help launch a Christmas campaign to tackle loneliness and isolation across Scotland.
The group from Barrhead helped launch Age Scotland's “no one should have no one” campaign to help combat the rising issue for older people over the festive period.
Around 30 "shedders" gave demonstrations of their work, which ranges from woodwork to painting and sewing as part of the launch.
Age Scotland's Chief Executive, Brian Sloan, said that latest research shows that 60,000 older Scots will spend Christmas Day alone – an increase of 50 per cent on just two years ago.
He said: "Winter can exacerbate feelings of loneliness as people retreat indoors, and this can have a huge impact on mental and physical health.
"We want to raise awareness of loneliness and issue a call to action to people to reach out to those who are on their own.
"We’re delighted to support projects such as Barrhead Men’s Shed that are making a real difference to their communities. We should have sheds like this all over Scotland."
The Men's Shed movement is a growing group of community projects which provide space for retired men and women to meet, socialise and share skills, with around 110 open around the country.
Alex Storrie, Chairman of Barrhead Men’s Shed, said: "We’ve got a really successful group here, but there are a lot of lonely people, and we haven’t reached them all yet.
"I recently heard loneliness described as a disease. We’re determined to do what we can to help people with this disease, but we can only do that with funding and support.”
Minister for Social Security, Jeane Freeman, said: “Christmas can too often be a particularly difficult time for people who feel alone. We welcome Age Scotland’s campaign and encourage all of us to remember the older people in our neighbourhoods and communities over the festive period and throughout the year."
Age Scotland is an independent charity dedicated to supporting older people in later life. It supports Men’s Sheds by providing advice and grants towards equipment and other costs.
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