Thanks to funding from the Focus Foundation, sessions run every Monday and Wednesday at St Richard’s Community Centre in Hangleton through to December 2025. All sessions are free, drop-in, and flexible - you don’t need to book, and you’re welcome to arrive or leave at any time.

Activities include bookbinding, screen printing, drawing, painting, sewing, and heat press design. Some members like to join the main activity, others prefer to use the craft materials independently, and some simply come along for a cuppa, biscuit, and chat.

The space provides “shoulder-to-shoulder” peer support, where connection grows naturally through shared activity. Our focus is on doing things together, rather than talking directly about mental health - helping men feel part of something bigger, reducing isolation, and supporting wellbeing.

Join Our Community

If you or someone you know is interested in joining Men’s Creative Space, please contact us at [email protected]

Our Roots: Men in Sheds

Men’s Creative Space has grown out of Fabrica’s Men in Sheds project, part of a global movement that began in Australia in the 1980s to enhance men’s health through making and camaraderie. We first opened in 2017 at Brighton Youth Centre, later transforming an old tapas bar into a woodworking hub where men could meet, work shoulder-to-shoulder, and find friendship through making.

Although we have now moved out of that original space, we are proud to carry forward the ethos and community spirit of Men in Sheds into Men’s Creative Space - continuing to provide a vital, creative lifeline for men in Brighton & Hove.

Woodworking Opportunities in Brighton

While our woodworking programme is currently paused, there are several local alternatives where you can continue making:

• The Wood Store - Volunteer opportunities in woodworking and reclamation
• Brighton Community Workshop - Affordable, membership-based maker space
• Good News Shed - A free-to-join, church-run men’s shed
• Build Brighton - A fully equipped membership shed with workshop facilities
• Making It Out - A creative social enterprise supporting people post-prison, homelessness, or addiction

Support and Acknowledgements

Since first opening in 2017, we’ve been grateful for the support of Brighton & Hove Clinical Commissioning, The Homity Trust, Chalk Cliff Trust, Chapman Charitable Trust, W.G. Edwards Charitable Foundation, Hall and Woodhouse, Paley Trust, BUPA, Percy Bilton Charity, Veolia, Suicide Prevention Fund, and Brighton Lions.