The Batemans Bay Men's Shed is creating a community space for many to use

It's a time when members gather for a cuppa, a piece of cake, and a yarn before they head back out to the shed to continue their projects.

Vice-president Les O'Connell said morning tea was one of the most important parts of being a member, a time to have a chat about anything worrying them or simply have a social connection they might not have at home.

"The men's shed is really about men's mental health, it helps people stay communicating and socialising," Mr O'Connell said.

"For some it's a good opportunity to get away from home for a morning and have their own time, but some of the men are single and don't associate with anyone else during the week so it's their time to socialise too."

The shed was started 16 years ago by Neil Page, now a Batemans Bay Men's Shed life member.

He and a friend would meet weekly in a small space behind the current shed at St Bernard's Catholic Church to work on a project together.

Since then, membership has grown to 65 people, with at least 20 heading to the shed on Tuesday's and Wednesday's for a morning of good company and working together on projects for the community.

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Mr O'Connell originally joined because he had a welding task from home that needed attention, but didn't want to pay "an arm and a leg" for someone to do it.

"I've always been handy so I thought I could try it myself and I found out about the Men's Shed because a couple of other guys I knew had joined, so I brought my project down here to work on it," he said.

"I then joined the committee because I could see what had to be done in the shed to improve it and that's what I like to work on now."

Improvements to the shed Mr O'Connell would like to see include installing a dust collector right through the building, and eventually he'd love to have a separate metal workshop beside the woodworking part of the shed.

But first, his main project is installing a firewall at the front of the shed, for which he's waiting on a quote from a local supplier.

"Eventually I'd love for this space to be a community hub, which lots of groups can use for their meetings like how the Narooma Men's Shed is set up," he said.

"That way, when we apply for grants it would be for the benefit of more than just the Men's Shed, it would be for any group who uses the space to make it better for everyone."

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In lieu of grants, Men's Shed members have come up with a number of interesting ways to raise money, including their portable fire pits and pizza ovens made from donated empty gas bottles.

Secretary Terry Robinson said the fire pits are particularly popular on Facebook buy, swap and sell pages.

"For the fire pits and pizza ovens, Facebook marketplace has really changed everything," he said.

"We're able to put what we have available up there and it gets sold pretty quickly which is a nice feeling, because people know they're supporting the shed when they buy one."

Batemans Bay Bunnings was also a big supporter of the shed, donating materials and old stock where possible.

To help support the shed, Mr O'Connell said while cash donations were helpful, donations of people's time wouldn't go unnoticed.

"It can be a bit rude to ask, but at the moment we do need money to help improve the shed and expand," he said.

"Even donations of people's time where they volunteer to help put up the firewall for example, or donate the use of equipment like a bobcat, that would be most welcome."