TUESDAY was a memorable day for Alton Men’s Shed as work finally began on the construction of the group’s first workshop in the car park at All Saints’ Church Hall.

A digging machine arrived early in the morning to level off the Queen’s Road site before members undertake the construction of a ‘shed’ – designed to enable them to engage in small carpentry projects, using small hand and battery-operated tools.

It will be a place where members can come together to share skills and knowledge for the benefit of the community as a whole.

The £8,000 project has been supported by district and county councillors, as well as members themselves who have been ‘buying a plank’ to raise funds to build the workshop.

In thanking all those who have helped the group to raise the money needed to build the shed, members have expressed grateful thanks also to the Church of the Resurrection for the use of the land and for the use of the facilities at All Saints’ Parish Hall during the open periods of the workshop, which are on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday mornings and some Monday afternoons.

Members of Alton Men’s Shed have already used their skills to complete several community projects within the town, including redecorating the flooded Cardiac Rehab shop on Market Street.

In addition, they have replaced the glazing on the town maps, and made notice boards for the Alton Local Food Initiative garden projects at the station and Church Street.

Ongoing projects include the construction of new compost bins for the Allen Gallery garden, and the refurbishment of the bus shelter at Alton railway station, together with the repair of two benches.

The shed itself, which will give Men’s Shed members a much-needed base from which to work, and is expected to be completed by the end of August, with an opening ceremony to follow early in September.