2022 Updates.

Karl Hart
Feb 7, 2022
3 min read

As you may already know, Men Only is a peer-led initiative to support men and raise awareness of men's mental health issues. Men Only are based in Ryde on the Isle of Wight. We have a mission to support men, whether they need some advice or just the space to talk. We intend to create a peer group to help men prevent mental health problems proactively rather than reactively.

Men only aim to provide all men with the opportunity to make new friends. We will strive to end the social stigma of mental health and the loneliness many men experience.

We have the chance to lease a shopfront in Ryde, and this is a tremendous opportunity for us to create and grow a mental health hub for the men in our community and their families. We are in the process of making this a reality!

Having the premises right in the heart of Ryde and close to transport points and parking will help us provide a safe place for men to walk in, have a coffee and chat. We can support signposting, supporting the most vulnerable through processes many of us find challenging and may find impossible to do on their own.

In addition, we will have the space to provide group sessions, training courses, and 1:1 support. We will have a fantastic opportunity to grow our Saturday Superdads group sessions by holding activity and craft sessions in a safe place.

We are doing so well with our activities now. We are, however, spread across the town and even Sandown so that we can find affordable space and all other activities are good-weather dependants.

Opening The Men Only Hub in Ryde will also be an opportunity to create a blueprint that will enable us to open hubs across the Island. In turn, we will be supporting the goal of removing the stigma around poor mental health and creating a safe space to support a large group of our community.

Events

On the 5th of September 2021, we held our first-ever Men Only Walk & Talk meeting. Since then, we have held a movie and curry night, Saturday Super dads session, which we are expanding this year to include sessions with woodland schools, beach and forest walks and sessions in our new Men Only HQ.

On Saturday, the 5th of March, we have our first music quiz night to raise money for upcoming Men Only projects. It is being hosted by Scruffy Jacks Sports bar in Sandown. The details are below.

Our Walk & Talk groups are every other Sunday, and the next one is this coming Sunday, the 11th of February. We set off from Puckpool Park at 1 pm. The details are below.

We invite men from across the Island to join us for our events or get in touch for any reason. We have created a non-judgmental environment and opportunity to share and offload, which is the purpose of the Men Only.

We know it can be easier for some men to open up when they are out for a walk or have a reason to get out of the house. Our Men Only Centre will provide a safe space to meet others with lived experience and learn how other men in similar situations have worked their way through the darkness.

We are confident that offering the opportunity to share, either by talking, listening, or simply by experiencing their value, will allow them to be themselves, share experiences and emotions without judgment and learn that it is ok not to be ok and it's ok to feel emotional.

All of the team at Men Only are excited and looking forward to a brilliant year ahead. We'd love you to come along and join us.

If you would like to book or want more information about our events, this is our events page; https://www.menonlyiow.co.uk.