Woodsmen Project

Men are one of the most overlooked groups when it comes to health and wellbeing , not because their needs are smaller, but because they're less visible.

Men die by suicide three times more frequently than women, and 74% of all suicides are men. On the Isle of Man specifically, Public Health data (2006–2021) shows this isn't a distant statistic: 59% of all suicides here occurred in the 25 years between the ages of 35 and 59, with the single highest-risk age band being men aged 40–44 , the very years when men are most likely to be quietly carrying pressure from work, family, and identity, often without anyone around them knowing.

Men also have a lower life expectancy than women, and that gap widens further for men who are isolated, unemployed, or navigating a relationship breakdown. Midlife and older men are at particular risk of isolation following retirement, bereavement, divorce or job loss , often with the smallest social networks and the least practice asking for help.

None of this means every man who joins is struggling.  It means the group needs to work for the man who is, the man who isn't, and everyone in between , without asking any of them to declare which one they are.

Source: Isle of Man Public Health, Suicide Prevention Strategy (PHOF data, 2006–2021).

Once a week, for eight weeks, two hours at a time,  at one of our bases in the Maughold/Dhoon area.

Each session is hands-on: bushcraft, shelter building, spoon carving, cooking on the open fire, creative activities using natural materials, and drumming. No experience needed, and no pressure to be good at it straight away. It's what happens between men while their hands are busy that does the real work.

Sessions are relaxed and go at the pace of the group. Some weeks might mean making or building something together, others might mean sitting round the fire with a brew, talking or not talking, while someone works on their carving.