00:00The sound of saws, the smell of fresh wood and the hum of conversation.
00:04This hut in Woodstable is doing more than just building things.
00:08For the past decade the Jolly Bodgers have been bringing people together to combat loneliness
00:13and also keep traditional crafts alive, just one conversation at a time.
00:17But what are some of the reasons attendees come to this hut?
00:20I think primarily loneliness and a need to talk to other people and interact with other people
00:34and really just to learn woodworking skills.
00:37It's just great, you know, they have all the tools, much more than I've got
00:42and it's just a good company and very enjoyable.
00:46It's a really nice place to come and as you see we sit about and drink tea quite a bit.
00:53There's blokes in work, they don't talk to one another about their health.
00:58So when we come here we try to get people to open up and, you know, be part of our
01:03little community.
01:05You know, if someone's down a bit we can try and cheer them up a bit, you know what I
01:07mean?
01:08Behind me is Bodgers Hut, named after the craftsmen who make chair legs known as bodgers.
01:13Now bodging is a traditional woodturning craft using green unseasoned wood like this one to make chairs,
01:19tables and stools like the ones you can see in the hut behind me.
01:23And that's what makes this place so unique. They only use green wood.
01:26Here people can work on their own projects or they can help out in the nearby community gardens
01:31or even take part in bigger projects like this one.
01:34A two-person lightweight boat, a coracle, which took just over a year to complete.
01:39But bodging is a dying craft and, according to one member,
01:43it's places like these that help encourage develop practical skills.
01:47It is one of the ten at-risk trades that's dying.
01:57So we just love to promote it, keep the skills going.
02:01We've now got 900 sheds like this all out of the UK.
02:07And it's just grown unbelievable.
02:11With traditional crafts fading and loneliness rising across the county,
02:15the Jolly Bodgers are proving that community is vital
02:18and that people coming together can build more than just woodwork.
02:22Nayla Mahamud for KMTV in Whitstable.
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