Media centre

Monday 14 Dec 2020

Project cops for a Shed load of logs

Region & Route:

Scotland’s Railway: Scotland

The Men’s Shed at Bayview was the recipient of the first load of logs which originated from the vegetation clearance on the branch line between Thornton Junction and Leven.

The logs were donated by Network Rail as the removal of trees and undergrowth continues along the six-mile corridor in preparation for the reinstatement of 19 single track kilometres of railway and two new modern accessible stations in the east of Fife.

The Bayview Men’s Shed was established in Methil in October 2019 with a vision of members sharing their skills, picking up new skills and putting them to good use for the benefit of the community. It also offers social interaction and support and is open to all from across the community.

It is part of an international movement that seeks to provide men and women of all ages a place to come together and learn from each other in the local community. The learning process begins by developing and fostering good relationships within and beyond, The Shed.

Despite the pandemic, the Shed has established itself, brought in members and with the support of local businesses has expanded to provide additional work and social space as a base for community and environmental projects.

Ken Whyte, Chair of the Shed at Bayview, said: “One of the skills we were hoping to develop was forest craft. When we heard that Network Rail were clearing along the railway line prior to work commencing on the new Levenmouth Railway Link we got in touch. We asked if we could get some logs for “The Shed” and boy did they deliver!

“We will cut the logs into manageable pieces and use them for a variety of projects. The Oak and Ash will be turned into custom made plaques and longer pieces will be turned into seating benches which we will donate to the new church hall at Wellesley Parish Church.

“The wood chippings from all the cutting and shaping we will be doing is going to be used to provide a soft surface around Bayview to make it environmentally friendly and aesthetically pleasing.”

Graeme Stewart, Network Rail’s project sponsor for the Levenmouth Rail Link, said: “We are delighted to support local organisations where, and how, we can as we deliver projects in the community.

“Removing the trees is necessary for the development of the project but it is fantastic that they can be repurposed and reused and we are grateful to our contractors QTS for ensuring that the logs were preserved and delivered to groups who could make use of them.

“The Men’s Shed is a great local project and we look forward to working with them further throughout the rail link project.”