Rising success for pie club with expansion

A PROJECT which brings men together to bake pies is to expand into Redcar and Cleveland.

- By STUART ARNOLD

Men’s Pie Club was initially launched in Newcastle and has been rolled out in eight settings to date with a ninth now set to follow in Dormanstown, near Redcar, in the first quarter of 2026.

The aim is to promote social connections among those taking part, combat loneliness and isolation and to improve mental wellbeing.

Mental health issues affect nearly half of people claiming long-term sickness benefits in Redcar and Cleveland, more than 49%.

Meanwhile, a community mental wellbeing service for adults in the borough operated by Teesside Mind saw a significant rise in referrals this year, although some of the increase has been attributed to better community engagement and referral pathways from local job centres.

Men’s Pie Club, which describes itself as “local guys making pies” and states on its website “we're here for a chat as much as a scran”, was launched by Byker based social enterprise company Food Nation and began in 2017 with funding from the “Movember” movement.