John is the founder of the Irish Men’s Sheds Association. Set up in 2011 it now has 420 member sheds with 10,000 participating men each week.
He has won a number of awards for his work with Men’s Sheds, and for his previous work in men’s well-being and social entrepreneurship, including an Irish People of the Year Award in 2015. He sits on a number of non-profit boards, including The Wheel.
He currently manages the Social Enterprise Development Fund for SIFI - a €1.6m fund which supports social enterprises with cash grants and business supports and which is funded by IPB Insurance and the Department of Rural and Community Development.