My Churchill Fellowship was to improve gender equality in Local Government by increasing the number of elected women Councillors.

Whilst women make up more than half the population of Australia, nearly two-thirds of Councillors are men and in 2018 just 11% of Council Chief Executive Officers or General Managers were women. 

Local Government decisions affect the lives of individuals, families and communities. The gender imbalance of Councils, in turn, affects the policies and services of Councils, as decisions are less robust without diverse perspectives and life experiences.

A survey of women parliamentarians by The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the global organisation of national parliaments, reported that the presence of women changes the political process and culture.

Having more women Councillors is important as Local Government can be a pipeline for State and Federal politics. Also, women Councillors are role models for young girls and the concept of “rising tide” shows having more women encourages diverse groups to seek representation through standing for election.”

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