OUR HISTORY

One of the oldest women’s clubs in Queensland, Brisbane Women’s Club was formed in 1908 under the sponsorship of the Queensland Women’s Electoral League. Originally called the Women’s Progressive Club, the name was changed to The Brisbane Women’s Club in May 1912 and shortened to Brisbane Women’s Club in 2008.  Brisbane Women’s Club was founded by Margaret Ogg, an extraordinary woman with a passion to improve the lives of Queensland women.

The founding objectives of the club were to provide a social centre for women workers in the cause of reform and to encourage free discussion on subjects of public importance, including social, political and municipal matters.  The club lobbied the Brisbane City Council and the State Government for the betterment of the community and supported the establishment of Women’s College at the University of Queensland. In an effort to improve the life of rural women, the club was instrumental in the establishment of the Queensland Country Women’s Association in 1922 and the Bush Book Club in 1921.

The club sponsored such reforms as:

  • waiting sheds for tram passengers
  • numbering tram stops
  • name plates on trees in the Botanical Gardens
  • dating milk bottles
  • erecting a shelter shed on North Quay
  • installing traffic lights at busy intersections
  • the supply of milk for school children
  • zebra crossings outside schools
  • better street lighting
  • equal pay for women
  • the removal of the double standard in divorce laws
  • the right of women to sit on juries
  • the establishment of baby clinics
  • changes to laws that would allow women to be elected to local councils and to sit on governing boards
  • the introduction of domestic science for schoolgirls into the Queensland school curriculum

Brisbane Women’s Club celebrated its centenary in 2008 and continues to support and improve the lives of local Brisbane women today.

OUR PATRON

Effective 10 January 2022, the Vice-Regal Patron of Brisbane Women’s Club is Her Excellency the Honourable Dr Jeannette Young PSM Governor of Queensland.

Her excellency was sworn-in as the 27th Governor of Queensland on 1 November 2021 and will remain the Patron of Brisbane Women’s Club for her term in office.

BWC CHARITABLE GRANTS GIVING PROGRAM

Following the sale of the Brisbane Women’s Club city premises, the club has been able to provide for the BWC Charitable Giving Program which allows our members to distribute goods, grants, scholarships and donations to a number of worthy charities that support local women, including:

  • Women’s Legal Service
  • Yalari
  • Friends with Dignity
  • UQ Women’s College
  • Qld Country Women’s Association
  • Logan Women’s Health and Wellbeing Centre
  • Lady Musgrave Trust
  • Suited for Success
  • A Brave Life
  • Sisters of the Good Samaritan
  • NPY Women’s Council
  • 4Voices
  • Lovewell Foundation
  • Signal Flare
  • Zig Zag Young Women’s Resource Centre Inc
  • Royal Brisbane Women’s Hospital
  • Reason to Thrive

The BWC Charitable Grants Program remains central to our fundraising program and our ability to    distribute proceeds from our events and other activities.

Applications will be called for the BWC Charitable Grants Program throughout the year.

OUR BOARD

The Brisbane Women’s Club Board is made up of a group of elected BWC members who volunteer their time and energies to strategically lead all activities and endeavours in line with the club’s constitutional objectives:

  • Exercise leadership around issues affecting women;
  • Support projects and organisations aimed at improving the lives of women;
  • Mentor and guide women to achieve equal participation in social, cultural, economic and political arenas of Australian life; and
  • Create events and activities which benefit women.

Each Board member brings the necessary skills and experience to the Board to run operations and oversight the club’s governance requirements.  Currently the Board holds a mixture of qualifications (including commerce, accounting, law, arts, governance) and diverse professional experience (including small business, corporate and consulting across a variety of industries).

The Board oversees the management of around $1 million dollars of investments that underpin BWC’s operations and philanthropic activities; and has managed over 600 financial members in the last 5 years.

The BWC Board comprises:

Ursula South – Non-Executive Director and Chair of Finance Committee

With an expansive career in Finance, Ursula has worked extensively in commercial environments ranging from large corporations to family-owned businesses primarily in the manufacturing, utilities and resources sector.  She has held senior positions and leadership roles at Seqwater, Manheim, Feltex and Futuris Automotive and is currently CFO for 94 year-old Australian manufacturers, Everhard Industries.

A career highlight would be her 2 year posting in Thailand working for Futuris Automotive. During her posting, Ursula was 1 of 3 expats and the only female on the leadership team, navigating cross cultures whilst managing finance teams in Australia, China and Thailand. This was a unique experience which developed her career and leadership skills in ways that have been invaluable for her career and professional development. Ursula is a Chartered Accountant (CA) and member of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand and a registered CA Mentor, mentoring young finance professionals starting out in their careers. Mentoring and developing her team professionally is what drives Ursula and she is keen to bring this experience and passion to BWC.  With a career dedicated to finance and designing multi-skilled finance teams within an organisation that are integrated throughout the business.

Ursula will bring strong financial and leadership skills, a wealth of experience and a deep understanding of commercial finance to the organisation.

Leah Stangle – Chair and Non-Executive Director

Leah is an inhouse lawyer providing general legal and governance advice to an ASX200 infrastructure and resources company and practicing predominantly in the commercial and contracts areas of law.   She has been admitted as a lawyer to practice law in the Queensland Supreme Court and High Court of Australia for over 10 years.

Leah is a member of UN Women Australia and recently was appointed to the Brisbane committee for International Women’s Day fundraising breakfast 2019.  Previously Leah held positions on the Gender Diversity subcommittee for the Minerals Council of Australia and chaired the diversity committee in her workplace.  Leah is passionate about gender diversity, professional development and making practical change to improve all our business and personal conversations.

Leah holds a Bachelor of Commerce (UQ), Bachelor of Laws Honours (QUT) and Masters of Commercial Law (UofMelb) as well as a Graduate Diploma of Applied Corporate Governance (GIA).  She is recognised as a “fellow” of the Governance Institute of Australia and the international Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators.  Leah is a keen supporter of Women on Boards, UN Women and a friend of Queensland Ballet.

Rachael Pimm – Membership Director

Rachael is a qualified Chartered Accountant with more than 20 years’ of diverse accounting and financial analysis experience across many industries including banking, oil and gas, energy and transportation. As a result, she is highly adaptable and able to work with clients across a variety of backgrounds.

Working within demanding environments, Rachael effectively manages competing priorities to ensure that deadlines are met. She demonstrates a commitment to identifying and driving process improvement and change, demonstrating strong levels of commerciality.

Rachael completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree at University of Queensland (whilst living on campus at Women’s College).

Specialties include:
• Planning
• Financial Analysis
• Management Accounting
• Commercial Analysis
• Financial Modelling
• Advanced Excel
• Business Performance Reporting

Jacqui Schultz – Non-Executive Director

Jacqui Schultz is a Construction and Mining Lawyer by trade, working as a full-time Mum and Moonlighting as our BWC Director of Events.

Jacqui loves to socialise and over her long career as a Lawyer (starting in 1999), she has worked in Brisbane, London and Mexico City, for various law firms and Companies with in-house roles. She has a background in Construction and Mining Law and she has held several senior positions, all the while maintaining a reputation of being a team-builder and event organiser extraordinaire.

She loves to network and to bring out the best in people through unflailing support – even winning a Diversity Award for creating a support programme for working Mums. She also loves combing through fine print, advising on risk and running legal arguments when required. Jacqui plays tennis at her local club and she holds various un-used gym memberships around her local area.

Olga Chaourova – Grants Director

Olga Chaourova is an Advancement professional with over 18 years of experience in the higher education sector.

She worked at The University of Queensland student recruitment, partnership development and support of research students, organising career enhancing programs and opportunities for PhD students and Postdoctoral researchers. She sourced both government and philanthropic funding, and built strong relationships with philanthropic partners. In 2018, Olga joined the Griffith University Advancement team.