Start a Women's Shed - Australian Women's Shed Association

How to Start a Women’s Shed in Australia: A Comprehensive Guide

Starting a Women’s Shed in Australia can be a fulfilling endeavour, fostering community, skill-sharing, and empowerment among women. While specific obligations can vary from state to state, this step-by-step guide will help you navigate the process.

Before you get started, check the Women’s Shed Australia map to see if there is already a shed close to you that you may join.

1. Name Your Shed Initiative

Choose a name such as “PleasantTown Women’s Shed” or “PleasantTown Women’s Workshop.”
Ensure correct spelling: It is Women’s Shed or Women’s Workshop (not Womens).
Add your Shed to the Women’s Sheds Australia map to ensure those looking to join a shed in your area are connected with you
(Optional) Create a logo—Women’s Sheds Australia can generate one for you to use temporarily or permanently.
(Optional) Set up a Facebook page, a simple website, and a dedicated Gmail account for your Shed.
(Optional) Create a Google Drive to store key documents and collaborate with your team.
(Optional) Start a spreadsheet to track costs and any financial contributions (save receipts in Google Drive).
(Optional) Conduct a community survey to assess interest and recruit volunteers.

2. Build a Diverse Team of Volunteers

Recruit for the roles of President, Vice President, Treasurer, and Secretary, as well as additional skills such as fundraising, volunteer management and tool skills to match community interests.
(Optional) Join local community Facebook groups to drum up support.
(Optional but good practice) Set up a survey to determine the level of interest in your local community, and build up your database of interested persons
(Optional but good practice) Plan for succession to ensure leadership continuity.

3. Consider Insurance Requirements

(In early phases insurance is good practice, upon launch it becomes imperative) Women’s Sheds Australia does not currently offer insurance, but the Australian Men’s Shed Association provides a cost-effective insurance option that is particularly appealing for new Sheds.

4. Choose Your Legal Structure

Most Women’s Sheds become Incorporated Associations, which provides liability protection and access to resources.
Review legal structure options here.
(Optional but likely) Register as an incorporated association.
(Optional and requires analysis to see if right for your shed) Apply for DGR status (Deductible Gift Recipient) if seeking donations or grants.
(Optional) Protect your intellectual property by registering your logo and name.

5. Establish Financial Management

Appoint a Treasurer to manage finances effectively.
(Good practice) Set up a bank account in your Shed’s name.
(Good practice) Draft a set of written rules around how funds will be approved for expenditure and reconciled
(Good practice) Establish a clear budget and fundraising strategy.
(Optional) Consider approaching your local Council for endorsement and financial or in-kind support
(Optional) Consider approaching local hardware stores and other businesses for financial or in-kind support

By Step 5 your basic Shed governance structure is set up.

The following points expand on how Sheds effectively operate:

6. Decide on a Physical Location to Deliver Your Shed Activities

Finding a suitable space is often the biggest challenge in setting up a Women’s Shed. Your committee will need to explore all available options and balance affordability, accessibility, and functionality.

Potential Location Options

Your Women’s Shed may:
– Have a dedicated space – securing land or a permanent facility (rare but ideal).
– Co-locate with a Men’s Shed – sharing tools, resources, and facilities while maintaining women-specific sessions.
– Rent a hall or community centre – local councils, schools, or churches often have halls for hire.
– Use a council-owned building – local governments sometimes offer peppercorn leases (low-cost rental agreements) for community groups.
– Borrow an unused workshop or business space – some TAFE colleges, tech hubs, or trade schools may allow use of their facilities after hours.
– Partner with a local business – some hardware stores, garden centres, or businesses with large workspaces may be willing to sponsor or lend a space.
– Utilise an empty shopfront – landlords of vacant retail spaces may allow short-term community use to keep the space active.
– Use school grounds after hours – some public schools support community groups by lending classrooms or workspaces.

How to Secure a Location

Contact your local council – Ask about available spaces for community groups, including grant-funded facility access or peppercorn leases.
Connect with Men’s Sheds – Many Men’s Sheds are open to collaboration. Some invite Women’s Sheds to use their workshop one or two days per week, others may be full integrated and still others may prefer to keep their sheds gender-exclusive.
Approach businesses and organisations – Large companies, especially those in trades or community service, might be open to sponsoring or loaning space.
Network with local community groups – Other non-profits, churches, and charities may have underutilised space they’re happy to share.
Search for government grants – Some funding opportunities specifically support community infrastructure and meeting spaces.
Run a fundraising campaign – If securing your own space is the goal, fundraising through grants, local businesses, and community donations can help with leasing or purchase costs.
Ask locally – put the word out on social media, and have all of your volunteers on the look out for empty buildings that might be suitable, and be flexible on your requirements to maximise your chance of finding a location

Finding the right space takes time, but being flexible and open to partnerships can unlock great opportunities.

Securing a physical location does not prohibit your shed from launching: many sheds launch by hiring a community hall a few hours per month, and build up from there. Often Councils want to see some history and runs on the board before they will offer a lease to new community groups, so launching in advance of having a physical location can be useful in building up your shed reputation.

7. Plan and Deliver: Focus on Activities and Community Building

In parallel with determining the location of your shed activities, draft your annual plan
Add or update your Shed to the Women’s Sheds Australia map and advise us of your launch date in case we can send representation
Draft Terms of Reference for any subcommittees your board might put in place
Start with activities that resonate with your community—workshops, tool skills, social meetups, or walking groups.
The scope of these activities may be limited by the options available to you based on the location you have secured
Revisit the survey you launched in Step 2 to ensure you’re meeting the desires of your community
Consider using volunteersignup.org or similar platforms for volunteer coordination.
Consider approaching any local women’s refuges and women’s groups to see what might be beneficial to deliver in your local community, and how you can best support vulnerable women in your community

8. Hold Regular Meetings

Schedule board meetings and subcommittee meetings as needed to maintain governance.
Create a central calendar of compliance obligations, including when to give notice for member meetings, when the AGM must be held, and other legal and regulatory obligations.

9. Other tips

Join the Australian Women’s Shed Community on Facebook for peer support, to share experiences and resources
Ensure you are familiar with your regulatory and health/safety obligations. In future years, as we grow, Women’s Sheds Australia will provide guidance on this front. In the meantime, some great resources can be found here
Understand and respect the preferences of gender-exclusive membership for both Men’s Sheds and Women’s Sheds where it is appropriate for that community. Ensure mixed-gender events are specified as such to empower those who do not presently find mixed gender environments psychologically safe. If your Shed is engaging with family and domestic violence refuges this may include folks with recent lived experience.
Protect your volunteer well-being. Avoid over-reliance on individuals—distribute responsibilities to prevent burnout. Document key processes to make leadership transitions smoother.
Keep it fun – a positive and enjoyable atmosphere will help retain members and volunteers.
Recognise that members and volunteers will come and go—foster an environment where all feel welcome.

Acknowledgements

Thanks to the dedicated volunteers from the Coolum Women’s Shed, the Bayswater Women’s Hub, the Australian Women’s Shed Association, and other contributors for their valuable insights and efforts in creating this resource.

Last updated: 4 March 2025