National Council of Women South Australia - NCWSA

Thank you to everyone who has registered for the NCWA Midterm Conference 2026.

NCWA is pleased to advise that while in person registrations have now closed, the guest speaker sessions will be available online for those who are unable to attend in Canberra.

This is a wonderful opportunity to hear from our outstanding speakers and participate in key conference discussions from wherever you are.

Online Participation Options

Sunday 28 June
12:30pm – 3:45pm
Cost: $35 per person

Monday 29 June
1:15pm – 4:15pm
Cost: $35 per person

Those wishing to attend either day online can register using the link below:

https://events.humanitix.com/national-council-of-women-australia-mid-term-conference

We look forward to welcoming participants online and sharing what promises to be an engaging and thought provoking program featuring women leaders, advocates and experts from across Australia.

Wonderful to see Gillian’s work recognised by the Town of Walkerville. Gillian is part of BPW Adelaide who are long term members of NCWSA and she is also the Co-Convenor of Wake Up to Change, an organisation we have supported since its inception.

Gillian is a local SA legend working so hard to eliminate violence against women and children. Well done Gillian and keep up the good work and the fight!

A truly inspiring local champion. 😊 In the newly released 2026 winter edition of About Town, the Town of Walkerville sat down with Vale Park resident Gillian Lewis, who spoke about her commitment to end violence against women and children. 🙏🏽

Access the article from the Council website here: https://www.walkerville.sa.gov.au/community/about-town-newsletter 👏

NCWSA has been meeting with newly elected and re-elected members of the South Australian Parliament over the last few weeks to discuss issues of importance for our members and the women of South Australia.

Thank you to John Fulbrook MP - Member for Playford, for meeting with our President, Claire, to discuss issues of importance for his electorate but also to discuss the positive impact of Rozsi's Voice, which is a joint initiative of our members, Soroptimist International Torrens with Zonta Club of Para District Area and the Rotary Clubs of Salisbury and Mawson Lakes.

We look forward to continuing to connect with members of the SA Parliament over the next four year term.

Thank you to Claire Newland, President of the National Council of Women South Australia, for meeting with me to discuss a range of important issues affecting women in our community.

Our discussion covered the introduction of coercive control laws, as well as recent budget measures that remove stamp duty for women escaping domestic, family and sexual violence to help them secure safe housing and rebuild their independence.

I also appreciated the opportunity to learn more about NCWSA and its long history of advocating for women and championing worthwhile causes across since 1902.

We're pleased to announce the next event in our The Answer Is Human Rights national seminar series is in Adelaide:
📅 Thursday 25 June, 5.30pm – 7pm
📍U City, 43 Franklin St, Adelaide City

Presented in partnership with Equal Opportunity South Australia and as part of our 40 Years program, this FREE event will focus on how we can fix wrongs with rights, such as concerns around social cohesion, the right to peaceful protest, housing affordability, economic inequality, and the impact of climate change and digital technologies.

Featuring a panel of leading local and national human rights advocates, it’s a not-to-be missed event for anyone who cares about keeping our democracy healthy and strong as well as ensuring Australia and South Australia are just, equal and inclusive places where everyone can feel safe and have opportunities to thrive.

REGISTER NOW: https://loom.ly/NQw5os4

Great post from Lainie Anderson about a former NCWSA State President, Adelaide Miethke OBE!

Introducing the amazing Adelaide Miethke, an education pioneer and champion of women's rights. I cannot believe I didn't know her name. Born in Manoora, near Clare in 1881, Adelaide's father was a Prussian-born schoolteacher. Here are just some of her achievements ...

📔 In 1914 she began a campaign to raise the status of female high school teachers, particularly new teachers facing classes of 60 or 70!

📔 In 1916 she became the first woman Vice-President of the South Australian Public School Teachers’ Union, winning small salary increases for teachers a few years later.

📔 In 1924 (after studying at night) she gained her BA and was appointed as the first female Inspector of High Schools.

📔 In 1934 she became state president of the National Council of Women, which included running the SA Women’s Centenary Council and organising events and activities to celebrate 100 years of white settlement in 1936. These included the Pageant of Empire, with 13,600 schoolchildren twice performing on Adelaide Oval in front of 40,000 spectators (Adelaide used a megaphone to keep the kids under control). The Women’s Centenary Council also raised £5000 for what became the Royal Flying Doctor Service SA/NT. They created the Pioneer Women’s Memorial Garden in Adelaide. And they produced an illustrated history of women in South Australia (the beautiful book I showed you a week or so back).

📔 From 1941 to 1945 Adelaide directed the Schools Patriotic Fund, raising over £400,000 for the war effort and other initiatives including the RFDS (she was now state president) and a city hostel for country girls.

📔 From 1941 to 1946 she edited the Children’s Hour, a magazine distributed monthly to SA school children (which is such a coincidence because just yesterday I went to Wakefield Press to buy HOURS TO REMEMBER, Heather Bonnin's book about the Children's Hour).

📔 And in 1950 (at 69 years of age) she conceived and established the world’s first School of the Air!

Adelaide was known to be a stickler for protocol, a formidable teacher and inspector, and highly organised. Most of all, she got things done! A household name in Adelaide, she was appointed OBE in 1937 and died at her Woodville home in 1962. She was buried at Cheltenham Cemetery. The Adelaide Miethke Kindergarten in Woodville South is named in her honour.

Adelaide, we salute you!

📷 National Council of Women in South Australia, courtesy History Trust of South Australia and the SA History Hub.
📕 History Trust of South Australia, and a great article by Dr Helen Jones, author of IN HER OWN NAME about the history of women in SA from 1836. https://tinyurl.com/2uah9e6v
📕 Royal Flying Doctor Service: https://tinyurl.com/mt5sdd9s

The Midterm Conference of the National Council of Women of Australia marks a significant point within our triennium—a time to reconnect, reflect, and reaffirm our shared purpose.

Bringing together members from across the nation this gathering provides an opportunity to strengthen relationships, share knowledge, and shape the collective advocacy agenda for the years ahead. As a volunteer-led organisation, our strength lies not only in our work, but in the fellowship and camaraderie that sustain it.

Open to all NCW members, Constituent Councils, affiliated organisations and supporters.

When: Sunday 28th June and Monday 29th June 2026

Venue: Museum of Democracy, Old Parliament House, Canberra

Conference Registration cost: • Member NCWA: $225 • Non-Members: $260

We hope to see you there!

National Council of Women Australia Midterm Conference Register on Humanitix - National Council of Women Australia Midterm Conference. Hosted on Humanitix. Sunday 28th June 2026. Find event information.

How great to see our historical women recognised - including Catherine Helen Spence who was instrumental in getting our Council started!

Congratulations