House debates

Wednesday, 23 June 2021

Statements by Members

SheSheds

4:19 pm

Photo of Bridget ArcherBridget Archer (Bass, Liberal Party) Share this | | Hansard source

We all know of the wonderful work of Men's Sheds and the positive impacts they have had on communities across the country. With Men's Sheds growing in popularity, one local woman in Northern Tasmania looked around her and wondered why there wasn't something similar available for women too. And so the SheShed was born. It is the creation of retired teacher Allison Bassano. The SheShed began a few years ago when Allison sold her home and purchased a smaller one with a shed in order to bring to life her vision of establishing a safe place for women. Any woman is welcome to drop into the SheShed, where those who stop by can take part in art, crafts, gardening or conversations. Allison has said:

The problem for most women is that when they're at home there is a constant demand for their attention, women are always multi-tasking and need to 'chill out'. On top of that many women are living in, or have escaped from, stressful home circumstances and need the company of others who understand.

Just recently, my friend and now member for Windermere in the state upper house, Nick Duigan, called me to let me know that after visiting the shed he noticed the need for a proper gazebo for the backyard. After discussions with upper house member Jo Palmer and Senator Askew in the other place, we provided a donation to the SheShed with the initial idea of getting someone in to build a gazebo. We were all thrilled when one of the regular attendees of the shed, Holly, took it upon herself to design and build the entire structure, which has made the project all the more meaningful to Allison and the shed community.