THE Country Women’s Association is a time-honoured national institution.

The organisation provides women across this region and the nation with an avenue to make their community better.

It’s the largest women’s organisation in Australia and its members are dedicated to improving their community, especially the welfare of women and children, by fundraising and supporting a variety of events.

Surely, such a proud and valued history earns you a bit of credit.

Not so, it appears, if you are the Mount Alexander Shire.

The Castlemaine CWA branch could fold because the shire has lifted the rent for the Ray Bradfield rooms where it stages meetings and events from a nominal fee to $2777.50 per year in one hit.

It’s a hefty bill for the group, which says it uses the room “three or four times a month”.

For its part, the shire states the branch has increased its use of the Ray Bradfield rooms from 37 hours in 2008 to 182 hours in 2011 and should pay the full rental fee because other community groups are being prevented from using the facility.

Sorry, but doesn’t the fact the branch is being far more active in 2011 than it ever was in 2008 actually mean the group is being more successful and doing more things for its community?

It’s easy to see why members are “disgusted” when the reward for that effort is a massive cost burden in the form of rent that could well drive this branch out of existence.

We can only hope the shire has a rethink and sees the jump to $2777.50 is a tad unfair.

Or let’s hope there’s someone out there with a little kinder heart who might offer up an appropriate space in Castlemaine for a more realistic fee.

Pretty sure the CWA has earned that.