The Shelter Committee was formed in February 1977 by a group of concerned citizens.  A safe-house was initially provided however it was too far away from town so a new property was secured at the end of April. 

Inaugural AGM was held on 10th March 1978 and the shelter had assisted 60 women and 117 children in its first year.  The State Government was not dispersing federally allocated funds so the shelter was run solely on private donations and volunteer hours.  

After tireless campaigning funding was secured for one staff member and the Committee invited Jayne Le Mass to take up the role as Director.  Ms Le Mass was the first Social Worker allocated to the Shelter at its inception.

An $800 grant was awarded in March 1979  to help the children affected by Domestic Violence and in 1980 the Department of Housing allocated properties to the shelter for their sole use.

Politics and change of governments have always held a place in the shelter’s operations and after the communal living shelter was condemned the Department committed to a purpose built facility for the Crisis Accommodation.   This shelter opened in 2006.

In May, 2015 The Ipswich Women’s Shelter purchased their own property which is used for transitional housing to help women rebuild their rental history to transition back into the private rental market.  

In 2016, the service began to operate programs within the community and developed a Mobile Support Program to help keep women safe in their own homes.  Ipswich Women’s Shelter changed their name to reflect the change in their services and became Women’s Crisis Support Service Inc.

The service now supports more than 200 clients annually and is a fully funded entity with five full-time equivalent staff members across the Crisis Accommodation and Support Support Programs.