Vanessa Keenan said she would support a quota to help counter the barriers women can face when participating in politics.

Her own Labor party has introduced quotas at a federal level which have helped to achieve an almost 50:50 split in the House of Representatives.

"If the next council was made up of 50 percent women it would be completely different to this term. I can say with confidence that the blow-ups we've seen wouldn't happen," she said.

IN OTHER NEWS:

"A lot of men might think its enough to have a woman on their ticket and its enough but its not - we need women at the table."

Cr Keenan's comments come as Wagga City Council prepares to host a workshop, on April 10, for potential female candidates in a bid to increase the number of women standing at this year's election.

Council director of community Janice Summerhayes said women made up just 30 per cent of elected councillor roles across NSW, which Wagga falls below with only two of its nine seats filled by women.

"I think that local government is a really important interface with the community. We're really committed to having a balance of people represented in our community," she said.

"I think in the early days the underrepresentation of women both in the organisation and at elected level was quite a stark shock to me when I first arrived. It has improved over time but it still has a way to go."

Ms Summerhayes wouldn't say whether she would support a quota, saying there were "pros and cons" to "meritorious programs" that could achieve the same results.

"Certainly I would like to understand that people are appointed based on their skills and their experiences and education," she said.

She said she'd like to see a higher number of female candidates at the September election, with more of them running in winnable first and second positions on tickets.

Wagga's longest serving female councillor Mary Kidson said in the municipality's 150-year existence there had been just 17 women on council.

"It says to me that possibly earlier generations felt it wasn't their place," she said.

"I think its important to get some younger voices. People who are in touch with today."

Mrs Kidson said that while quotas had worked at a federal level she couldn't see them being a viable option for local government, where councillors usually run as independents without the same party structures.

"I think it's got to be a desire of the population," she said.