WOMEN’S group the Red Hatters will be expanding their groups to Bullsbrook and the Swan Valley next month.

The Red Hatters are a women’s organisation with groups around the world, whose aim is to encourage women, particularly those in their older years, to get involved in social activities and meet new people.

Chairperson Marion Buchanan said the new group would expand the Red Hatters circle for growing suburbs through the Swan Valley, Bullsbrook and Ellenbrook.

She said joining a group was a great way to make new friends and be involved in the community, and expanding locations to a new area made being a red hatter something that more women can do in their area.

Across WA, the Red Hatters have more than 90 groups of women who all meet, dressed in the organisation’s distinctive red and purple colour scheme, to have fun and make new friends. Around Australia, there are about 350 groups.

Ms Buchanan said the dress code was about standing out in the crowd, and more than that it was about feeling like you belong to something, and having a strong visual of that was really fun and could also be powerful.

The organisation has been running since 1997, and has been in WA since 2003.

The groups operate mostly on their own terms, with some groups organising weekly activities, some meeting multiple days a week, and some only meeting monthly.

Ms Buchanan said the main aim of every group was connection.

She believed being part of the group was about doing something fun and frivolous, no matter your age or what you’re interested in, that there was something for everyone to be involved in.

She said another great thing about the group was giving women the confidence to go out and do things they wouldn’t have done alone, and making lifelong friendships.

For more information visit the Red Hatters website.