ACCA has paid tribute to Vera di Palma, the first woman to be elected as its president, who has died at the age of 83 after a career which broke through traditional barriers
Di Palma made history in 1971 when she became the first female council member and again in 1980 when she became ACCA’s first female president. She was awarded an OBE in 1997 for public service. In an interview given in 2009, di Palma said: ‘When I qualified in 1956, the profession was heavily male dominated and there were hardly any women.’
In response, she was among a group of female ACCA members who founded the Certified Accountants Women’s Society in 1965.
‘Back then, there still weren’t many women in the profession and girls weren’t encouraged to consider it at school, so it was helpful to have a group through which female ACCA members could support each other and encourage the next generation of female accountants.
'Members of the Society visited schools to talk about accountancy as a career, which was very well received,' di Palmer said.
ACCA’s chief executive Helen Brand said: ‘ACCA has always led the way in diversity, and much of that is down to pioneering and inspirational people like Vera. She opened the door for many young women to succeed in finance and accountancy, and the fact that nearly half our membership and more than 50% of our student body are women is a fitting tribute to her legacy.’
