Denman was then private secretary to Premier of Tasmania Michael Field from 1989 to 1992 and manager of the Devonport Community Legal Centre in 1993.
She was an inaugural member of the Mersey Leven Family Day Care committee, in which she was a strong advocate for access to day care for children with disabilities, and was also involved with Family Planning Tasmania.
She had a strong interest in health, education and access issues during her time in parliament, and was an advocate for people with disabilities, asbestos-related issues (her hometown of Railton had a major asbestos factory) and gay and lesbian rights.
[1][4][5][6] After retiring from politics, Denman was a board member of disability organisation Devonfield Enterprises, a member of the Tasmanian Community Advisory Group Mental Health Advisory Committee and the North-West Area Health Services Network Advisory Group, and was made a life member of the Tasmanian Council for AIDS and Related Diseases (TasCARD).
She also continued her asbestos advocacy, stating that her only regret on retiring from the Senate was that she would not be there to further the cause of those with asbestos-related diseases.