Progress 2026 will be held at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre (MCEC) in the Convention Centre area. The main areas we will be in are:

• Plenary theatre - access from Ground floor (or LG floor)

• Breakout rooms on Level 2

• Foyers on ground floor and Level 2

Side events will be held at MCEC and surrounding venues (to be announced). This guide will be updated with more details as side events are confirmed.

The MCEC venue has many accessible features. There is also a virtual tour of the venue on their website.

By Public Transport

You can find updated public transport information on the Public Transport Victoria website or you can call 1800 800 007 and select Option 1.

By Tram

Tram routes 96, 109, and 12 will all take you directly to the Clarendon Street entrance (Stop 124A Casino/MCEC). Alternatively, tram routes 70, 75, and the City Circle can drop you off at Stop 1 Spencer St/Flinders St. From there, it is a 350m walk to the Clarendon Street entrance of MCEC. You will then need to walk down the Exhibition Centre (or on the outdoor public pathway) to the Convention Centre.

By Bus

From Monday to Friday, bus route 237 goes via Southern Cross Station to 18 Pence Lane stop on Lorimer Street, which is roughly a six-minute walk to the Convention Centre Place entrance of the MCEC.

By Train

Southern Cross Station is the closest train station to MCEC. When you come out of the station you can take tram routes 96, 109, or 12 to the 124A Casino/MCEC/Clarendon Street stop which is outside the Clarendon Street entrance. Or you can walk about 10 minutes along Spencer Street to reach MCEC.

If you have mobility requirements, Travellers Aid (head to travellersaid.org.au or call (03) 9654 2600) has a range of services to assist you, including a companion service to get you where you need to go and mobility equipment hire.

By Taxi, Rideshare, or Drop-off

The Clarendon Street entrance of MCEC has a one-way vehicle direction with a drop-off point that provides access to ramps and the building entrance. A high visibility line defines the curb .There will then be an approximately 500m walk inside the building on a level surface to the Convention Centre.

The MCEC also has a nearby taxi rank outside their venue on Convention Centre Place by the Novotel Melbourne South Wharf hotel entrance. 

Getting to MCEC from Melbourne Airport

When you arrive at Melbourne Airport (also known as Tullamarine Airport), you have two options:

1. You can catch a taxi from outside your terminal or request a rideshare by following the signs outside your terminal to the pick-up zones.

2. You can also get the Melbourne City Express Skybus to Southern Cross Station. Skybus is accessible for people with mobility requirements. They accept Companion Cards, and travel is free for Vision Impaired Travel Pass and Access Travel Pass holders.

Parking at the venue

Wilson Parking operates a secure underground car park at the Exhibition Centre that offers a range of flexible rates. Book online before you visit to secure a spot at a discounted rate. You can book a car spot online at Wilson Parking.

There are 20 dedicated accessible car parking bays within the Melbourne Exhibition Centre Basement Car Park, the car park entry is located on Normanby Road. All accessible car parks are located near doors 1, 6, and 10 which also have access to vertical lifts. You can book a discounted car spot online at Wilson Parking. Accessible car parking bays often fill up quickly, so we highly recommend pre-booking. The nearest door to the Clarendon Auditorium is Door 1.

Car parks nearby

There is an abundance of convenient secure car parking available around MCEC. Nearby car parks include:

• South Wharf Retail car park

• Siddeley St car park

• Freeway car park

• Montague Street car park

From the Convention Centre Place entrance

This entrance is the closest to the part of MCEC where Progress will take place. There will be signage to help you find Progress 2026.

From the Convention Centre Place entrance there is a small step up from the road to the footpath directly outside the doors. This is marked with a high visibility strip. There are five curbside lips from the road to the footpath in various locations within the entrance. Concrete bollards are outside the entrance, they are not marked for high visibility.

To enter the Convention Centre Place lobby, you will have to get through two sets of glass doors with sensor-operated automatic sliding doors. The doors feature visual indicator strips. The ground is flat.

The whole surface of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre Concourse from the Convention Centre Place lobby to the Clarendon Street Entrance is level with grey low pile carpet tiles and to the right exposed sealed concrete tiles – providing tactile surface variances. Lighting is a mix of natural light and artificial lighting providing good visibility.

From the Clarendon Street entrance

Please note that the Convention Centre Place Entrance is the furthest of the two entrances from the Plenary and Breakout rooms where Progress 2026 will take place. It leads directly into the Exhibition Centre and is about 500 metres from the MCEC Plenary.

The Clarendon Street entrance features a wide and deep frontage with multiple door entries. All doors have vertical hand grip handles. It also features an automatic/manual opening and closing door with accessibility features. The door features the internationally recognised blue and white logo. The door has opening-direction signage and a door handle clearly marked “Pull”.

There is a ramp and shallow-graded steps to the entrance of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. Tactile surface indicators and bollards, marked for visibility, are positioned to ensure safe pedestrian access to the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre.

After Entry instructions

After you reach the Convention Centre, you will need to collect your lanyard at the registration and then enter either the Plenary or Breakout Rooms (depending on when you have arrived).

To access the plenary, you can either:

• Enter from Ground at the back of the tiered seating through Doors 7 and 8

• Take the stairs, lift or escalator to Lower Ground and enter on the flat portion of the plenary through doors 2 and 3.

To access the Breakout rooms, you can take the:

• Stairs 2 or 3 are closest to our breakout rooms

• Escalator 2 or 3 are closest to our breakout rooms

• Lifts near Door 8 or near Door 5 will both take you to Level 2 (Door 8 is closer to our breakout rooms)

We encourage people who are comfortable using the stairs and escalators to do so, so that the lifts are available for anyone who needs them. For able-bodied people, please keep in mind that many disabilities are invisible, and do not police others’ use of the elevator.  If you experience harassment regarding lift use (or other issues), please tell us, and we will address it.

There are accessible toilets on every floor of the convention centre. These will be marked on the maps, and volunteers/MCEC staff can also point them out to you. 

Please use whichever toilet you are comfortable with. If you experience harassment regarding toilet use (or other issues), please tell us, and we will address it. 

Bathrooms will be labelled as either male, female, or accessible/unisex. (We are working to see if it will be possible to update additional bathrooms to be unisex, but this will also depend on other events at MCEC at the time.)

Plenary: 

There are three sets of gendered and accessible toilets near the Plenary on the Ground floor of the Convention Centre.

1. Near the Plenary Cafe (closest when entering from the Exhibition Centre side of the building)

2. Near the entrances to Plenary 2 (doors 7 and 8) - this is also closest to the lift to Level 1 and 2)

3. Near the entrance  (closest when entering from 1 Convention Centre Place)

Level 2/Breakouts: There are two sets of gendered and accessible toilets on Level two:

1. Between Rooms 211 and 212 (near Stair 2)

2. Past room 203 / down the hall from the Melbourne Room

See venue map here for more details on bathroom locations.

Changing Places 

MCEC has a Changing Places toilet on the ground floor close to Plenary theatre.

Changing Places toilets are larger than standard accessible toilets which provide people with disability and high support needs access to suitable, safe, and private bathroom facilities.

The behaviour of everyone in the space shapes whether or not it is an accessible space. All members create a universally accessible event by paying attention to our own behaviour and attitudes. Here are some ways that you can do this:

• Maintain clear paths. Our events provide fantastic opportunities to chat with other participants, but clogged doorways and hallways make navigation time-consuming for all, and impossible for some of us. There are plenty of outdoor spaces you can use to gather, keeping the entrances and pathways free. Tuck your belongings in front of your feet or under your seat. Remind members gathered in doorways or hallways of the need to share the space so all of us can move freely. 

• We ask that you limit your use of scented products if you can do so without negatively affecting your health. For those with asthma, migraine, and chemical sensitivities, fewer fragrances, vapours, and particulates make the conference a place we can attend. Progress 2026 is not, however, a fragrance-free conference. 

• Bins specifically for cigarettes are located outside the MCEC. Please respect the site and use these bins accordingly. We ask that you limit your smoking so that those who would be affected by it can still use these spaces without issue.

• Service Animal Etiquette. Service and assistance animals are welcome at Progress 2026. Please don’t pet, distract, or take photos of assistance animals as these animals need to be able to concentrate on doing their jobs well. 

For panelists/presenters:

• Keep your lips visible for those who speechread

• Use a microphone if one is available (even if you have vocal training)

• If using Powerpoint or other presentation software please aim to use a standard slide layout, change your title every slide and use alternative text (alt text) for images and objects, such as pictures, charts, shapes as screen reading applications will read the alt text when an image is encountered in the document

• Use a font size between 12 and 18 points for body text and larger font sizes if showing your presentation on a projector

• Use high colour contrast for text in presentations or handouts. Low contrast may be difficult or impossible for colourblind or low vision users to read.

• Caption any video/audio content.

• Describe any images/charts you are using, for the benefit of blind or low vision members (general descriptions are fine; describe any relevant details).

• If you are using paper handouts, please also have an electronic version available as these help people who want enlarged text or who use screen reading software.

• Let people know if you will be using animations or other video content (particularly with rapid flashing/strobing) as they may be migraine/seizure triggers for some.