NATIONAL EXHIBITION CENTRE

The NEC Birmingham is committed to ensuring all visitors, delegates and guests are
able to easily access the venue. During your visit if you require any assistance, please contact any member of team who will be happy to help.

 

The venue has installed the following items at The NEC to aid  visitors who
may require their use:

 

WHEELCHAIRS AND MOTORISED SCOOTERS

The NEC has a fleet of mobility equipment available to hire on a first come, first serve basis. These can be booked online in advance, normally 3 months before the event. We recommend booking early to avoid disappointment.

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Wheelchairs are available to hire for £5 for all visitors. The number of wheelchairs available is limited, so if you’ve got your own, please bring it with you.

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Scooters are available for £20 per hire for all visitors.

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All pre-bookings will be held until 1300hrs on the day they've been booked for, unless otherwise advised.

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For any visitors who have not pre-booked equipment and arrive on the day, any remaining stock will be issued on a first-come, first-served basis. As collection location varies from show to show, please check the collection point when making a booking.

Please note: Mobility equipment hire is only available during show open times and the venue only accepts payment by card for any equipment hired.

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Visit the link HERE to book.

 

PARKING

To help you plan your Blue Badge Visitor Parking, The NEC has created a short film explaining what to expect when you arrive onsite at the NEC and the facilities available.

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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5a4WUelb8s

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DROP OFF/PICK UP ARRANGEMENTS, TAXIS AND PARKING

Please note, you should bring your Blue Badge with you, even if you are arriving by taxi or private coach.

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If you are arriving by taxi and have your Blue Badge with you, you will be able to be dropped off at the main entrances. If you also require a pick up, please advise the taxi firm that you have a blue badge and the taxi will be permitted to pick you up from the main entrances.  If you are using a T.O.A black cab you will be picked up at the ranks by the main entrances.

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If you are arriving by private car and have your Blue Badge with you, you will be directed to the nearest disabled car park - where you can be dropped off and picked up at the end of your visit. Please be aware that the NEC is a private site. To protect the available space for those who are entitled to it, we reserve the right to inspect Blue Badges to ensure that they are only being used by those entitled to do so. If an inspection is refused then we reserve the right to refuse access and parking.

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Pre-pay for parking online before the day of your visit and you can make a £5* saving (T&C's apply). *Offer only applies to the standard on-the-day rate. Please see the NEC PARKING PAGE for more details.

 

TOILETS

Accessible toilets are available across the venue. Changing Places facilities are also available by Hall 20, on the Atrium side of site and by Hall 2, on the Piazza side of site (both of these are accessible with a radar key).

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The Changing Places facilities provide more space for up to 2 carers - and extra features to meet additional needs, including height adjustable adult-sized changing benches and a hoist system.

 

ASSISTANCE DOGS

Trained assistance and guide dogs are welcome at The NEC but please be mindful that certain environments, where noise levels or attendance numbers are high, can be stressful or confusing for assistance dogs.

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For the safety and wellbeing of your dog please make them visible to staff and other visitors at all times.

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DISABILITY ACCESS & CARER TICKETS​

Personal Assistant Ticket – A complimentary personal assistant ticket can be issued to those holding a Nimbus Access Card that displays a +1 or +2 symbol. This ticket is a free standard entry ticket. When holding this ticket, we expect Personal Assistants to remain with the customer they are there to support throughout the event.

 

Fast-Track Entry - There are no limits on Fast-Track Entry for anyone who requires it. As above these tickets will be issued using the Nimbus card scheme. To be eligible, your access card must show a queuing symbol. The Fast-Track Entry ticket will only allow access to enter the event via the fast-track queue. This does not include Guest Fast Track.

 

Auto/Photo Fast Track - Previously we issued one Fast Track to cover both entry and all guests. Our reasoning was to ensure that we don’t oversubscribe the accessible area/lane which would make it ineffective for everyone. From 2025 onwards, there is a Fast Track capacity for each individual guest. This will also be separated into their autographs and photographs. Anyone who is registered under our Nimbus card scheme and holds a queuing symbol can apply for a Fast Track auto or photo ticket with any of the announced guests. Please note that you must have a valid auto/photo ticket for the guest in question before applying for a Fast Track. These tickets are limited and are subject to availability. These tickets will need to be requested each time a ticket is purchased. Fast-Track will not automatically be added even if this has been applied to another guest order.

 

Please note that we cannot issue any Fast-Track tickets at the event. These must be pre-ordered through our Ticketing partner in advance of your attendance. Our new scheme will increase the number of accessibility Fast-Track tickets we can issue by 50-100 times as many as under the previous policy to better support access customers.

 

NIMBUS ACCESS CARD SCHEME/ HOW TO RECEIVE AN ACCESSIBLE TICKET

To request any of the above tickets, please contact Ticket Quarter at Monopolyaccessibility@ticketquarter.co.uk clearly listing which tickets are required. For a smooth experience please include the following:

 

-    Order Number

-    Nimbus Access Card Details

-    Ticket(s) required (Subject to availability)

 

For more information about Nimbus and how to register for a Nimbus Access Card please visit: https://ticketquarter.co.uk/Online/article/accessibility-page​

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Event Policy – All Under 16’s must be accompanied by an adult to enter the event as part of our welfare and safeguarding provisions. As such Personal Assistant tickets are only issued for customers over the age of 16.