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Accessible Beaches
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Phone: 03 9209 6777
Accessible Beach Services
The Accessible Beaches Program is back this summer making our beaches more accessible, enjoyable and vibrant for everyone. Council has partnered with St Kilda Life Saving Club and Port Melbourne Life Saving Club to deliver the Mobi-Chair and Powered Wheelchair services to the community. Beach matting will be available at St Kilda, Port Melbourne and Elwood Beaches. Council recognises the role lifeguards and lifesavers play in assisting the successful delivery of these services.
The season will run from Monday 18 November 2024 – Monday 28 April 2025. Please note bookings are only available on weekends outside of peak season, 1 December - 28 February.
Accessible beach matting was installed at St Kilda Life Saving Club, Port Melbourne Life Saving Club and Elwood Sailing Club as a new location this season. The matting is free to use for all members of the community with no booking required.
The matting is designed to assist people with mobility issues to access the beach, servicing a diverse range of the community such as people using wheelchairs, people using walking frames and parents with prams.
Accessible Floating Beach Wheelchairs, otherwise known as the Mobi-Chair, enable you to hit the sand and take a dip in the ocean. These specialty chairs are designed for outdoor use and specifically for beach environments.
They are ideal for people who have mobility limitations, including permanent disability, temporary disability or reduced mobility.
The armrests and wheels on Mobi-Chairs are made from materials that enable the chair to float in water. They’re designed to enter water to the waist height of a support person. Integrated handles on the armrests provide added stability on land and in water.
Make a Booking
Terms and conditionsThe Mobi-chair is available for hire in the summer season at St Kilda and Port Melbourne Life Saving Club. Full details on how to book are below. Please remember that:
- All bookings are for 1.5 hours, free and require a booking
- Beach wheelchairs cannot be independently pushed so users are required to bring someone to assist with transfers
- If you are hiring a Mobi-Chair and would like to enter deep water, you must have a minimum of two support people
- Accessible beach matting is on the sand in front of both lifesaving clubs from 3 November 2023 - 26 April 2024 and does not need to be booked
To learn about other beaches and activities in Victoria that are accessible, please see AAA Play Find an Activity Directory. For accessible beaches around Australia, please visit the Accessible Beaches Australia website for information.
The beach matting is specially designed equipment. It helps people with a disability and increases access for all community members, from older people to children and pram users.
The equipment has been available over the summer season since 2017 in partnership with St Kilda Life Saving Club and Port Melbourne Life Saving Club.
Port Phillip City Council has partnered with St Kilda Life Saving Club to provide the all-terrain, Powered Beach Wheelchair for use by the community, free of charge at St Kilda Beach.
The St Kilda Life Saving Club includes a Victorian Government funded Changing Places facility for improved disability access. These facilities have larger-than-standard accessible toilets and extra features, along with more space to meet the requirements of people with disability.
The facility has a height-adjustable, adult-sized changing bench, a tracking hoist system, and space for two people in a safe and clean environment. The doorway width for this facility is 1000mm. Hoist users must bring their own sling. For further information on Changing Places please visit the Changing Places website.
To access the Changing Places facility, an individual or carer must have a Master Locksmiths Access Key (MLAK). This is an innovative system that enables people with disability to gain 24-hour access, seven days a week to the facility. Eligibility to use this facility is restricted to people with disability who must have written authority from a doctor, a disability organisation or a community health center.
People with disability are able to purchase an MLAK from a Master Locksmith. Use the search by suburb or postcode function on the Master Locksmiths Association website to find your closest locksmith that can provide an MLAK.
Public transport connections and accessible tram stops are available along the foreshore. Only tram routes 16, 96 and 109 are partly serviced by low floor trams.
Full tram and bus timetables can be accessed at Public Transport Victoria.
For more information on Getting Around.
All Port Phillip public toilets are opened and closed by Council Security Staff on a daily basis. Toilets will be opened at dawn and locked at dusk, on a seasonal basis.
There are three EXELOO toilets in Port Phillip, these are located on Kerferd Road (Albert Park), Shakespeare Grove (St Kilda) and Eastern Road (South Melbourne). These toilets are maintained by an external company, and are closed at approximately 10 pm during summer.
To locate a toilet, visit the National Public Toilet Map.
