Everything you need to know about Conference 2025 - Museums Association
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Everything you need to know about Conference 2025

Essential information for delegates attending the Museums Association’s Conference 2025 at Sain Ffagan Amgueddfa Werin Cymru – St Fagans National Museum of History, Cardiff and online (7-9 October 2025).

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Getting to the venue – Museums Association-provided coaches

The Museums Association will be providing coaches to transport delegates from Cardiff city centre to the St Fagans site and back. More information will be provided in due course.

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Getting to the venue – independently of the Museums Association

  • St Fagans is four miles west of Cardiff city centre, just off the A4232. For satellite navigation purposes use the postcode CF5 6XB.
  • If you are arriving by car, please be aware that parking costs £7 per day. There is free parking for disabled blue badge holders and motorbikes.
  • Bike racks are available. The main cycle route to the museum from Cardiff city centre is via the Ely Trail. The signposted section between Fairwater and the museum is traffic-free and follows a pleasant riverside route. More information is available via Amgueddfa Cymru.
  • The nearest rail station is Waun-Gron Park, two miles from St Fagans. Services are operated by Transport for Wales. Waun-Gron Park Station is located next to the main bus route to St Fagans.
  • The Cardiff Bus 32 service stops in the museum car park, while First Cymru 320 service stops in St Fagans village, which is around half a mile from the museum (approximately an 11-minute walk).
  • More information on public transport is available via the Traveline Cymru website or by calling their helpline on 0800 464 0000.

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Cardiff

  • Cardiff is the closest urban area to St Fagans with lots of hotels and other city amenities. Visit Cardiff has lots of information about things to see and do in the city.
  • Many train routes go through the city’s main train station, Cardiff Central. Access information for this station is available via the National Rail website.

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Discounts on train fares

  • Great Western Railway Business Direct is offering conference attendees an 80% discount on anytime return tickets from London Paddington to Cardiff Central. You must book tickets via its Conference Fare Booking Platform. 
  • Please note you will be asked to produce a confirmation of conference attendance by the train manager. Conference fares are available from most stations on the GWR network. Outbound tickets are fixed, times and dates cannot be changed. The return journey is fully flexible.

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Taxis

  • Cardiff has several taxi companies, including Veezu, Capital Cabs, Uber and St David’s Cars. 
  • Taxi ranks can be found around the city – these are served by black Hackney carriages with white bonnet and roof lights. 
  • More information on taxi services in the city can be found via Visit Cardiff.

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Hotels

Preferential rates for hotels coming soon.

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Social events

More information on our programme of social events coming soon.

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Tours

More information on our tour programme coming soon.

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Accessibility

Below is a non-exhaustive list of what we will offer online and in-person delegates.  

  • All sessions will be captioned for in-person and online delegates.
  • Reserved seating in all rooms – signs will be placed at the end of aisles, on the front row and in wheelchair accessible seating. If you want help finding a seat, please let venue staff and volunteers know.
  • A dedicated quiet room for in-person delegates. Please do not use this space for conversations with others or phone calls. If you use electronic equipment, please ensure the volume is turned off or use headphones with the volume turned down to ensure you don’t disturb others.
  • We welcome assistance dogs at our events – please let us know in advance so we can ensure they are fully accommodated.
  • Speakers are briefed to ensure that slides follow good accessibility guidance, based on advice from VocalEyes.
  • Our Code of Conduct, which was created to ensure our spaces are safe, welcoming and inclusive.

Useful access information for St Fagans available to download: 

Further access information for St Fagans: 

  • St Fagans is a large open-air museum and due to the historic nature of the museum, there are uneven floors and surfaces. Some of the paths on the castle side of the museum are steep and uneven.
  • The MA Conference will be largely based in the main museum building. The entrance to the museum is via the entrance building, next to the museum car park. There is level access to the building and you can exit out onto the museum site via the level exit on the ground floor or take one of two lifts to the third floor and exit via the rear doors to the outdoor grounds of the museum.
  • There are toilets on the ground floor and the second floor.
  • There are accessible toilets near Rhyd-y-car Terrace, in the castle grounds; in Oakdale Workmen’s Institute; and downstairs in Gweithdy. The toilets in Gweithdy are located in the basement and are accessed via a lift.
  • The site has two Changing Places toilets – one on the ground floor in the main building and another in Gweithdy.
  • Temperature and lighting levels vary from historic building to historic building. There may be a fire in some of the buildings you visit. Lighting levels are low in many of the historic buildings as the lighting reflects the time period.
  • Manual wheelchairs are available free of charge from the welcome desk in the main building. Mobility scooters are welcome inside the museum but are not available to hire.
  • Induction loops are available at the welcome desk in the main building, in the museum shop, and in the reception of the Weston Centre for Learning on floor 2 of the main building.
  • More details on the above information can found online on the St Fagans website.

If you require further accommodations, someone to attend the event with you to provide support or have any questions about the above, please email events@museumsassociation.org.

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More information about the venue
  • A site map for St Fagans is available to download.
  • Further details of the rooms we will be using during Conference will be provided in due course.

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Catering

  • A vegetarian/vegan lunch plus hot drinks will be provided during Conference (7-8 October only).
  • We will provide information about the menu, and photographs of food where possible, in due course. Delegates with dietary requirements should provide details when booking their place.

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Swapcard (conference platform and app)

  • This is a hybrid event (in person and online) and we are using the Swapcard platform to host our conference programme, delegate list and stream some sessions to online delegates.
  • Swapcard is available to use both in your internet browser and on smartphones via the MA’s conference app, which you’ll be able to download shortly before Conference from the iOS App Store or the Google Play store depending on your device.
  • All delegates need to create an account on Swapcard to access streamed sessions, the online programme and delegate list. You will be sent details of how to do this as part of your delegate joining instructions shortly before Conference – please note the email will come from events@museumsassociation.org.
  • When requesting a magic login link or other account functions from the app, emails you receive will come from noreply@swapcard.com. Please be sure to whitelist this email address and check your junk or spam folder if you’re expecting an email and can’t find it in your inbox.
  • We will share a more detailed guide to using Swapcard in due course.

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Online delegates

  • Some sessions will be streamed and will be marked on the website programme as “all attendees welcome”.
  • Recordings of the streamed sessions will be available after the conference via the MA website – please note that you can only watch streamed sessions live via Swapcard, and they will not be available for immediate playback during Conference.
  • Swapcard provides a chat function that online delegates can use to ask questions to speakers and chat to each other.

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Sustainability

We are committed to reducing our impact on the environment.

Below is a non-exhaustive list of ways we are working to improve the environmental sustainability of MA Conference 2025.

Catering
  • Lunch and any food served at social events will be a mix of vegetarian and vegan food.
  • Non-dairy milk alternatives are offered during coffee breaks. Coffee and tea are Fairtrade.
  • Delegates are asked to bring their own reusable hot drink cups and water bottles.
  • Drinking water will be provided to delegates throughout the event.
Printed materials and plastic
  • We provide a digital programme and delegate list and no longer publish printed versions (apart from in cases where delegates with access needs request these).
  • We print badges on sustainable paper. Lanyards are reusable and made from bamboo. We do not provide plastic wallets for badges.
  • We no longer provide delegate bags with printed material inside.
  • Signage is only printed when the venue is unable to offer digital signage.
Travel 
  • We encourage delegates and speakers to travel by public transport where possible.
  • We provide international and some UK-based speakers the opportunity to join via Zoom.
  • Museums Association staff travel by train or other modes of public transport whenever possible.
  • Our hybrid approach to Conference means more people can access the event without the need for travel.
Venue
  • We work with partners who share our commitment to environmental sustainability.
  • Amgueddfa Cymru – Museum Wales has information about its commitment to sustainability on its website.

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