Major community sports centres including the State Netball and Hockey Centre, North Melbourne Football Club and Mission Whitten Oval, and major sports stadiums including the MCG, are now among the venues where Victorians can find free pads and tampons vending machines.
These machines will make a real difference. Providing free access to pads and tampons in public places will help more Victorians participate fully in their communities.
For the sporting community, a lack of access to period products can significantly increase anxiety about leaking and athletic performance. It can be a reason why people choose not to get involved or stay involved in sport.
Free pads and tampons at venues like the State Netball and Hockey Centre will help address these barriers to participation by ensuring more Victorians who need period products feel more prepared, comfortable and confident while playing or watching sport.
Because period products are not a luxury, and no one should ever feel embarrassed or excluded because of their period.
More free pads and tampons vending machines will be installed across Victoria throughout 2025. In addition to sports centres, locations include:
- public hospitals
- TAFEs
- public libraries
- staffed train stations
- cultural institutions.
This means more people will soon have access to free pads and tampons when and where they need them.
When complete, 1,500 machines will be available at up to 700 sites across the whole of Victoria.
All local government areas were consulted and requested to nominate venues to ensure coverage across the state.
Over 385 vending machines are already available across metropolitan Melbourne and parts of regional Victoria. These machines have dispensed close to 90,000 period products and counting!
By making pads and tampons freely available across the state, this program is delivering important health and wellbeing supports to more of our communities.
To learn more and find your closest vending machine on our interactive map, visit www.freepadsandtampons.vic.gov.au .