2026 National LGBT+ Conference

13 – 15 November 2026

ICC Belfast, 2 Lanyon Pl, Belfast, BT1 3WH

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UNISON’s LGBT+ Self-Organised Group Committee has agreed to hold a LGBT+ Self-Organised Group Conference between Friday 13th  November 1.30pm to Sunday 15th November 1.20pm 2026.

We have now opened the Online Conferencing System (OCS) to allow branches to register delegates and submit motions in line with the rule-book requirements.

Please note the deadline to submit motions on OCS is 

12.00 noon on Friday 24th July 2026

UNISON’s LGBT+ Self-Organised Group Conference takes place over three days. All delegates and visitors may attend all sessions of conference but voting on motions is restricted to delegates only. Delegates should attend all sessions of Conference.

The conference bulletin will have further information on motion submission from the SOC and submission deadlines.

Delegates should contact their branch to be registered through the OCS.

Registration and Enquiries

If you want to attend the conference, please contact your branch who can register you as a delegate or visitor on the Online Conference System (OCS). Once you are registered you will receive an email confirmation from OCS. Deadline for registration is Thursday 20th August 2026 at 12pm.

Use the link below to search for your branch details:

Click here for UNISON Branch Finder

Travel Arrangements

Please consider the impact on the environment when making your decision on how to travel to Conference.

Branches are asked to book all travel arrangements for Conference through Stewart Corporate Travel via email at unison@stewarttravelmanagement.com or call 0800 091 4272. Please advise Stewart Corporate Travel if your delegates have railcards.

Branches are reminded that:

  • Travel costs for Delegates only will be funded from National Office
  • Travel costs for Visitors must be paid for by the branch.  Please note that a booking fee is applicable – further details from Stewart Corporate Travel.

Driving is discouraged for conference unless delegates are travelling together or as a reasonable adjustment. Total reclaimable will be the cost of standard tickets or cost of car travel – whichever is the lesser.

All travel requests (including 1st Class Travel) as a reasonable adjustment must be reviewed and authorised by the Head of Conferences. 

Request for first class travel and driving to conference should be made by 12pm Thursday, 22nd October 2026.

Accommodation

Booking accommodation – please book any accommodation required with a reputable provider with a generous cancellation policy.

Please ensure that members have written confirmation of any booked and paid for accommodation.

Timetable

 

Deadline for submission of motions 12:00pm Friday, 24 July 2026
Publication of Preliminary Agenda Friday, 14 August 2026
Deadline for submission of delegates 12:00pm Thursday, 20 August 2026
Deadline for submitting Crèche places 12:00pm Thursday, 03 September 2026
Deadline for submitting reasonable adjustment requests for access 4.00pm Thursday, 03 September 2026

 

Deadline for submission of amendments 12:00pm Friday, 18 September 2026
Deadline for hard copy opt-in of conference documents 12.00pm Friday, 18 September 2026
Deadline for proposals for motions/ amendments to rule for 2027 national delegate and service group conferences 12:00pm Friday, 18 September 2026
Deadline for submission for LGBT+ recruitment and organising awards 12:00pm Friday, 18 September 2026
Deadline for nominations 12:00pm Friday, 18 September 2026
Publication of Final Agenda Friday, 16 October 2026
Deadline for reasonable adjustment requests for travel 12:00pm Thursday, 22 October 2026
Deadline for emergency motions/ priorities 12:00pm Friday, 06 November 2026
Deadline for submitting change of delegates on the OCS 11.59pm Monday, 09 November 2026

Personal Pronouns

It is now possible to add your personal pronouns to the online conference system so that they can appear on your credentials.

For information on how to do this, please visit the UNISON website, click on events, choose your conference and scroll to the documents at the bottom of the page and open “Personal pronouns in OCS – User guide”.

If you require help, please email the conference team, conferences@unison.co.uk or telephone, 0207 121 5123.

Year of Green Activity (YOGA)

We’re doing our best to reduce the environmental impact of our conferences. We are providing all delegates with the chance to opt in to being sent paper copies of our conference materials as part of the delegates’ despatch. All of these documents will be available online, on the UNISON website and the UNISON Conferences App. You can then download them onto your laptop or tablet to view online while you are at conference. If you wish to opt in, please indicate this on the ‘My Requirements’ screen options on the Online Conference System (OCS). If you do not opt in, you will not be sent all documentation in hard copy form.

The opt in deadline is Friday, 18 September 2026.

Resources