Townhouse, Merseyside's oldest swingers club, has a strict set of rules every member must follow. The venue, located at 9 Union Street in Tranmere, Birkenhead, opened in 2005 and has welcomed more than 25,000 members over the past 25 years.
Owner Defends Club's Community
The ECHO previously spoke to club owner Vicky Finney about life inside the club. She addressed the public's negative perception, saying: "I think everyone just sees the sex and the sleaze rather than the community and the good that we do. It's much more than just a swingers and BDSM club. But people just don't really want to see that and hear that, they just want to see Vic the dominatrix who runs that seedy sex club in Birkenhead and they don't want to know any more than that."
Rules Printed on the Wall
The club recently featured on the 'Swingers' podcast by BBC Radio Wales. Journalist Catrin Nye visited Townhouse to see "a world that's meant to be built around rules." She spoke to Vicky about the importance of these rules and listed those printed on the club's wall:
- No means no
- No touching without consent
- Don't follow people around
- Don't open closed doors
- No mobile phones anywhere
- Clean up after yourself
- Quiet around scenes
- Respect people at all times
- Don't be pushy
Rules Taken Seriously
Vicky said: "Don't be pushy and no means no go hand in hand. If someone has quite pushy behaviour and they don't take no for an answer then they're not going to last very long. They'll get a warning and then they'll be gone. The main reason is safety. If people broke those rules then that trusted environment is disrupted and at risk so we do take rules very seriously."
The Townhouse website has an additional list of rules and etiquette expectations including cleanliness, dress code, and the importance of upholding the confidentiality of other members.
