Merseyside's oldest swingers club has a strict set of rules every member must follow. Townhouse in Tranmere, Birkenhead is widely thought to be Merseyside's first official swingers club, opening its doors at 9 Union Street in 2005 and welcoming more than 25,000 members over the past 25 years.
Owner's Perspective
The ECHO previously spoke to the club owner Vicky Finney on what life is really like inside the club. Touching on the public's negative perception of the industry, she said: "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 on the Wall
The club has 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." Catrin spoke to Vicky about the importance of these rules for creating a safe environment for its members and listed the rules that are printed on the wall at the club.
- 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
Safety First
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.
