How we find, check and re-check venues

A venue guide is only as good as its last check. Clubs close, change hands, drop their singles nights or move. These are the rules we follow so that what you read here is still true when you arrive.

Where listings come from

Every listing starts from a venue's own published information: its official website, booking pages and house rules. We don't copy listings from directories, forums or social media, and we don't list anything that is only described in a chat or a flyer.

A venue is listed only when:

• its own official website shows it operating now, with current nights or events;
• it is on private premises, with a door policy for adults only;
• it meets the standards in our consent policy.

We list only what the venue's own information supports. For now, each listing gives the venue's name, what kind of place it is and where, with the date of our check. Nights, prices, entry rules and dress codes change too often to copy, so we point you to the venue's own site for the current details.

How to read a listing

Each column in a venue table tells you something specific, and it helps to know what it doesn't tell you too. Our London guide is a good example.

What the check date means

The date on a listing means we saw the venue's own information showing it was operating on that day. It does not mean we've been inside, and it isn't an endorsement of everything that happens there. Venues change their nights and prices often, so always confirm with the venue before you travel.

We haven't yet contacted the venues listed so far, so each listing shows only what its own website said on the check date. A venue that asks to be removed is removed.

How often we re-check

We aim to re-check every listing each quarter. A listing that we can't re-confirm comes down until we can. If we hear that a venue has closed or changed, we check it sooner.

A city page goes live only once enough of its venues have been confirmed to be useful. Until then it stays unpublished, which is why some cities you might expect are missing from our city guides.

What "licensed" and "legal" mean here

We describe venues as private and legal because they operate openly as businesses on private premises, for adults who have chosen to be there. That is a long way from a public place. It isn't a promise about every permission a venue holds. In England and Wales, for example, a venue that sells alcohol needs a premises licence from its council under the Licensing Act 2003, and councils also apply planning rules and their own policies on adult venues. In Canada, the Supreme Court held in R v Labaye (2005) that consensual group sex among adults at a private members' club in Montreal was not criminally indecent. We don't inspect licences ourselves; if you have concerns about a venue's permissions, its local council or licensing authority is the place to ask.

Law and safety pages

We won't publish a full page on the law in any country until a lawyer qualified there has reviewed it. Until then, our city guides and explainers give only a short summary of the main offences, linked to the legislation itself, and say clearly that it is not legal advice. Safety pages cite official sources, such as health services and the police, and link to them. Every external fact on a page is listed in that page's sources.

Money and independence

Venues don't pay to be listed, and we don't own or run any of them. If that ever changes, any paid or partner listing will be clearly labelled as one. The site is run by Ambervine Inc, which also operates the separate Go Dogging members area; our about page explains how the two fit together. Pages are written by the Go Dogging editorial team, not by venues.

What we never publish

• Public places of any kind: car parks, parks, lay-bys, beaches, woods.
• Graphic descriptions of sex, or photos or videos of anyone.
• Invented reviews, quotes, testimonials or statistics.
• Anything suggesting that anyone involved is under 18, intoxicated or not consenting.

Example messages and scripts in our guides, such as what to say when asking a venue a question, are always labelled as examples.

Corrections

If something on this site is wrong or out of date, tell us and name the page. We fix errors as soon as we've confirmed them and update the date on the page. Venues can use the same route to update or remove their listing.