House rules
Be good humans
Say hello. We’re big on kindness and looking out for each other. We all have our off days, but please be polite!
Getting to know each other is encouraged, but please be mindful that some people might just need a quiet space to focus. We’re big on kindness and looking out for each other. We all have our off days, but please be polite!
Cowork fees are per person and subject to our Terms and Conditions.
Please use your space reasonably – don’t spread out across multiple desks. There are no reserved desks in the open access area.
Respect everyone and please be nice. We are LGBTQ+ and disability friendly. All users of the building must uphold the highest standards of equity, diversity, and inclusion. We won’t always get everything right – let us know if we can improve, and we will do our best. We have a zero tolerance policy for abuse.
Be kind online as well as offline. Feel free to tag us, but defamatory or harmful comments about other users, the venue, our company, or our staff won’t be tolerated. Got feedback?Speak to us directly—we’re here to listen and will do our best to improve.
We respect individuality, but a basic dress code applies – tops, bottoms, and shoes are required!
Infants are welcome during daytime opening hours (9am – 5pm weekdays) but must be supervised constantly. It’s your responsibility to ensure their safety and that they do not disrupt other users. We cannot DBS check everyone who enters the building. Assume under-18s are not allowed at out of hours events unless stated otherwise.
Breastfeeding is welcome throughout the building. If you prefer privacy, you can use an unoccupied meeting room free of charge.
No one is perfect, but we expect all individuals and businesses/ organisations using our building to do all they can to avoid harming people or the planet.
Be mindful of others
Networking and socialising are great, but please be considerate of noise in cowork spaces and communal areas. Use headphones on your devices, and take calls and long chats to the café or book a meeting room.
If someone’s wearing headphones in the cowork area, assume it’s a ‘do not disturb’ sign.
Overhearing conversations in cowork spaces is inevitable. Respect privacy and confidentiality—be discreet and avoid discussing sensitive matters in communal areas.
Please respect Resident Members’ need to work and do not interrupt them continuously or for lengthy periods. Always knock and wait to be invited in before entering a Resident Member’s office.
The eastern end of the office spaces is located above a function room – we’ll keep noise levels reasonable on weekdays (9am – 5pm), but they may increase after 5pm and at any time on weekends.
Respect others’ privacy in photos/videos. If you want to take pictures or videos that include anyone else (including our staff), ask for their permission first, especially if you plan to share them online. You must not take photos or videos of minors or vulnerable adults without prior written consent from their parent, guardian, or carer. We may request proof that you have done this.
Your space
Furnishings stay in their rooms. Resident Members may rearrange furniture in their offices, but swapping or removing items is not allowed. In the cowork space, desks, lamps, and all other furniture besides desk chairs must not be moved. All items provided by HQ remain our property.
Report damages – we’ll repair or replace items damaged by fair wear and tear at no cost. We’ll always be reasonable, but if damage is due to negligence or wilful action, we reserve the right to recharge the cost of repair or replacement.
Don’t add, alter, or remove fixtures or fittings. No repainting is allowed, and you may not affix anything to internal or external doors, windows, or walls without our permission. You may not alter or remove any signage.
For Resident Members, signage is allowed in designated areas, subject to our criteria and prior written approval. If we say yes, you provide the artwork in the required format, and we’ll handle printing and installation, the cost of which will be recharged to you plus 15%. No external signage (including on windows facing the street) is permitted. Cowork users may not display banners or signage.
Access and security
Cowork spaces are open 9am – 5pm on weekdays (excluding bank holidays). Please be ready to leave by 5pm. Resident Members can access the building 8am – 8pm on weekdays and 10am – 4pm on Saturdays. Please be ready to leave at the end of these periods so we can alarm the building. The building is closed to everyone on Sundays, bank holidays, and from Christmas Eve to New Year’s Day – no access is permitted to the building or courtyard beyond opening times.
Expect the courtyard gates to be opened at 9am and locked at 5pm on weekdays, and at 10am and 4pm, respectively, on Saturdays. If the gates are locked and you have been given access to the courtyard area, you can leave via the fire gate – please ensure it has closed properly behind you.
Meeting with others? They’ll need to buy their own pass if using the cowork area, or you’ll need to book a meeting space (see prices at the café counter). You can meet in the café during opening hours free of charge. Resident Members can bring people to meet with them in their own offices free of charge, subject to reasonable numbers. You may not bring chairs from other rooms into your office to accommodate others – if space is insufficient, please book a meeting room or use the café.
Café coworking is free of charge, provided that a purchase is made on each use. This is only available on a ‘fair use’ basis and within daytime café opening hours. During busy times, you must use the café’s dedicated cowork benches – we reserve the right to ask you to move to one of these spaces or to share a table with another coworker. You may charge devices using the sockets in the café and in the cowork areas, but please don’t create trip hazards with trailing cables.
Unoccupied office spaces may not be used as meeting rooms and/or workspaces.
Resident Members will receive two keys to their office – keep your keys safe and do not make copies. If you lose one, you must inform us immediately. Replacement keys and/or locks or additional copies of keys will be recharged at cost plus 15%.
You are responsible for your visitors’ behaviour and health and safety, and must accompany them throughout their visit (this includes showing them out when they leave).
Members must not share any entry codes or passwords, including WiFi, with others – if you must note these down, please do so securely. If an item on which you have noted down any security details is stolen or misplaced, you must inform us immediately.
Report any suspicious activity to staff immediately.
CCTV is in use, covering corridors, entry/exit points, and communal areas. No access to CCTV footage is permitted to anyone other than our senior staff. Our GDPR compliant privacy policy can be viewed on our website.
Do not accept or sign for any deliveries that are not for you – please send them to the café or Engine Room.
Clean up after yourself
We have a clear desk policy that applies in all shared spaces – please tidy up after yourself.
Our cleaner hoovers, dusts, and cleans the communal areas, including cowork spaces and offices, and this is included in fees, but we expect all users to clear up after themselves. Please clear up any spillages immediately as best you can (there are cleaning materials under the sink in the first floor kitchen) – if a more thorough clean is required, please notify café staff. Resident Members must keep their offices in an orderly fashion and spot clean as necessary. External window cleaning will be arranged periodically by the landlord.
Wash up communal kitchen items and leave them to dry upside down on the draining board in the first floor kitchen – you may not take them to the café for cleaning.
Please help us reduce waste. What cannot be reduced should be recyclable wherever possible.
Waste removal is included in membership fees, except where noted below. Segregation of waste is a legal obligation—please ensure you place your waste in the correct labelled bin. Resident Members are responsible for regularly emptying waste bins from their own office into the communal first floor bins. Our cleaner will empty communal bins periodically - if bins become full and require emptying before this, please report this to café staff promptly. For Resident Members only, large cardboard packaging can be brought to the café at 4 pm on weekdays (on a fair use basis) to be placed in our bins – please empty and flat pack boxes yourselves.
Do not place electrical items or batteries or any other hazardous items into bins.
Bathroom bins are for sanitary products/ bathroom waste only. Do not flush anything down the toilets besides toilet paper.
A battery recycling box is available in the Engine Room for single use batteries (but please use rechargeable ones where possible).
Recycling/disposal of electrical items and hazardous waste is not included within the Membership and cannot be done onsite – please dispose of such items safely and legally offsite.
Let us know if you lose anything. We’ll keep lost property for one month before disposal.
Kitchen manners
Only food and drink bought from the HQ cafe may be eaten in the café, courtyard, or function and meeting rooms. Bringing a packed lunch/drinks is fine, but these can only be consumed at your desk or in the first floor kitchen. If you want snacks or food/drinks for a meeting or function, please ask for a catering menu from the café.
A table and chairs are provided in the kitchen for eating lunch on a fair use basis. You may not work from the kitchen or use the kitchen for meetings.
No access is permitted to the commercial kitchen or café serving area at any time.
If purchasing food/drink from the café to take to your desk, please ask for them as takeaways – the café plates, cups, cutlery, and condiments must not leave the café.
Please avoid bringing particularly smelly foods into shared spaces. If you bring lunch/drinks to work, you can keep these in the fridge, but anything left overnight will be disposed of. You are responsible for labelling your items, and for ensuring they are clean and do not leak.
Health and safety
The HQ building is smoke/vape free. You may smoke/vape in the courtyard away from doorways and windows, using the outdoor ashtrays, but please consider other users. Do not dispose of hot ashes in bins.
You are responsible for risk assessing your activities and those of any staff/guests you bring to the building, and for taking appropriate measures to mitigate risks. We may require a copy of your risk assessment.
Fire alarms are tested weekly on Tuesdays at 4 pm. Only our staff, contractors approved by us/the landlords, and the fire service may operate fire panels. Unless you have been informed of a change to this, if you hear an alarm outside the stated time you should assume it is real.
If the fire alarm activates, evacuate calmly to the assembly point on Pleasant Street. Do not return to the building unless told by our Fire Marshall or a uniformed member of the Fire Service that it is safe to do so. Never use the lift if a fire alarm is sounding. There are disabled refuge points on the first floor landing of the Pleasant Street stairwell and the Courtroom landing – disabled members of your staff should inform a colleague and await rescue. Evac chairs are not provided.
If you spot signs of fire, sound the alarm immediately and evacuate.
Fire exits must be kept clear at all times. Fire doors must not be propped open.
We will organise fire drills periodically – participation is mandatory.
We will monitor cowork users but not Resident Members’ use of the building – Resident Members must have their own fire safety risk assessment, policy, and procedures for their own space and for accounting for staff in the event of a fire.
We provide and maintain all firefighting equipment in communal areas. You must not move or tamper with any firefighting equipment or fire safety signage. We cannot provide Resident Members with fire extinguishers – if you determine you require them for your space, you must source and maintain them. Our extinguishers may only be operated by trained personnel – if Resident Members can satisfy us that they have staff with fire marshal training, we may grant consent to use our extinguishers if necessary.
First Aid kits are kept in the communal kitchen and behind the counter in the café. If you use items from either kit, please inform us so we can replace them. Resident Members are responsible for First Aid provisions for themselves/their staff.
You may not bring or store any hazardous items in the building.
Waste must be disposed of daily – do not allow wastepaper/card to accumulate in your office space as this is a fire hazard.
All electrical equipment that you use in the building must be PAT tested and visually checked as safe for use before plugging in. You may charge batteries but only whilst you are in the building. You must not overload extension cables. We will PAT test all items we provide. Wherever possible, turn off any items plugged in at the wall daily before leaving.
Look after your belongings – we’re not responsible for lost, stolen, or damaged items. You are responsible for insuring your belongings.
Bringing heavy and/or very bulky items into or out of the building must be done outside public opening hours when the building has fewer people coming and going – if you require a bulky delivery within these hours, you must clear this with us first so we can ensure safety for all users. Any heavy deliveries must be lifted/moved by your staff and/or the delivery person—you must check if it is kerbside delivery only as we will not be able to move such items for you. Please ensure any heavy items in lifts do not overload them.
Resident Members must store everything in their rooms – you may not place items in communal areas or corridors, even temporarily.
Do not hold external entry/exit doors open, or otherwise allow access, for people you do not know. Exit doors should automatically close behind you, but please check they have closed properly when entering/leaving (this includes the courtyard fire escape gate if leaving outside of café opening hours). Do not prop any entry/exit doors open.
If you require any medication, you must store this safely in your bag/on your person or in your office. You may not store this in the kitchen fridge or other communal spaces. If you or your staff require the use of sharps, you must provide safe sharps disposal in your own office and arrange for safe and legal disposal at your own cost.
Active travellers
For everyone’s safety, no cycling or scooting is permitted in the courtyard.
Cycle parking is available outside the building and in the courtyard – bikes can’t be brought inside the building. Bring your own lock. Bikes/scooters are left at your own risk. If you park a bike in the courtyard, retrieve it before 5 pm when the gates will be locked. Bikes/scooters may not be left on the premises overnight.
Other practicalities
By using HQ, you agree to our standard terms and conditions (available on our website).
If you have opted for a package that includes a postal address, the address is [YOUR COMPANY NAME]@HQ, Llys Glas, Alexandra Road, Swansea SA1 5AJ.
When you become a Member, we will ask you for an email address – you are responsible for checking this email for updates from us. For corporate Resident Members, we will liaise with the person named on your license—you must ensure they pass on any messages we send to other staff members. Please inform us in writing if the email address you have provided requires updating.
Membership fees do not include any licenses for audiovisuals – if you wish to watch television in your office or play radio/recorded music, you must apply and pay for your own TV and/or PRSPPL licenses. In any event, any TV or radio in your offices must not be audible from adjacent rooms or communal areas.
If you have opted for a package that includes post, please note we cannot accept large parcels (anything that doesn’t fit in a standard mailbox) or out of hours deliveries, nor can we sign for parcels on your behalf. You must check on and collect your mail promptly -unclaimed mail will be returned to the sender after one month. Whilst we will take all reasonable care, we cannot accept liability for any valuable items delivered and/or left unclaimed. You may only receive post that is relevant to the business in whose name you have a membership (or your name if registered as an individual). We do not accept liability for post that does not arrive or that arrives damaged or incomplete. We cannot accept electronic mail on your behalf. We can only receive mail for you—you will need to arrange sending mail yourselves.
Dogs are welcome in the café (on the servery side only) and the courtyard but not elsewhere in the building (except guide dogs and medical service dogs). Please follow the posted rules for dogs – these are displayed in the café.
We have private hires in the building – membership does not permit you access to private events, so no gatecrashing!
WiFi is included in our fees on a fair use basis. Excessive data usage may incur extra charges. Resident Members will receive password access to the ‘Spaces’ WiFi – this is for your use only, and any guests you bring must use the guest WiFi. Accessing inappropriate or illegal content will result in withdrawal of the service. For Resident Members only, the WiFi is on a ‘guest’ basis – you cannot see other people’s systems and vice versa. If you wish to set up a private onsite network for your staff, let us know, and we will provide you with a quotation for arranging this (if feasible).
Meeting rooms must be booked and paid for in advance. Meetings in the café are fine during café opening hours and are free, but please make a purchase and don’t occupy café tables for excessively long periods. You may not rearrange tables or provide any display materials or equipment that would disrupt general use of the space as a café. Please respect other café users when holding meetings, keeping noise to reasonable levels. You cannot close off the café schoolroom meeting space for a meeting unless you have hired that area in advance. If the café is particularly busy, we may ask you to take your meeting elsewhere in the building. Please avoid holding larger meetings at lunchtime unless your party are buying lunch.
Membership does not guarantee you a table in the café. Tables can be reserved on the day by booking at the counter between 9 and 10 am – for groups of four or more, a preorder is required, for which we will take full payment when you book. Refunds are not provided if you decide to do this.
No onsite parking is permitted. We may allow temporary loading at the Pleasant Street gates – if you require this, please ask us for a permit. You may not park on the land outside the gates when we are closed.
We have a zero tolerance policy on bringing illegal items into the building.
You are responsible for adequately insuring for public and (if relevant) employer liability cover, any professional or product liabilities, and your own equipment. All Resident Members must provide a current copy of their public liability insurance cover.
Any private hires of space are subject to the Hire Terms and Conditions, which are available on the website.
Finally, if you need help, just tell us – we’re a friendly bunch and will do our best to assist you if we can.
These house rules may be subject to change. We’ll notify you via building notices or email of any changes, and these will take effect immediately.
Thank you for taking the time to read our House Rules. Our aim is to create a welcoming, positive coworking community, and we look forward to working alongside you!
