Introduction

At Hedon House (operated by Siomas Management Pty Ltd), we understand and respect the sensitive nature of your choice to trade with us and the importance of protecting any data you share with us in the process. We acknowledge the stigma historically placed upon some of the experiences and identities our customers may access when using our service, and that this stigma can still have significant consequences for all parties to a Hedon House booking (Siomas Management Pty Ltd included).

Maintaining privacy and discretion is in our mutual interests, and there are many factors for us to consider in our approach to privacy. We work to balance the legal legitimacy of our agreement to hire to you and the need to know our customers with the many legitimate privacy concerns that are present for our diverse customer base. We value your privacy, and we expect the same in return.

Our offering (unsupervised private access to our most precious assets by people who we generally don’t know) is made with an expectation that you will provide us with the information we prompt you to provide. Where an opt-out of provision is feasible, we will supply it.

This Privacy Policy explains how we collect, use, store, and protect your personal information in accordance with the Australian Privacy Principles. We always welcome feedback on our policies and practices, and intend this policy to be a living document shaped by our collective experiences as part of the Hedon House environment.

Scope of This Policy

This Privacy Policy covers all aspects of our business activities, including:

• Venue bookings and related services
• Contact form submissions and inquiries
• Social media interactions
• Event ticketing and management
• Marketing communications and lead generation
• Our engagement of professional services

Information We Collect

Booking Information

We collect the necessary information to provide venue hire services to you. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Name and contact details: To facilitate communication with you and to collect the necessary data required to enter into an agreement to provide service to you under our Terms.
  We cannot accept bookings under pseudonyms or with fake names or contact details.
  We collect different data from each guest depending on their level of responsibility for the booking:

   

• Guest 1 (responsible for the booking): Acts as the primary contact point and the person with whom Siomas Management Pty Ltd enters into a service provision agreement. This guest takes responsibility for all others in the booking.
• Guests 2, 3, and so on: Contact information for these guests is only used in the event that we are unable to reach Guest 1 during the appointment period, or, in the case of a legitimate claim for damages, if Guest 1 becomes uncontactable during resolution efforts. This is done solely to facilitate resolution and will be approached with discretion.

   

• Working and monitored email address: Most correspondence that shapes our agreement to hire to you, including instructions for check-in, use of the premises, and check-out, is provided to you by email. Some of these emails are automated by our booking system, others may be sent direct from a member of our team.

   

• Working phone number: Required to confirm your stay in the week before your booking and to send access information on the day of your booking. You may set parameters around the time of communication.

   

• Phone contact preferences: Where a guest deems it necessary to restrict the mode or hours of phone contact from our team, they are able to specify these preferences at the time of booking, or at any other time by making contact with us, and we will endeavour to respect these preferences where possible.

   

• Experience information: Your familiarity with our premises and its contents, and/or other similar premises.

   

• Booking requirements: Any specific requests or needs for your stay.

   

We use this information to prepare for your stay and where relevant, ensure you have the necessary information to use the premises and its inclusions, and/or suggest ways to get more out of your visit.

How We Handle Booking Information

• Storage: Your information is stored in our third-party booking system in perpetuity, unless you request deletion of your client file. Access to the system is by secure login and can be immediately revoked.
• Access: Current members of our team and the third-party platforms we use are able to access your data on a need-to-know basis.
• Sharing: Details about your booking are not shared with anyone outside of our team, whose engagement is conditional upon their agreement to non-disclosure of data. We refuse requests for information about guests unless we are legally required to provide it.

Contact Form Submissions

When you submit inquiries through our website contact form, we collect:

• Your name
• Email address
• Phone number (if provided)
• The content of your message

This information is used solely to respond to your inquiry and is stored securely. We retain this information only for as long as necessary to address your query and any follow-up communications.

Social Media Interactions

Public Engagement

When you interact with our social media accounts (by following, commenting, liking, or sharing our content), we have access to information that is publicly available on your profile according to your privacy settings on those platforms.

We do not collect or store this information separately from the social media platforms, but we may use it to respond to your comments or messages.

Direct Messages

If you send us direct messages through social media platforms, we treat these communications with the same level of confidentiality as email communications. However, please be aware that social media platforms have their own privacy policies that govern how they process your information.

Event Ticketing

Event Attendee Information

For events requiring ticket purchases, we use third-party ticketing platforms. When you purchase tickets:

• Your personal and payment information is collected directly by the ticketing platform
• We receive your name, email address, and ticket information to verify attendance
• We do not receive or store your payment details

For event management purposes, we maintain a list of attendees that includes:

• Names
• Email addresses
• Number of tickets purchased

This information is used for:

• Confirming attendance
• Sending event updates or changes
• Post-event communications related directly to the event attended

Marketing Communications

If you sign up for our marketing communications through our website, events, or other lead generators, we collect:

• Your email address
• Name (if provided)
• Content preferences (if specified)

We use this information to:

• Send you newsletters or updates about our services
• Share information about upcoming events
• Provide content we believe may be of interest based on your preferences

You can unsubscribe from these communications at any time by:

• Clicking the “unsubscribe” link in any marketing email
• Contacting us directly at info@hedonhouse.com

Employment Inquiries

If you express interest in working with us, we may collect personal information from you including your name, contact details, work history, qualifications, and other relevant information. This information will only be used to contact you in relation to existing or future vacancies you may be interested in and to assess your suitability to work with us.

Survey Information

We may collect information via customer surveys, including stay feedback and market research surveys. This information is stored behind a secure login for a maximum of 2 years. Where it is going to be kept for longer than 2 years, it is de-identified before storage to protect your privacy while allowing us to maintain valuable business insights.

Sensitive Information

In the course of providing our services, we may collect information that is considered “sensitive information” under the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth), particularly information relating to sexual orientation or practices.

In accordance with Australian Privacy Principle 3, we will only collect sensitive information:

• With your explicit consent
• When the information is reasonably necessary for our functions or activities
• When permitted by an exception by law

We apply appropriate safeguards to protect and store sensitive information and only use it for the specific purpose for which it was provided. We do not disclose sensitive information to any third parties unless required by law.

We treat this information with discretion, respect, and care, consistent with our commitment to providing a safe, private and inclusive environment for all guests.

Photos and Media

• We do not currently make use of security cameras on our premises. No images of guests are collected by us.
• Guests who share images with us do so of their own volition. Your consent for us to make use of these images for marketing or other purposes is sought in writing at the time of sharing, and will be considered valid unless otherwise notified by you.

Use and Disclosure of Your Information

How We Use Your Information

• Primary purposes: The primary purpose of the data we collect is to process your booking and payment, manage your booking, prepare for your stay, and provide appropriate information to support your use of the venue.
• Secondary purposes: Secondary purposes include marketing, business analytics, and ongoing customer relationship management.
• Boundaries:
• We will not sell your data to third parties, except in the case of a transfer or sale (see ‘Business Transfers’ below).
• We will not disclose your data without proper authorisation unless required by law.
• Your information will not be used to create profiles beyond what is necessary to provide our services (including any marketing you have opted into).

Third-Party Service Providers

We use several third-party services to operate our business efficiently. By using our services, you acknowledge that your information may be processed by these providers:

• Stripe (payment processing)
• PayPal (payment processing)
• Acuity (booking system)
• Google Workspace (business operations)
• Mailchimp (email communications)
• Typeform (surveys)
• Humanitix (event ticketing)

Each of these services has its own privacy policy governing how they handle your information. We use the highest level of login and device security offered by each provider.

Overseas Disclosure
Some of the third-party service providers we use may store or process your personal information overseas, including in the United States. We take reasonable steps to ensure these providers comply with Australian Privacy Principles or equivalent protections in the way they handle your data.

Business Transfers

In the event that our business is sold, merged, or otherwise transferred to another entity, your personal information may be transferred as part of that transaction.

You may request deletion of your personal information at any time through our data removal process. If you wish to ensure your data is not transferred in such circumstances, you can exercise your right to data deletion before any such transfer occurs.

Security Measures

 

Digital Information Protection

We implement reasonable and security measures to protect your information, including:

• Strong and complex password protection
• Two-factor authentication where available
• Non-disclosure agreements with team members

Physical Records

We do not keep physical records of customer data.

Staff Confidentiality

All team members are bound by confidentiality requirements. We understand that the communities we serve are small, and it may be necessary for someone to protect data from particular individuals on our team. Where this is the case, please contact us at info@hedonhouse.com or by phone before booking to discuss options for limiting data access for particular team members. Please note that this limitation is not possible where your concern relates to the Director.

Your Rights

Access to Your Information

You can request a copy of your booking intake form for each booking you make with us. Requests must be in writing. Please allow up to 72 business hours for this request to be serviced.

Correction of Information

To update or correct inaccurate information, please email bookings@hedonhouse.com. You are also provided with the opportunity to correct your information in the time between confirming a booking and the start of your appointment.

Deletion of Information

You may request deletion of your personal information at any time by contacting us at info@hedonhouse.com. We will process your request within a reasonable timeframe, typically within 30 days.

Please note that in certain limited circumstances, we may retain some personal information even after a deletion request. Specifically, if an individual has been banned from our services due to violation of our terms or policies, we maintain necessary identifying information to prevent future bookings. This information is stored securely and used solely for the purpose of protecting our business and other customers. This practice represents a legitimate business interest in maintaining the safety and integrity of our services.

Making Privacy Requests

For any privacy-related requests or concerns, please contact us by phone on 0436 000 657 or email at info@hedonhouse.com.

Complaints

If you have a complaint about how we handle your personal information, please contact us directly by email or phone. We will acknowledge your complaint within 7 days and work with you to resolve the issue in a timely manner.

If you are not satisfied with our response, you may contact the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC) at www.oaic.gov.au.

Discretion Practices

Communications

We understand the need for discretion and take the following measures:

• We follow any instructions provided to us around preferred contact times unless practically impossible (e.g. non-payment or other breaches of our Terms; when a guest is on or approaching our premises).
• For phone communication, we confirm we’re speaking with the intended guest before we announce ourselves or where we’re calling from.
• When someone contacts us about a booking but they are not the responsible guest, we verify their details to ensure they are listed on the booking.
• We do not allow a secondary guest to change booking details (e.g., date, parties to the booking) without the consent of the guest responsible for the booking (Guest 1).

Billing Information

Transactions referring to your purchase will appear on your statement as ‘Siomas Management Pty Ltd’, our trading entity.

Marketing Communications

We respect your privacy in our marketing communications and provide clear opt-out options in all marketing emails. While our marketing necessarily includes our business name and relevant imagery, we ensure that:

• All marketing emails come from clearly identified email addresses associated with our business
• Subject lines are discreet while remaining identifiable to those who have opted in
• We provide easy unsubscribe options in every marketing communication
• We do not share your contact information with other businesses for marketing purposes
• We do not currently use SMS or phone calls for marketing purposes

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time to reflect changes in our practices or for other operational, legal, or regulatory reasons. We will notify you of any material changes by email or through a notice on our website.

Contact Us

If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy or our privacy practices, or you have opted not to use our services due to any of the provisions of this Policy, we would like to hear from you.

Email: info@hedonhouse.com (or use our contact form)
Phone: 0436 000 657

Siomas Management Pty Ltd PO Box 128
Strawberry Hills NSW 2012

Last Updated: 18 April 2025