Terms of Use

Sanctuary Stories - Terms of Use

Last updated: 18/06/2025

Welcome to Sanctuary Stories, owned and operated by Sanctuary Stories Ltd (company number 16230261) and our registered office is at 20 Wenlock Road, London, England, N1 7GU (referred to as “we”, “us” or “our”).

We allow users (each, a “User”) of our applications accessed via mobile or website (collectively the “App”) to post various content to the Sanctuary community, including stories you create, reviews, comments, and to access and view Sanctuary content or other user content as well as engage in other activities enabled through the features of our services from time to time (the "Services").

Please read our Terms of Use (referred to as the “Terms”) carefully as these Terms and the terms listed below make up the conditions that apply to the use of the App, Services or any other platform that incorporate or link to these Terms. By creating your Sanctuary account (“Account”) and using the App and Services, you are agreeing to all the terms and conditions set out below and they become part of a legal agreement between us and you. If you don’t agree to any of these terms, you will not be able to use the App or the Services.

Other terms that apply to you

The following terms and/or policies also form part of these Terms:

App store terms: Your use of the App and the Services is also subject to the terms and conditions of the platform from which you downloaded or accessed the App. For example, if you access the App on an Apple, Inc. iOS device, or downloaded it via the Google Play Store provided by Google, Inc, your use is governed by the applicable usage rules set out in Apple’s App Store Terms of Service or Google’s terms and conditions. We suggest that these terms are also read carefully.

Operating system requirements: The minimum operating systems we support are iOS 14 and Android 12 and above. The App may work on other operating systems but the operating systems specified above are the minimum operating systems we test on and guarantee that the App will run for.

User Account

Your Account: To use our Services, you will need to register an Account with us. We will ask you to provide certain information including your name, contact details and date of birth. Please make sure all information you provide is true and accurate. You will also be able to select a username. For details on how we process and store this information please read our Privacy Policy.

Eligibility: You must be over the age of 18 to sign up for our Services, this is to protect you and us.

Permission from you: Our aim is to create a community of readers and writers through our App and Services. In order to do so, you agree and give us permission to show your username, and information about your actions (such as your reviews, and any “likes”, “follows” or “bookmarks”) in connection with content available via our App.

Your Account is yours: You may only set up one Account using your own details, and you must not create false aliases, use any false email address or impersonate any other person (with or without their consent) while using the Services. You’re responsible for keeping your account details confidential and for all activity using your account or username. If you know or suspect that anyone other than you is using your account or account information, please inform us as soon as possible using the contact details below.

In order to protect our App and other Users, we reserve the right to reject, limit, suspend or remove your Account and your right to access and use the App and Services for any reason (in our absolute discretion) – this includes if, in our reasonable opinion, you have failed to comply with any of these Terms. We may also terminate or restrict access to content or remove content for any reason.

2. Creating and inputting Stories and content

Stories and content: The Services will allow you, as a User, to input content to the App in the form of short stories (each a “Story”). Any Story you input will be available to be seen and accessed by other Users. We also encourage all Users to upload their reviews of Stories they access via the App as well as to “like” Stories, “follow” authors and “bookmark” your favourite Stories via the App. You are responsible for all content you input or upload.

Originality: You warrant that any Story you submit to the App will be your own original work, solely created by you and not copied from any other work or material. We will automatically add copyright notices to all Stories submitted by Users. Please also see our Reporting Policy which sets out the notification process where anyone can object if they believe that a Story infringes their intellectual property rights.

Content Guidelines: You warrant that any Story and any other content (including reviews or comments) you submit via the App will at all times comply with our Content Guidelines – please make sure you review these fully before submitting any content. You should also use the tools available via the Services to indicate any themes or content which may be considered sensitive at the time you submit the Story.

Please note that we reserve the right to immediately remove any Story or other content if we become aware (i) such content has been copied or infringes any third party rights, (ii) such content does not comply with our Content Guidelines or (iii) you are otherwise in breach of these Terms.

Use of AI for Stories: We would encourage you to exercise your own creativity to write Stories without solely utilising generative AI. That being said, you may use AI tools to help you generate a Story, just make sure you select the option mark as “generated using AI” when you submit the Story if you have used any AI tools to generate more than approximately 25% of your Story in this way. Whenever you use AI tools to generate any part of a Story, you are responsible for complying with the terms of use of any AI tools and also fully reviewing and ensuring that all of the Story complies with applicable laws and these Terms before you submit it.

Rights to your Stories: As the original author, you will retain ownership of copyright in any Story you share to the App using our Services in accordance with these Terms. By making available your Story via the App, you grant us a perpetual, irrevocable, fully paid-up, worldwide, royalty-free licence to use, reproduce, adapt, publish and distribute the Story to other Users as part of our Services.

Your withdrawal of Stories: If at any time you no longer wish any of your Stories to be featured and accessed via the App, you can remove them through your Account.

Audio versions of Stories: Our Services include the option for Users to access an AI-generated audio narration (“Audio Version”) of any Story which has been submitted to our App. When you submit your Story you grant us a licence to generate an Audio Version of your Story using the AI tools made available via the App. Please note that Sanctuary Stories owns the rights in all Audio Versions of Stories which are generated using these AI tools.

Indemnity: When you input any Story or other content, you agree to indemnify us against all claims (including for infringement of third party intellectual property rights) brought by a third party against us arising out of or in connection with the Story or any other content you provide. If we are notified by you or by a third party that they believe a Story you have input to the App infringes any third party rights, we will remove access to such Story as soon as reasonably possible whilst we investigate the notification.

3. Accessing content

Subject to you complying with these Terms, we give you, as a User, the right to access and view all Stories and other content that has been input or uploaded to the App and Audio Versions of such Stories. All content must be viewed within the App – you may not copy or download any Stories or Audio Version to a device outside of the App.

You can also post your reviews of Stories, and interact with Stories and authors by using the “like”, “follow” and “bookmark” functions within the App.

4. Conditions of Use

You must not:

use the App or Services for any purpose or in any way that is unlawful or fraudulent or in breach of these Terms;
transmit any material that is defamatory, offensive or otherwise objectionable in relation to your use of the App or Services;
send or transmit any unsolicited or unauthorised advertising or promotional material using the App;
use the App or Services to distribute viruses or malware or other similar harmful software code; promote unsolicited advertising or sending spam; simulate communications from us or another service or entity in order to collect identity information, authentication credentials, or other information ('phishing'); nor gain unauthorised access to or use of computers, phones, data, systems, platforms, accounts or networks;
attempt to copy, modify, duplicate, create derivative works from, frame, mirror, republish, download, display, transmit, or distribute all or any portion of the content available via the App or any software we use to provide the App or Services in any form or media or by any means;
attempt to reverse compile, disassemble, reverse engineer or otherwise reduce to human-perceivable form all or any part of the software we use to provide the App or Services;
access or use all or any part of the App or Services in order to: (a) build a product or service which competes with the App or Services; or (b) copy any ideas, features, functions, content or graphics of the App or Services;
use any content available via the App or Services to provide services to third parties (including to license, sell, rent, lease, transfer, assign, distribute, display, disclose, or otherwise commercially exploit the App or Services); or
use the App in a way which is likely to disrupt, degrade or interfere with the normal operation of the App or with other Users' ability to access and enjoy the App;
use any automation tools, bots, or scripts to create User accounts, artificially inflate engagement (likes, comments, views); or
attempt to obtain, or assist third parties in obtaining, unauthorised access to the App or Services bypass or interfere with any security or technical features of the App.

We reserve the right to monitor how Users use our Services and to access and read content submitted by Users as we feel necessary. This is to allow us to enforce these Terms, investigate any potential infringements, detect any fraud or security breaches and otherwise manage the provision of the Services via the App.

5. Reporting content

We require that Users submit their own original content and adhere to our Content Guidelines. If you believe that any Story or other content available via the App contravenes your rights or is not in accordance with our Content Guidelines, please see our Reporting Processes.

Whenever we receive a report that content is potentially infringing any third party rights or contrary to our Content Guidelines, we will take steps to remove general User access to such content as soon as reasonably possible whilst we investigate the report.

6. Intellectual Property

Our Ownership: The App, our Services and all our content on our systems, platforms and/or website(s) (including any logos, source code, usage data, ideas, enhancements, feature requests, suggestions or other information) is subject to copyright and is the property of Sanctuary Stories Ltd or its content suppliers (“our IP”).

Your permitted use: You may only use our IP to access and receive the Services as permitted by these Terms. You have no intellectual property rights in, or to, the App, any content (other than any Stories that you submit and retain ownership of) or the Services other than the right to access and make personal use of them in accordance with these Terms.

Trade Marks: We own all rights in our trade marks (whether or not registered, including our name, logos, get up and service marks) and you may not copy, alter, use or otherwise deal in any of our trade marks without our prior written consent.

7. Payments

Billing: We may from time to time make available paid-for content, features and services via the App (“Paid-for Services”). If you purchase any Paid-for Services, you must provide complete and accurate billing information, including a valid payment method. We use a secure third party called Stripe to process any payments you make – Stripe uses encrypted technology to take payment from you on our behalf and none of your payment details are shared with us. For paid subscriptions or other recurring payments, we will automatically charge your payment method on each agreed-upon periodic renewal until you cancel. All payment amounts will be shown inclusive of VAT. If your payment cannot be completed, we may suspend your access to Paid-for Services until payment is received.

Cancellation: You can cancel any subscription or recurring payment for Paid-for Services at any time by notifying us via your account. You will be able to continue to access the Paid-for Services until the date that your next payment would have been due.

Price changes: We may change our prices from time to time. If we increase any subscription prices, we will give you at least 30 days’ notice and any price increase will take effect from your next payment after the end of the notice period so that you can cancel if you do not agree to the price increase.

8. Third Party Links

We provide access to the App and Services without charge. In order to do so, we allow third parties to advertise and provide information about their own products and services via the App (“Third Party Links”). Any such Third Party Links will be provided for your information only and you acknowledge that we are not responsible for the contents of any third party sites or services or any loss or damage you incur due to following or interacting with Third Party Links. Any interactions between you and third party advertisers via Third Party Links and any reliance you place on the contents of such adverts are between you and the third parties and we accept no liability for your use of such links. It will be your responsibility to comply with the terms and conditions that apply to any Third Party Links or services that you access using them.

We may also provide tools and integrations which enable you to share certain information from or about our Services on third party websites, social networks and blogs. You may only use these tools to share information about the App and Services and you may not use these tools to create links to any third party websites that include any content which is unlawful or in any way promote any unlawful activities. If you breach this requirement, we may immediately terminate the contract and your access to the App.

8. Disclaimers and liability

No warranty: We strive to ensure that our App and Services are generally available, but we make we make no warranty or guarantee about the completeness, accuracy, availability, functionality, compatibility, freedom from defects, timeliness, security, performance, availability, or reliability of the Services or content of any Stories (including Audio Versions). Your use of our App and Services and any content is solely at your own risk and discretion. They are provided to you "as is" and "as available". That means they don’t come with any warranty of any kind, express or implied, that our Services will meet your requirements or be available on an uninterrupted, secure, or error-free basis. The App and Services may be subject to frequent and possibly substantial changes (including where we seek to improve the Services and/or related features). We will however give notice of planned maintenance and downtime via the App and/or email when reasonably possible.

Content responsibility: We are not responsible for content provided by other Users – this may include Stories, reviews and other comments. Whilst we require Users to abide by our Content Guidelines, we do not monitor all content and we allow and encourage Users to express their own opinions subject to our Terms. We therefore do not endorse any content provided by Users nor make any guarantees about the truthfulness, completeness or accuracy of such content. You may see content via the App that you find inaccurate, offensive, hurtful or inappropriate. If you believe that any content breaches our Content Guidelines, please follow our Reporting Policy.

Our liability to you: We do not exclude or limit in any way our liability to you where it would be unlawful to do so. This includes liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence or the negligence of our employees, agents or subcontractors or for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.

We will not be responsible or liable for any damages that arise from your use of, or in connection with, the App, Services and accessing any Stories (including Audio Versions). This includes, without limitation any harm to your mobile device, loss of data, or other harm that results from your access to or use of the App or Services. You use the App and Services at your own discretion and risk and you will be solely responsible for any damage (including to your device) that results from such use.

Back up: You must back up your own Stories you share via the App. This is because we cannot guarantee that content you submit will always be available via the App or the Services.

Our liability for breach: If we fail to comply with any of these Terms, we will not be responsible for any loss or damage that you suffer that is not a foreseeable consequence of such failure.

No business use: We supply the App and Services only for private use by you as an individual. You are not authorised to use the App or Services for any business or commercial purpose – if you do so, we will not be liable to you for any loss of profit, loss of business, business interruption, or loss of business opportunity.

9. Termination and suspension of account

The contract between us will continue until terminated by either you or us or until our App and Services are no longer offered.

Our termination: We may withdraw and cease to make the App available at any time. We may also suspend or cancel your use of the App and Services immediately at any time for any reason (including where we reasonably believe you have breached these Terms). If we withdraw the App or terminate the contract between us, we will remove any Stories and other content you have previously submitted and you will no longer have any access to the App or Services.

Your termination: You may terminate the contract between us by emailing us stating that you no longer wish to use the App Services and we will end your access to the Services and remove your user details and any Stories and other content you have previously submitted. If you have a subscription or recurring payment for Paid-for Services, your access to the App and Services (including Paid-for Services) will continue until your next payment would have become due.

10. Changes

We may at any time update the App and change the Services to improve performance, enhance functionality, reflect changes to the operating system, address security issues or for any other reason. If you do not install the latest available version of the App at any time, you may not be able to continue to use and access the Services.

We may amend these Terms from time to time. We will notify you of any changes via the App and will make any updated terms available on our website. If you continue to use the App and Services after we have made any changes, you will be deemed to have accepted the changes.

11. Feedback

If you have any feedback, suggestions, or a complaint, we're here and ready to listen. Feel free to get in touch using the email addresses below:

Media Enquiries:

press@sanctuarystories.co.uk

General:

contact@sanctuarystories.co.uk

Feedback:

feedback@sanctuarystories.co.uk

12. General

The Terms are only between you and us. You can’t transfer your rights to the App or Services to anyone else. We may transfer the Terms and provision of the App and Services and/or our rights and obligations under the Terms to someone else.

Each section of these Terms operates separately. If any section of these Terms is found to be unlawful, the remaining sections will still be valid.

The termination of these Terms does not affect any of your or our rights in respect of periods before termination.

The Terms set out everything we’re agreeing between you and us about the App and Services. It replaces any previous agreement or understanding between you and us about the Services.

No-one, except for you and us, has rights under the Terms or the right to enforce any of its terms. Nobody else can use the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to acquire such rights.

If we delay in enforcing any of these Terms, we can still enforce them later. If we do not insist immediately that you do anything you are required to do under these Terms, or if we delay in taking steps against you in respect of your breaking any of these Terms, that will not mean that you do not have to do those things and it will not prevent us taking steps against you at a later date.

13. Governing law and Jurisdiction

These Terms are governed by English law, and you can bring legal proceedings in respect of the products in the English courts. If you live in Scotland, you can bring legal proceedings in respect of the Services or Content in either the Scottish or the English courts. If you live in Northern Ireland, you can bring legal proceedings in respect of the products in either the Northern Irish or the English courts.