Is your home overcrowded?
It can be very stressful living in accommodation which is overcrowded.
In order to establish whether your accommodation is statutorily overcrowded Wiltshire Council applies the room standards and space standards as defined under Part 10 of the Housing Act 1985.
This is a government standard which is used by all local authorities throughout England. It originates from standards set in 1935. As you can see this is a very old standard which was used at a time when housing conditions were much poorer and people did not have as many personal belongings which take up valuable space.
This information will then determine how many people can share sleeping accommodation (the permitted number). The permitted number is calculated in units from 0 to 1 as follows.
| Age | Unit |
|---|---|
| Children under 1 | 0 |
| Children under 10 | 0.5 |
| People over 10 | 1 |
People over the age of 10 of the opposite sex should not share a room unless they are co-habiting or married.
Bedrooms, living rooms and kitchen/diners are classified as habitable rooms for the purpose of the standard.
The permitted number of people able to sleep in a room is as follows:
| Number of rooms | Number of people |
|---|---|
| 1 room | 2 persons |
| 2 rooms | 3 persons |
| 3 rooms | 5 persons |
| 4 rooms | 7.5 persons |
| 5 rooms or more | 2 people per room |
or
| Size of room | Number of people |
|---|---|
| 110 sq ft/10.2 m² or more | 2 persons |
| 90 - 100 sq ft/8.4-10.2 m² | 1.5 persons |
| 70 89 sq ft/6.5 8.4 m² | 1 person |
| 50-70 sq ft/4.6 6.5 m² | 0.5 person |
Rooms under 50 sq ft/4.6m² are not counted.
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