Your home may be legally overcrowded if there are not enough rooms or space for the number of people who live there.
Many people who contact us find that they are not legally overcrowded even though their living conditions are very cramped.
Whether you are a private sector or social housing tenant you will need to know the following information to help you identify if you are in an overcrowded property.
How many people can occupy a room?
Under housing law, there are two ways to calculate if your home is overcrowded.
- By the number of rooms for people to sleep in. This is called the room standard.
- By the amount of space in the home and the number of people living in it. This is called the space standard.
Statutory overcrowding is when there are too many people living in your home using either of the calculations.
Room standard
| No of rooms | No of people allowed |
|---|---|
| 1 | 2 |
| 2 | 3 |
| 3 | 5 |
| 4 | 7.5 |
| 5+ | 2 per extra room |
This standard does not include children under 10.
Space standard
| Floor area | No of people allowed |
|---|---|
| 10.2 square metres (110 square feet) | 2 |
| 8.4-10.1 square metres (90-19 square feet) | 1.5 |
| 6.5-8.3 square metres (70-89 square feet) | 1 |
| 4.6-6.4 square metres (50-69 square feet) | 0.5 |
The floor area should be measured per room and the total of occupiers totalled for the whole dwelling.
People counted are as follows:
- Baby under 1 equals 0 people
- Child 1 to 10 years equals ½ a person
- Aged over 10 years equals 1 person.
Can anyone share a room?
Anyone over the age of 10 should not have to share a room with someone of the opposite sex, unless they are a couple.
However, mothers can share with a daughter or fathers with a son.
Where can I find other accommodation?
Private tenants
As a private tenant it is unlikely that you can make your home larger so you may have to consider other housing options.
We would be happy to help you if you need assistance so call us and speak to one of our advisers.
Please contact our Housing Advice team on 020 7926 4200 (9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday).
Council and housing association tenants
Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) are independent housing organisations registered with the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) under the Housing Act 1996. RSLs include housing associations, trusts, co-operatives, companies and council accommodation.
It is the responsibility of the RSL to manage the customers complaint and overcrowding concerns in the first instance. Once you have followed your RSL's full complaints procedure and the matter is still not resolved then you must contact your local housing ombudsman.
If you're a council tenant you can apply to join the housing transfer waiting list. This will enable you to move to another council property.
Housing associations will have their own transfer waiting lists.
You may be able to find somewhere more quickly if you swap your home with someone else. This is open to both council and housing association tenants.
Contact us if you think you may be living in an overcrowded property.