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In order to become a foster carer, applicants must have at least one spare bedroom. It’s not possible for children looked after to share a bedroom with anyone other than their own siblings (and only then if the children’s social worker agrees to it). The spare bedroom must have enough space for at least one single bed and storage for the child’s clothing and personal items.

For those without a spare bedroom, your local authority may be taking on short-term or emergency foster carers for babies. Alternatively, you may be interested in the ‘independent visitor scheme’. 

Sparks Fostering can start fostering assessments for individuals who are expecting to have a spare bedroom within the next 12 months. 

Also, there shouldn’t be general overcrowding in the home. This means that there should be enough space in the home for the child to have a space to study, to store toys and other items such as a bike, and there should be enough bathrooms for the number of people living in the home. Also, it is usually expected that every person over the age of 3 in the home has their own bedroom, with the exception of couples and same-sex siblings who have already been sharing a bedroom for some time and wish to continue sharing a bedroom in the long term.