PART 12 E+W Requirements on service providers as to premises, facilities and equipment

Single occupancy and shared rooms – children E+W

46.—(1) This regulation applies where the service provider is providing—

(a) a care home service which includes the provision of accommodation for individuals who are children, or

(b) a secure accommodation service.

(2) If this regulation applies, the service provider must ensure that each child is accommodated in a single room. But this requirement does not apply if the conditions in paragraph (3) are met.

(3) The conditions are—

(a) the accommodation is provided in a care home service which was registered as a children's home under the Care Standards Act 2000,

(b) the accommodation provided was occupied at the time the service provider was registered under the Act,

(c) the child is sharing a room with no more than one other child,

(d) (except in the case of siblings) the other child is not of the opposite sex or of a significantly different age to him or her, and

(e) sharing a room will promote the child's well-being, is provided for in the child's care and support plan and wherever practicable is agreed with the child.