Child sleeps on a mattress on the floor

Theres no airflow between a mattress and a solid divan base, same as the floor.

Rich bohemian or poor bohemian? Maybe she can’t afford a bed? I wouldn’t judge, there’s been times I haven’t owned certain furniture I needed - but I do think there should be a sheet on the mattress ideally.

Heaven forbid that one should ever take the bedding off to wash and change it. Imagine if social services dropped in!

It’s the bedding that’s the issue, the mattress itself wouldn’t necessarily be a concern by itself.

On a home visit/assessment a social worker will want to see the child’s bedroom to make sure they have a suitable bed and adequate bedding. It is one of a child’s basic needs.

You said “adequate bed”. A mattress on the floor is an adequate bed.

Dear heavens, how ridiculous is this thread? You really only have to turn the clock back to the 70s (when most children born made adulthood by the way) but lots of us slept on mattresses on the floor. As a student, a mattress on the floor was the norm. I did always have sheets though.

Nothing disgusting about it at all. What a ridiculous over reaction.

Im tslking about the lack of bedding.

We did this too—my second child was on a mattress on their floor from about 2 to 2.5 or 3.

I have a divan - prefer it to slats - and there is definitely no air flow between the mattress and the divan base. It is no different to being on the floor.

Might not be the norm but doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with it. It is the normal in other places. Japan for example.

i think it's neglectful/shows a low priority of hygiene personally with the lack of sheets.
so no bottom sheet at all? throws as in just random blankets like a nest? need more info really
and if the house is cluttered and messy i doubt the mattress is being aired
was it unhygienic like food out, dirty sides etc?

my cousins grew up with alcoholic aunty. she was amazing, very caring, but the house was dirty, she hoarded animals and my cousins struggled with basic hygiene for years. not regular teeth brushing, sleeping in clothes from the day, not showering enough.. it's hard isnt it as lots of people even brought up right can grow up to deprioritise hygiene practises
anyway they always slept over our houses instead!

Well a mattress on the floor is no more or less adequate than a mattress on a bed. What difference to his quality of sleep does having the mattress a foot off the floor make vs having it on the floor?

In Japan it's very normal.

@Ovenpizzasarerank It's actually the absence of sheets that makes it unhygienic. Def not normal. Is the child well-kempt otherwise as in clean clothes, appearence etc? Well fed?

Mine have all had mattresses on the floor at various stages. The only time we've had mouldy mattresses was with cabin beds.
OH and I had our mattress on the floor for years, house renovating and our bedroom was always the lowest priority.

My daughter has a mattress on the floor that I lift to air regularly.
It has a proper mattress topper and fitted sheet and a duvet/pillow/blankets that are season appropriate.
She's always been a very, very active sleeper and she's only 3. She often falls out of bed and with her mattress it is a small bomp and nothing too upsetting.
As she approaches four, I have noticed that her sleep is a little more settled, so I'm hoping she'll be ready for a proper bed soon as a storage bed would be really handy, but this has worked so well for her I don't feel any shame or bother about it.
She's a loved little girl with a lovely bedroom that works for her age and stage.
Although he's quite a bit older, maybe this is the same for him.

And for all we know it isn’t.

Why are you so dismissive and argumentative when people have pointed out that it COULD be a concern? You don’t know any more than the rest of us.

I’m currently co sleeping on a mattress on the floor with our 14 month old (despite a very luxurious king size bed and mattress and cot with mattress in the same room!) as it’s the only way I’d get any sleep!!

Husband is in our older child (5 year old) room on a mattress himself whilst she has a floor bed. Sounds ridiculous that have beds with mattresses which aren’t being used due to sleeping arrangements which work better! We are both neat freaks so very tidy house etc.

I’d say as long as child was looked after, mattress looked clean with clean sheets etc then it’s not a big deal. Some people have different priorities. She may also be co sleeping at times with her child.

My youngest sleeps on a day bed and we often take the cover and sheet off in the day so it can be used as a sofa. So I'd just presume it was something like that - that the mum thought with having a friend round, they might be sitting or bouncing on the mattress, hence the throw rather than bedsheets. I wouldn't presume neglect.

Just read that people mention no bedding ...
when we resorted to mattresses on the floor they had full bedding and mattress protectors etc just no bed (slats in some cases)

Or better still be open and honest with the mum and chat to her about it rather than going undercover.

My 13 yo recently had a mattress on the floor in his room for about 2 weeks when we got rid of the bunk bed but he didn't want to have the bed we already had from his older siblings.

OP what is your concern? A good quality mattress will last a few years if placed directly on the floor. Not everyone wants to splash out in the loft bed base and it could also have been an interim solution.

I would not be concerned unless they were sleeping on a camp roll up mat or an inflatable (I'd have offered them a mattress in that case)

PS some people/children just like or need to sleep low down esp if they move a lot, my eldest son used to constantly fall out of bed even at 7+ so we put his bed frame on the floor for a bit (removing head and foot boards)