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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

To ask how long 2 kids can share a room for

64 replies

cadburyegg · 01/06/2018 16:00

We have 2 boys, a 3yo and a baby who will still be in our room for awhile yet. They will eventually share a double room. The plan is to eventually extend so they can have their own room but we won’t be able to afford that for a long time yet.

AIBU to think they can probably share for 5-10 years? How old are DCs generally before they want their own space?

OP posts:

aurorie11 · 01/06/2018 16:02

When I was growing up neighbours had 3 boys (about 4 years between them all) they shared a room until they left home

BlueBug45 · 01/06/2018 16:03

They can share until they leave home if they are the same sex. It's only recently that families feel that each child of the same gender needs to be given their own room.

In fact getting them to share may help them leave home earlier.

Sierra259 · 01/06/2018 16:04

I think it probably depends on the children and how well they get on? My parents did a loft conversion when I was 14, middle DSis was 12 and youngest DSis was 9. At least 2 of us always shared until then.

TheShapeOfEwe · 01/06/2018 16:04

I shared with my sister until I was 10, did me no harm at all!

Deshasafraisy · 01/06/2018 16:04

I know a couple that brought up their 7 children in a 3 bedroom house with no issues.

NotAnotherUserName5 · 01/06/2018 16:04

If they're sharing a double room, I see no reason why they can't continue to do so until they move out.

Singlenotsingle · 01/06/2018 16:05

Friends of mine in a 3 bed have a son of 22, a daughter 15, and another 2 boys 5 and 7. The daughter has her own room and the 3 boys share. Not ideal but at least everyone's got somewhere to sleep.

dementedpixie · 01/06/2018 16:06

My sister's 2 boys still share and they are 15 and 14. There is no space for them to have a room each as they have a sister in the other room

sobersandra · 01/06/2018 16:06

We moved house so my boy and girl could have their own rooms.

Theyre8 & 10 and still share!

My sons room is where all his stuff is but they both prefer to sleep in the same room.

sausagedogsmakechipolatas · 01/06/2018 16:09

If you own your home there is no legal age where kids can’t share a room regardless of sex - although obviously different sexes ideally need privacy.

Mine are currently 10, 8 and 6 and all sharing, two one sex and one the other. I’d say we have been at the absolute limit for about a year (we’re moving soon thank fuck but as owners we’ve no choice but to wait until we could get another mortgage) and the 10yo especially needs their own space.

blackteasplease · 01/06/2018 16:10

Same sex can share til they leave home!

KirstenRaymonde · 01/06/2018 16:11

They can share forever. Ones own room is a very new idea and nice to have, but certainly not essential. I shared with my brother and sister until I was 13, then my dad built a wall down the middle of the room so I had a bit of my own space. Until teenage years you’re definitely fine.

TassleGirl · 01/06/2018 16:14

Just a random question, it they are not the same sex can they not share a room over a certain age ??

AllMYSmellySocks · 01/06/2018 16:14

I think it depends massively on the kids. I have cousins who were a family of four in a 3 bedroomed house. The parents sleep downstairs giving the eldest two a room each (or they would have murdered each other). The youngest two shared a room until they were 10. They then moved house so they wouldn't need to share but they actually insisted on continuing to share until the elder left for uni. (My aunt ended up with a craft room as they couldn't think what to do with the spare room).

overnightangel · 01/06/2018 16:15

I shared with my older sister til she left Home at 19 (I’d be 15) and never thought anything of it
Kids don’t all need their own room

dementedpixie · 01/06/2018 16:15

Only in council housing I think. If you have your own house there is no law about brothers and sisters sharing rooms

19lottie82 · 01/06/2018 16:17

How long can they share? Until they’re 80 if need be. It doesn’t cause illness, neither of them will spontaneously combust.

yikesanotherbooboo · 01/06/2018 16:18

I agree, everyone having no their own room is a new thing.no need for them to stop sharing unless you have space and it suits your family.

19lottie82 · 01/06/2018 16:19

If you have your own house there is no
law about brothers and sisters sharing rooms

Correct.

It actually cracks me up that some people think “it’s against the law” for a brother and sister to share a room!

user7469322 · 01/06/2018 16:21

I've got 12yo and 10yo boys together and also 7yo and 5yo boys together. We have a 3yo daughter on her own. No plans to extend and make our house 6bed just so each boy gets his own room.

Snowysky20009 · 01/06/2018 16:26

18 & 14- until one of the boys move out!

BroomstickOfLove · 01/06/2018 16:27

My two are a girl and a boy aged 11 and 8. They still share. DD is getting her own room this summer, but I suspect they'll end up having sleepovers with each other half the time anyway.

funinthesun18 · 01/06/2018 16:34

We live in social housing and have 3 boys (3, 5 and 7) and 1 girl (12). They all share one big bedroom for now. The 12yo is my partner's child from a previous relationship so the council don't class her as living there but she has to sleep somewhere. If they have a problem with that then they can always allocate us a house with an extra bedroom....

HaroldsSocalledBluetits · 01/06/2018 16:34

Of course all children can share regardless of age but it's not ideal past a certain point, is it? Once they're in secondary school they'll be getting homework so a desk each at least is better, and a room each better still. Teens who don't have this have less chance of being able to work uninterrupted plus of course the more privacy the better once they are pubertal, particularly for different sex children. I wonder how many of the pps so cavalier in their responses have dc who share a room past the age of 12.

sausagedogsmakechipolatas · 01/06/2018 16:39

As I said, Harold, we are very well aware that our eldest needs their own room soon. Obviously it’s not ideal but it’s not like anyone was going to buy us a bigger house, is it? Life is often far from ideal. If we weren’t moving soon, H and I would be getting a sofa bed in the living room so the eldest could have our room.

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