Dividing a childs bedroom

[Gallivanter22]

We are saving to move to a bigger house but at the moment we're in a 2 bedroom house with a 5 year old and a 7 month old..... this is the solution we came up with for the bedroom.
Just sharing as when I as looking for inspiration there wasn't a lot out there - we built a basic fixed wall but left space at the top for the natural light to come in from the single window. The wall was thinner than using kallax shelving which seems a common fix but would have taken more space than we wanted to use.

A room without a window is a cupboard and not a bedroom and I don't think the top bit counts as a proper window. I think this would be just about OK for a small baby but any older than that and I think it is not good for the child's mental health and overall development to live in a cupboard.

I think it would be better for the baby to be in with you guys or share with their sibling.

Thank you for the feedback. This is a temporary measure only as we're currently saving for a bigger house as I said so hopefully will only be used by her while she's a baby.

The wall is secure but thin and easy to remove. The age gap is just a bit too big for them to fully share at the moment as they both keep each other awake but they sleep great like this. Obviously it's not ideal when there's only one window but I think we did the best we could to let the natural light flow (this pic is taken at night but in the daytime there's a lot of light comes through).

I appreciate all opinions, good and bad, but some of us are just trying to make the most of the very limited space, funds and options we have. I'd much prefer the bigger house 😉

Babies start walking between 9 and 18 months so you only have a few months before you have a toddler in a cupboard.
I know it's really hard but siblings have had to share rooms for the whole of the previous history of humans and it can always be made to work with a bit of tweaking and some patience plus you would have saved the money and time you spend building that wall for your moving pot.

Sorry as I know this is probably not what you wanted to hear but it is important to consider all the implications of the choices we make as parents. I can completely understand what you were thinking by building the wall, I just wanted to check you were also aware of the possible downsides. (I also remember how stressful bedtime for little ones is!).

If it were me I would have put the baby to bed first and put the older one down once they were asleep which would mean you can have some lovely one to one time with the older one before bed.

Thanks for your opinion
While i appreciate it, i don't agree and think we've come up with a great temporary solution that suits everyone.

It's a bit dramatic saying we're putting baby in a cupboard - this is one bedroom with one door and one window and just a thin partition, that doesn't run full height, creating 2 separate sleeping spaces.
There is also shared space not shown for toys and playing.

With a 5 year age gap, bedtime are of course staggered but they still wake each other up during the night whereas we've had no such issues since putting the wall in. It's completely transformed bedtimes for us, for the better.

It's OK that it's not something you would do but it really works for us at this moment in time and might work for others too.

How long do you think they will be short enough for a cot bed? Mine were in normal bed by 2 years old bur they’re tall. I don’t what the average age is to stil be in a cot. How much longer do you think it will take you to save and will you have to take the wall down and replace the carpet before putting it on the market?

Would the council approve this and is it fire safe?

So much criticism.
You've done really well with that you have OP and it helped with the bedtime so is clearly effective.

I think you have done a good job with the space that you have and it will buy you a bit of time. I also think they will be fine to share when older. In the 80's we all shared rooms and it was fine. Ignore PP they probably live in mansions.

I don't understand how it makes any difference to the noise the other child hears if it is just a sticking out piece of wall?

I think it’s fine. A place to sleep. You might manage another 2.5yr in the cot /or take sides off if cot bed

they have a separate play area

its not forever so do you think you can save enough in 2.5yrs till youngest is 3

My youngest was in a cot bed until 4 because thats all we had space for, my oldest was in a cot bed until 3.

Recommendation say they can be used until at least 5 and can be used beyond that depending on child size.

My dd was in a cot bed for ages as she was quite small. I think you've come up with a lovely solution to give them both their own space.

Mine were in normal bed by 2 years old bur they’re tall

Your 2 yr olds are nearly 6ft?!

This is another option when they are older, but clearly depends on the shape of your room.

In a previous property, we had a tiny box room and a large master so we remove the wall in between and moved it over. It made the box room more usable and didn't affect the main bedroom much.

Thank you everyone for your comments (good and bad) - all any of us can do is try our best 🙂

My eldest was in a cot bed until she was 3.5 although we're hoping to move in the next 18-24 months so that shouldn't be an issue.

I know, it's crazy isn't it! I think it's the not being able to see each other that makes a difference.
Before the wall, my 5 year old would be up at the cot with every tiny nose and the baby would wake up and spot her sister and start shrieking and trying to get her attention.
It's made a massive difference for us them not being able to see each other

It's a privately owned dwelling and a small interior partition doesn't need any build permission.
It's build with the same materials as a standard interior wall but without any insulation and there are no electrics there so no fire hazards.

What is your question?

Just sharing as when I was looking for inspiration there wasn't alot out there

Guess you missed that bit?

I don't get how the part wall cuts down noise sufficiently to enable each child not to be disturbed. However if it works for you, then I'm glad you have found a solution.

The position of the window and long radiator have not allowed you to divide the room in the opposite direction using a Y-shaped partition (with windows) to provide a section of the original window for each child. I hope I’ve explained this clearly.
What you have done has ensured you all now have a good nights sleep. That’s so important for happy family life.

I didn't actually say anything about noise. As I replied to another poster, it's to do with them not being able to 'see' each other.
It's definitely been a great temporary solution for us and we're all finally getting a good night's sleep!

Thank you.

Yes, the room shape and layout didn't leave us with many options unfortunately but there is a separate ceiling light for each half and an electric socket.
I'd have preferred it if we could have a section of window in both sides but it wasn't possible

Oh ok, so kind of writing an answer to a question no one asked? 😁

Yeah kind of 😅
Don't worry about it, you can just scroll on by if it annoys you