DFCS has determined minimum standards that foster homes must follow at all times regarding how many children can reside in a home and where they are permitted to sleep. 

• A foster home can include a total of no more than six children, including the foster family’s biological and/or adopted children, under the age of 16. The parent-child ratio may never exceed 1:6 at any time 

• No more than two children under two years of age, including the children of the caregiver’s family, shall be placed in the home 

• A bedroom is the only allowable sleeping space for a foster child 

• Each non-related child must sleep in his or her own bed 

• A maximum of two children may sleep in a double-sized (or larger) bed if they are siblings and of the same sex (with noknown sexually predatory behaviors) 

• No child is permitted to sleep in a bed with an adult 

• Children over the age of one are not permitted to sleep in an adult’s bedroom 

• A maximum of three children per bedroom is preferable; the suitability of children sharing a bedroom should be assessed based on the individual backgrounds and history of the children 

• Children of five years of age andolder are not permitted to share a bedroom with a child of the opposite sex