Care homes, student halls and other establishments : Overview

A communal establishment is a place providing managed residential accommodation. "Managed" here means full-time or part-time supervision of the accommodation.

Examples of communal establishments include:

• university halls of residence and boarding schools
• care homes, hospitals, hospices and maternity units
• hotels, guest houses, hostels and B&Bs, all with residential accommodation for seven or more guests
• prisons and other secure facilities
• Single Living Accommodation (SLA) in military bases
• staff accommodation
• religious establishments

Communal establishments don’t include sheltered accommodation, serviced apartments, nurses’ accommodation and houses rented to students by private landlords. These are considered to be households.