diff --git a/src/stores/SpaceStore.tsx b/src/stores/SpaceStore.tsx
index edbe8327c7..ebc60b2f2c 100644
--- a/src/stores/SpaceStore.tsx
+++ b/src/stores/SpaceStore.tsx
@@ -371,12 +371,16 @@ export class SpaceStoreClass extends AsyncStoreWithClient<IState> {
         return room?.currentState.getStateEvents(EventType.SpaceParent)
             .map(ev => {
                 const content = ev.getContent();
-                if (!Array.isArray(content?.via)) return;
-                const parent = this.matrixClient.getRoom(ev.getStateKey());
-                if (canonicalOnly && !content?.canonical) return;
-                if (parent.currentState.maySendStateEvent(EventType.SpaceChild, userId)) {
-                    return parent;
+                if (Array.isArray(content?.via) && (!canonicalOnly || content?.canonical)) {
+                    const parent = this.matrixClient.getRoom(ev.getStateKey());
+                    // only respect the relationship if the sender has sufficient permissions in the parent to set
+                    // child relations, as per MSC1772.
+                    // https://github.com/matrix-org/matrix-doc/blob/main/proposals/1772-groups-as-rooms.md#relationship-between-rooms-and-spaces
+                    if (parent?.currentState.maySendStateEvent(EventType.SpaceChild, userId)) {
+                        return parent;
+                    }
                 }
+                // else implicit undefined which causes this element to be filtered out
             })
             .filter(Boolean) || [];
     }