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Grandparenting

Rule of 6

(50 Posts)
SpecialK57 Tue 22-Sep-20 14:36:13

Please can anyone explain to me why children in Scotland and Wales are so different to those in England in regards to the spreading Covid 19 that in the former countries they have been exempt from the rule of 6 but in the latter they count as part of the total number. It seems an incongruous differentiation and one that is making the current restrictions even harder for larger families in England who have to choose between grandparents if they are a family of five or split their family in order to meet with anyone if they have 4 or more children.

Illte Tue 22-Sep-20 14:40:09

It's not that children are different.

Scotland and England have different views on what will cause the virus to add pread and what is necessary to bring the R rate down.

Only time will tell which one is right.

SueDonim Tue 22-Sep-20 15:02:38

It’s just been announced that in Scotland a household can no longer mix with any other household indoors, so the number/age of children who can mix is moot.

Illte Tue 22-Sep-20 16:10:35

Now somebody will say "You mean they can be together at school and not in grandma's house. How silly."

Toadinthehole Tue 22-Sep-20 16:13:09

We were talking about this today with our son and DIL. We’re all perplexed by it too!?

fourormore Tue 22-Sep-20 16:30:42

I feel it's because there are so many idiots about who have been gathering in groups of 10, 20, 30 and even more, that the government basically have to pick a number?
Whatever number they pick, there will always be families who need the number to be 'one more' than the rule.

I do have sympathy as we recently met up with family but in two sessions - one group of four and the other of six but we would rather do that than risk spreading the virus.

I think many people forget you can carry it without knowing it and in our homes I believe it would be near impossible to keep even the metre distance with six people in the same room let alone more?

What bugs me is that England, Wales and Scotland together form one island so why the different leaders can't settle on the same rules I don't know hmm Difficult if you live on a border - 'Mum' could live half a mile away but 'over the border' so banned from meeting up whereas if she lived half a mile the other way they could!

We have to do something to stop this virus as it is KILLING people!

Nannapat1 Wed 23-Sep-20 10:12:38

Apparently Matt Hancock seemed to think that excluding children under a certain age would make the rule too complex for us English folk. Best I don't comment on that!

MrsRochester Wed 23-Sep-20 10:14:24

Nannapat1

Apparently Matt Hancock seemed to think that excluding children under a certain age would make the rule too complex for us English folk. Best I don't comment on that!“

From what I’m seeing here in the north west, he may have a point.

LilyJ Wed 23-Sep-20 10:18:41

Could be worse..could be maximum 5
Could be much worse.....total lockdown and 0!
Nobody knows the future.....these are unprecedented times and “someone “ has to make the decision, not a job I would want. Let’s just leave them to it and continue to do our bit.

gilljack68 Wed 23-Sep-20 10:20:47

Brilliant article in the sun today written by Deborah James who is living with incurable bowel cancer - in it she states -"That in the UK 500 people die of cancer every day with another 180 from heart disease. 430 are killed by flu daily in the winter while 214 lose their lives to dementia. The longer this goes on, the more people will die. Not from Covid but from cancers, heart disease, stroke, mental health problems and other conditions much more deadly than coronavirus. In July, experts predicted we could see up to 35,000 extra deaths from cancer as a result of the pandemic. At the time some thought this was a stretch but it is becoming more and more clear it could be just the tip of the iceberg. Last week flu killed ten times more people than coronavirus - FLU and it is still summer!! We need to find a balance. Let's hold on to the fact that the vast majority of people who catch Covid will be ok. Coronavirus might be scary, and it might have spread like wildfire but chances are you will survive. Cancer isn't so kind - and 1 in 2 of us will get it! "

Theoddbird Wed 23-Sep-20 10:21:04

Whatever the government do someone will complain about it. We have to just get on with our lives within the rules. No point in moaning about something we cannot change. Moaning causes stress....

SpecialK57 Wed 23-Sep-20 10:21:57

Just seems crazy that you can meet with 5 people from different houses but grandparents have to visit a family of 5 separately aged then go home to live together in the same house. Just crazy

MrsRochester Wed 23-Sep-20 10:26:10

SpecialK57

“Just seems crazy that you can meet with 5 people from different houses ...”

It is. Doesn’t make mixing households any more sensible though.

Tiggersuki Wed 23-Sep-20 10:30:32

So much now makes little sense but some of you must have voted for Boris , who clearly cannot cope or plan ahead.
I was angry when single person households( lone grandparents) could have family to visit but 2 of us with far less contacts out of the home could not.
But at least I am not in a position of telling 15 people who have expensive outfits and accommodation booked that they cannot come to my wedding. I tried to run through it in my head for my son's wedding or my sister's both of which were more recent than my 43 years ago and who would you let down?

lincolnimp Wed 23-Sep-20 10:48:15

Under the current regulations on 29th October at 9.00am my DH and I are banned from being able to visit my DD , husband and 2 children,
At 11.00 we are allowed.
Why?
At 10.am our 2 year old Foster Child will be moving into her Adopters home.
Doesn't make sense, especially as she is never away from us, so has exactly the same chance of catching/transmitting the virus as we do

HannahLoisLuke Wed 23-Sep-20 10:53:29

Children are people too whatever rules the rest of the UK sets.
Also excluding children of a certain age will certainly have some people trying to get around the rules, claiming a strapping sixteen year old is only ten ?

Calender37 Wed 23-Sep-20 10:54:28

ILLTE . Completely agree with your comment. Can the English Government explain their logic? I doubt it.

Illte Wed 23-Sep-20 11:01:20

If only people could apply a bit of intelligence and self control.

Limit their contacts, not just the number but the frequency, keep their distance, don't take chances we wouldn't need rules.

I genuinely don't understand why people don't get or apply the basic principles of infection control. I really don't.

Alegrias Wed 23-Sep-20 11:04:32

Illte

If only people could apply a bit of intelligence and self control.

Limit their contacts, not just the number but the frequency, keep their distance, don't take chances we wouldn't need rules.

I genuinely don't understand why people don't get or apply the basic principles of infection control. I really don't.

Hear, hear Illte.

LauraNorder Wed 23-Sep-20 11:25:40

Yes Illte I agree

Anrol Wed 23-Sep-20 11:27:22

Agree Illte. As my mother always used to say: stop your griping, do as you are told and just get on with it.
And my favourite saying: All things must pass.

Bamm Wed 23-Sep-20 11:39:14

The virus isn't the only thing that's killing people.

Nannan2 Wed 23-Sep-20 11:41:07

If they had locked us down ALL OVER SUMMER, then maybe the idiots who went to beaches, parks,pub,marches,etc wouldnt have been able to spread it like wildfire!! Then we really might have been out of it by xmas! As it is everyones moaning their xmas may be ruined- i was so bloody ill last xmas i was at A&E twice & was in bed allover xmas & new year, possibly we now think, with undiagnosed covid19, as they didnt say/know it was a 'thing' then, and my sons got ill after me, so anything on last year is a great big improvement for us! Im locking down anyway, so are my sons, im not taking the risk, i felt so bad last xmas i felt like i was dying, if you all want to take risks, then good luck is all i can say!

icanhandthemback Wed 23-Sep-20 11:58:24

It doesn't matter what the rules are, at least half the people will be saying, "That doesn't make sense." Personally, I think school age children and those at nursery are just as likely to be virus spreaders so I question the Governments who exclude them. On one hand, we are told that the rules are too complex, then when Matt Hancock tries to simplify things, he is wrong. I am beginning to think people are having more fun moaning about the rules than worrying about the virus!

Nannan2 Wed 23-Sep-20 12:01:13

And yes, ive missed seeing/being with all my kids/grandkids, but id rather be here next year to see them when we may have got covid under some king of control/or a vaccine, than risk none of us being here at all.And as for OP question, a child is still a person, so yes, you should count them as such. BUT every country included in the United Kingdom should HAVE SAME RULES, why on earth should they all be allowed different? Same rules, same benefits, same 'freebies' that some get and some dont, like further education, prescriptions, water even, we should either ALL get free, or ALL have to pay! And same laws- We are supposed to be UNITED, so lets be just that! Not allow some of them to make their own rules!