Rule of six and providing support to a vulnerable person

[RuleofSix]

Apologies if this has already been asked elsewhere, I couldn't find anything on search and when I've tried googling I'm getting conflicting information.

I have two disabled children with complex needs. My parents help us out with support and an element of respite care, aside from DH and I they are the only other people who the DC will happily stay with and the only other people we feel comfortable leaving them with.

They have a holiday home around an hour from here and we all usually go there for the week of October half term, between us and the DC plus my parents there are eight of us. Would this it be a breach of rule of six for us to still go together? The whole reason we go together is that they help care for our disabled DC, giving us the extra pairs of hands needed at certain times and this is what enables us to actually have a holiday as a family.

Would it also be breaking the rules for them to still come to our house to provide support when needed? The rules do have exemptions if someone is providing support to a vulnerable person, which would be my DC, but doesn't specify whether there is a limit on what support can be provided.

There are exemptions for vulnerable people.

Anyone who would snitch on you for that would be a pathetic excuse of a human being, and the police would take a dim view of them too.

I think it is breaking the rules, but totally understand why you would need it. If not having a proper break is more likely to not be able to cope in the long term. If your children needed to go into respite care they would be meeting far more strangers from assessment to carers than the two extra adults they know for the adult.

Having said that I would keep it very quiet and don’t think you would all be able to go out together to the park say unless you wakes apart as group of 4 not 8.

We tend to split up anyway when we're at their holiday place. I call it a family break but realistically we spend more time apart than together while we're there as it's more of a respite break to give us a change from our usual home and routine. DH and I do activities with our other two DC knowing that my parents are caring for DC1 and DC2. Or we'll do stuff with DC1 and DC2 and give them one to one support with those activities while my parents have DC3 and DC4. Or they'll have all of the DC while DH and I have time together. Or any combination of the above.