To think if 5000 people can cram in to a festival, my kid can go to his classmates house after school?

[ItsNotComplicated]

I have followed ALL the rules throughout for the last year.

I was surprised to see that a 5000 person sell out festival has taken place in a big top tent with no distancing. (I’m not complaining).

For a year, I’ve not allowed my DC inside with their friends. DC3 has been invited to a friends house for lunch tomorrow. I had my reservations but now , I’m thinking this is so far beyond nonsense if this festival has gone ahead!

DC3 is in the same class as his friend. WIBU to let him go?

To the pp who said rates will go up plus hospitalizations and deaths.... Rates will go up, yes, but hospitalistions and deaths, no. Because the whole frigging point of the vaccine is to prevent that and latest evidence appears to be showing it is more effective than previously thought, not less. No-one ever has said we should be eradicating this, we can't. We have to live with it and living means getting on with normal life. It's a long weekend with shitty weather. Vaccs, LFTs and v v low community rates are my 'excuses' for having both by parents AND my family round yesterday and I am entirely comfortable with that decision. I'm not trying to justify it as an exception. I'm not special. That's rather the point. I think normal life should resume for everyone and waiting two weeks or getting unnecessarily raggy with those who don't is OTT and pointless.

@HugeAckmansWife Well said.

I think some people have lost all sense of reality. In my social circle, I am the only one still sticking to the rules and embarrassingly they all think I have lost all sense of risk. I haven’t .

I teach my children that we follow rules for a reason (before @RedToothBrush jumps on this , I’ve already said I have NOT said he can go).

Regardless of what is right and wrong, in the real world , people will be irked that they can’t see their mum but lots of young people can gather for a festival. Experiment or not .

I'd let him go. Everyone seems to be blinded by the 'its an experiment' thing, which may be the case but its still a huge gathering so some are allowed to do one thing and some another.

Let him go, especially if he’s in primary school where they mingle together at school. There’s too many contradictions in the rules.

Oh knock off the faux hardship.

The problem is the whinging about it being unfair he isnt in a scientific study and how unfair it is there are scientific studies.

And you don't like it pointing out that your false equivalence is annoying and potentially harmful in its own right because it tries to undermine the importance of scientific research.

Im done with the victim narrative of how poor little Billy is sat at home alone because he doesn't like soggy sandwiches whilst all those people are unfairly having a great time.

Its not true. You are using it as a tool to whip up sympathy or to help you gain the courage to just break the rules.

No its not fair. Life isn't fair.

What you want is a thread fawning over you and poor little Billy in sympathy. Ok fine make one. But don't bring the science into it.

Mine have now been allowed to go play with classmates. They are mainly kept outside but not totally. That's the norm here now.

I'm a teacher. I'm usually a big fan of following the rules and frequently tell the teenagers in my classes that part of being an adult is accepting that you can't always just do what you like. BUT I also teach them there is value in questioning and not just complying with things that make no practical or reasonable sense. Too many historical examples to cite but things generally improve when reasonable people respectfully and peacefully choose non compliance with a poor set of rules.

Ultimately OP, your son’s mental health and well being is not a priority for the government. Perhaps the rules would be different if it were. You are the person to advocate for him here, so you do as you see fit.

Too many historical examples to cite but things generally improve when reasonable people respectfully and peacefully choose non compliance with a poor set of rules.

Excellent point

@RedToothBrush seriously what is your problem?! You seem very very bitter.

Nowhere have I said I want sympathy; I was giving context as to why I would consider it.

You’re coming across as aggressive and actually quite nasty . Why?! Does it make you feel better?

@RedToothBrush Faux hardship indeed

seriously what is your problem?! You seem very very bitter.

You know what, I’d just block them.

I don’t know what their issue is, but it’s just nasty ranting at this stage and a totally disproportionate response to your reasonable OP.

Yes quite.

Tell me this thread wasn't about attention seeking sympathy whilst simultaneously trying to trash the integrity and importance of research and i'll give you time of day.

Mine have now been allowed to go play with classmates. They are mainly kept outside but not totally. That's the norm here now.
Same here, the majority have given up on lockdown throughout Easter all the DC played. I still have not hugged anyone except the people I live with I've relaxed otherwise.

Don't know anyone who is putting up with this nonsense any more and not seeing classmates in their homes and sitting outside getting hailed on in the freezing cold (we don't all live in the south of England). Wouldn't have thought twice about letting him go.

Its anti science and as bad as anti vax crap.

I think having trials of big events is a good idea - it's not as if gatherings are a free for all.

It's likely to be less than a fortnight until indoors gatherings in small numbers will be permitted.

I don't think they pulled the roadmap out of thin air, and I do think it's a good idea to have a stepped approach, so that there are built in review points.

The weather's OK - have the play date in the park

@Thatisnotwhatisaid

As others have said, the rave was an experiment and there’s a further one at a concert on the horizon. They also did one last month at a snooker match. They test everyone before and after, the people who have signed up to this are essentially Guinea pigs.

Having said that, I would allow your DS to go to a sleepover. The rules change in a fortnight anyway, I’ve said it on other threads but 2 weeks really won’t make a jot of difference.

Well, it’s two more weeks with people being vaccinated in large numbers (or for vaccines to become effective for those who have recently had it), two more weeks for cases to keep dropping. Of course time makes a difference.

If it's primary school kids, one child and you are social distancing at drop off and pick up I would allow it in your circumstances. And we have been strictly following the rules throughout. I really can't see that transmission risk is increased as they won't be social distancing at school.

@TheKeatingFive Agreed. I intend to ignore now as they have no valuable contribution to add other than nastiness dressed up as opinion.

Threads like this are so dumb, it hurts.

OP, if you have followed all the rules (most of us have) why don't you make this choice discretely? You're not supposed to send your ds to his mate's house because, you see, we all want to do just that. All of us want to send our one, two, three, four etc. kids to their mates' house. Well, if we all did then the risk of covid spreading is significantly increased, oops.

Sure, many people are vaccinated now but most have had just one vaccine, some have had none and most importantly children haven't been vaccinated and still catch it and spread it.

The question you should ask yourself is: Do you want to be responsible for fostering infection chains so that your dc's friends and their families potentially get Covid or plain old cold symptoms, go through the process of worrying and having to SI, lose income if they can't go to work and miss out on school (again!!) ....... just cos you and your son can't wait 2 weeks? Why is it more important for your son to visit their friend than for the million plus other children who also all crave playdates? But if we all sent our kids over infections would rise when the vaccine rollout isn't where it will be in 2 weeks. It's numbers game.

Sure, the above scenario is still possible and likely in two weeks but that is epidemiology isn't it? It's about minimising risk on a population level and waiting 2 weeks with all this is part of the bigger picture of managing covid on a population level and a higher % of people will either have received their first vaccine in two weeks or even complete their vaccination, so it does make a difference.

At the end of the day, why not let your kid go discretely, if they must, why do you need to make a public point, which sadly undermines all the public health efforts and makes mumsnetters think, 'ah well if they do it, why should we stick to the rules'..... It's bizarre.

@TheKeatingFive

seriously what is your problem?! You seem very very bitter.

You know what, I’d just block them.

I don’t know what their issue is, but it’s just nasty ranting at this stage and a totally disproportionate response to your reasonable OP.

I would block too.

At some point the ranting becomes so much that people stop listening. If they want to follow all the rules absolutely fine but if you feel your child needs this then you let them. You know your child, you aren't alone in thinking of letting your child have play dates after school.

Yanbu. I have been very cautious too but if the kids are in the same bubble at school then...

Ideally they’d be outside in the sun but it looks like it will be raining.

Yabu, it’s chalk and cheese, such a lazy argument - the two situations are totally different. “Someone else is doing something else so it makes it right for me to do a totally different something else - wah wah”

If you want to do it then do it, but don’t blame the system.