Spoken to by the police

[Foldinthecheese]

This morning my husband and I took our three children on a long walk/scoot to a local park that is probably two miles away. We had seen the recent police guidance that said stopping for a snack during a long period of exercise is allowed, so we packed some crisps, fruit and our water bottles, intending to have them in the park before heading back home. We have twin DSes, four, and a one year old DD.

While sitting in the park (in a green space, far from any paths, with no one nearby) two police officers approached and said we needed to move on because what we were doing was against guidelines and someone had called to report us. It wasn’t a problem to leave, but I was a little annoyed by the situation. I mentioned the guidelines regarding a snack during long exercise and they seemed unaware of this, and asked to see it on my phone. They then said that it was an issue of public perception, which I understand, but I’m not sure why that would impact the legality of our actions. One officer suggested that we should have gone to a park closer to our house, but the space isn’t really comparable and it’s more of a play park: lots of equipment that is currently covered in caution tape.

I don’t know really why I’m writing this, except I feel frustrated. We’ve followed all the guidelines for the past month and it’s annoying that the police seem unaware of the guidance that has been made publicly available that says what we did was acceptable. It was also just really nice to go slightly further than the one mile radius around our house and enjoy seeing the flowers in the park, and it feels like it put a dampener on the morning.

Windyatthebeach - who is rainypuddles?

Ive taken to calling our half hour fresh air in the back garden ‘Yard time’ its cos we dug up all our sodding turf the weekend before all this kicked off

So i was wondering, i have a park type area 5 minutes walk away, actual play area is taped off but its a really big field - can i take a ball for my two kids to chase around?

We weren’t having a picnic. We stopped for a snack and a drink, for maybe all of about ten minutes. It was really just a rest for the boys before heading back home.

We do have a garden, and we’ve used it loads in the past several weeks, but I’m not sure why that means we shouldn’t be able to go on a walk to a local park. The area where we live is lovely, but very residential and doesn’t have many nice walks on the immediate vicinity. The only scenic one nearby is along a canal, where it’s difficult to maintain two metres distance when passing others.

Pre-virus, it was very usual for us to go on long walks, but we would have driven to a scenic area to do so. Obviously, we thought better not to do that. Strangely, the officer indicated that it would have been fine if we had been out for a long bike ride, but what we had done was somehow different. I’m not sure why.

How other people interpret lock down is their choice

She was following police guidelines as per errols post. Its not her interpretation

@sauvignonblancplz
It doesnt really matter what they would normally do.
Normally, I would go to the gym and then swimming and then have something to eat. Normally my kids would do 2 sports classes a night after school. None of that is possible now
Normally, we would head up to the highlands and camp 1 or 2 weekends a month which involves a lot of walking. We cant do that now.

We wouldn't normally go for a long walk everyday in our local area, but that is now our only option so we do. Are you saying that we shouldn't do that because we normally wouldn't be doing it? Are the the according to you that if our normal exercise is not possible then oh well, we dont get to long walks with a snack because we wouldn't usually do it?

@ItsLateHumpty
I absolutely agree , however we have been told only to leave the house of it is essential.
I have great space around my home, it’s not essential that I take my family out for a large walk and a sit down.
I would feel very guilty that I was taking up space that another family would need who don’t have a garden.
This will all stop and soon we will be able to enjoy our local park and usual walks by the river and cycles.

If the OP’is cooped up inside with no garden space and little ones I would much rather she spent the bloody day in then park etc.

YANBU at all OP.

YANBU, it's pathetic that the police cannot keep up with guidance or apply some common sense.

I wish the police would spend more, well any, time checking up on places of employment to see what arsehattery employers are up to rather than people sat on grass away from others.

@Foldinthecheese

Did you take your young children to an area where it was difficult to maintain 2 metres distance or did you take them somewhere else?

@Mummy0ftwo12 no you absolutely cannot. I’m police staff and I’d be sending officers to move you on. The spirit of going out to exercise is to keep on the move and not stop for games etc. If you do it, then another family comes along and sees you doing it, so they start too, amd before you know it the area is heaving and you cannot maintain distance.

I must wish people would follow the guidelines and stop thinking they’re so fucking special that it doesn’t apply to them

The police must have been very close if you were only there for ten minutes and someone took the time to call and for them to come out.

I do think lots of people are being silly about this. You weren’t doing any harm and they would need to stop and have a drink after a long walk.

The police were being officious and silly. YANBU at all. Exercise for little children is different from exercise for adults; they have to stop, walk round in circles etc. They also eat much more frequently, and so although I might be able to hike for four hours without eating anything that's totally irrelevant when we go out walking as a family... Without a rest you can't go at all! Also, mostly, kudos to you for managing DTs 4 and a 1 year old -- as a parent of a 5 and 2 year old the idea of an EXTRA one right now makes my blood run cold!

I go to a large park nearby everyday. All the benches have hazard tape on them and there are notices about not sitting - to just to use the park for exercise.
Since those notices and the tape nobody sits anywhere. I see everybody moving.
I appreciate that the exercise rules were relaxed last week, but I think the police meant that if people see a family picnic ( 30 minutes on the grass?) then lots of people might be tempted and they're back at shouting at us through loudhailers.
I was stuck by the images of children at windows in Spain who haven't been allowed out for a month.

Legally you did nothing wrong. If you were in a crowded park in the middle of a city then yeah I could understand them moving you on, but it doesn't sound like that's the case. I took my kids for a picnic today. We saw noone. I offer a picnic as a bribe to get them to walk otherwise they wouldn't leave the house.

They are being ridiculous. I went out with my severely disabled ds to a park for a walk. We drove and parked with our disabled badge in the car park. He has asd and learning diffs and isn't safe wandering around local area. He needs safe, familiar place. Guidance from govmt says that people with these kind of disabilities are allowed to travel to exercise and can exercise more than once a day. They stuck a leaflet on my car telling me off. It really annoyed me.

@RufustheLanglovingreindeer I’m trying to ascertain how essential the sit down was & as it seems not very.

But what if everyone did this though?
Then all the parks would be full of people 'just stopping for a snack'

Another way for people to bend the guidelines so it suits only them.

You obviously didn't do anything that goes against the latest published guidelines. And as for sauvingnonblancplz you are just embarrassing yourself now.

One officer suggested that we should have gone to a park closer to our house, but the space isn’t really comparable and it’s more of a play park: lots of equipment that is currently covered in caution tape.

Yes but it's still enough space for the kids to run around while keeping off of the equipment, surely?

It's become a bit of a problem in some areas, that people will pass their local park to go to a 'nicer' one further away. This means the park that's deemed 'nicer', is much busier and often full of families on picnic blankets having snacks and drinks.

It's one of the reasons many local councils have closed the parks car parks.

My ds is a police officer and the recent "new rules" is fake, Sky news are in huge trouble over it...

I know sauvignon

Im honestly not trying to be picky, but the police guidelines changed recently and as errol said They now includes the ability to have a snack while on a long walk

So I don’t think the OP has done anything wrong

I’m trying to ascertain how essential the sit down was & as it seems not very.

Most 4 yos would want a little rest and snack after walking and scooting 2 miles there before heading back, I'd have thought.

Maybe you have/had exceptionally tough kids.

@sauvignonblancplz We took them to a large park with plenty of open space where it was easy to maintain two meters space. While there I saw some people sitting and talking on a bench, but when we sat down to rest and have our snack we chose a spot in the middle of green space where we would be easily avoided by anyone passing.

@FlamingoAndJohn I thought that as well, that they most have been very close. I assume they have officers in the park every day now to move people along, particularly if they aren’t aware of the recent guidance.

@hopsalong Ha, I will admit that the third has made this time extra challenging! When we decided to have another baby, I certainly didn’t agree to do so under lockdown conditions.