How to negotiate this? Wales extended household rules

[Msmcc1212]

So we are in an extended household with good friends and their kids. Has worked great. The rules in Wales change on 22nd so that up to four households can form an extended household. No swapping allowed once decided.

My friends DC told my DC that they are going to ask their other friends (I’ll call them family 2) to be in their extended extended household if you know what I mean.

So, would this mean that family 2 are then part of our extended household? If yes and family 2 already had and extended household (family 3) would that mean that our extended family was then closed because we have our friends and family 2 and family 3? No more families.

Or can each household have up to three other households they can be normal with (bubble with/extend with) even if each of those families could have their own three households in their bubble?

My brain hurts.... help.

Or is it obvious and hormone induced brain fog is getting the better of me?

It's a total of 4 households. Bubbles cannot intersect. So in your example yes the original two families plus family 2 and family 3 would be the extended household. None of you would be allowed any extra households in your bubble.

There is the letter of the law but how can it be policed. How can household 1 dictate to household 2 who they can see?

Surely this should be a joint discussion with all those in the bubble before committing? Seems unfair if one family has organised another household to join without discussion?

Thank you all.

Bugger. That’s going to be an awkward conversation. I only know secondhand from DCs so it’s tricky. Probably they were just thinking aloud in front of DC. I’m hopeful they will discuss before acting but also want to be prepared and think about what our preferred option would be.

Thanks so much for replying.

The thing is, absolutely nobody is taking any notice whatsoever any more. Everyone’s just in and out of each other’s houses. So it isn’t going to make much difference to anyone if you’re strict with your bubble unfortunately.

And in 2 weeks all the children will be mixing in school anyway 🤷‍♀️

Yes definitely. Otherwise what would be the point because bubbles would be mixing all over the place.
Having said that, I don't know anyone sticking to it. I say this as someone living in England but all my family and lots of friends are in Wales.

Yes. You can be in an extended family with household two. Households three and four can join to make the extended extended household.

The UN peacekeepers are on stand by to provide negotiation support.
This is why I am so glad we have nobody to form extended households with, it's a social minefield.

Pretty sure no one will stick to it OP if it's so complex.

We see the ILs, my dad and DSM and my DB's family. How can I stop my SIL seeing her DM or my MIL seeing BIL? It's bollocks and can't be managed.

I think it was intended more to allow different generations of families to meet and support each other eg for childcare purposes or elderly care.

Example: I could meet with my brother and his family plus our parents, plus my sister-in-law's parents could still look after his children two days a week.
Or maybe three or four professional couples all working from home could form an extended household and take it in turns to look after each other's kids while the others work.

Active socialising should still be on the back burner apart from at a 2m distance. I know very few people are doing this but that's what the spirit of the guidelines is.

The fewer people you meet, the less likely you are to infect them or get infected yourself. Everyone should be doing this. If contact tracers ring you this afternoon to say you've been in contact with an infected person, if you have more than 10 people to ring then you're doing it wrong!

I can't believe Welsh Gov think people will find this easier to follow than a general rule on more mask wearing with clear instructions on how to safely wear and put on / remove a mask. Apparently the latter is far too complex.....