Are people really still not aware of that support bubbles are allowed?

[RockingMyFiftiesNot]

I didn't see my elderly widowed Mum early on in lockdown, as she lives too far away to have popped by to say hello on the doorstep. Since support bubbles have been introduced, I've travelled a couple of hours south to see her every few weeks, as there are no restrictions on distance for support bubbles.

In the last couple of weeks, I've had 2 different people challenge me on this, one quite unpleasantly expressing disgust that I think it's ok to break the law by travelling so far during lockdown : another more bemused that i would visit as I am 'a saddo that doesn't usually like breaking rules'. Neither seemed to believe me when I explained it was allowed.

I appreciate that there have been lots of changes in rules/laws but support bubbles have been in place for what 9 months? I'm not sure why this has annoyed me so much, but a week or so on I'm still a bit rattled by being slagged off when not doing anything wrong. Especially as I am following the rules and not seeing some of my adult children other than for one on one walks.

Posting only to get it off my chest as it's annoyed me way more than it should!

If people would just keep to the official sources, eg the government website, NHS etc they would be a whole lot more informed. The trouble is, the government website is a wishlist (although it does make some attempt to distinguish between "must" and "should"), to understand what the rules are you need to read the legislation. Which is quite difficult to find.

@TitusPullo

Please don’t ring the police, they have enough to deal with without giving the advice on individual circumstances. One force also can’t tell you how another force will react.

Idiot - it's their JOB

Clearly I didn't mean use 999.

Any force can tell you what the law is if you ever have any doubt on the matter.

@notrub - wow rude much?

It’s not the police’s JOB to explain how the law applies to each citizen. Their job is to enforce the law. Imagine if everyone rang 101 to ask about their specific circumstances

It’s very annoying. As a single parent we bubbled with my daughters best friend’s family. I’ve had complaints to the school and the other children complaining, including to their parents who have been quite hostile towards me. Just what I needed!

The woman who’s travelling to help her DD with her newborn doesn’t need to ring to ask the police for advice. It’s perfectly clear that her visit is within the rules. She’s worried about getting flack from over zealous police officers anyway.

The AMA with the police officer last week demonstrated just how few people have read the Guidance (let alone the actual law) from top to bottom, including the police.

We have a grandparent childcare bubble and I’ve had a lot of this too - how come your children are seeing their grandparents etc? I think some of it is jealousy, no one is stopping them doing it either. They may have decided it’s ‘not safe’ but that doesn’t mean that we have to make the same decision. My parents would have been horrified to stop doing childcare.

I agree, I see it mostly on MN. I have a child under 1, and I'm allowed a support bubble with one grandparent set and a childcare bubble with the other grandparents, and so many dictate that you can only have one of these. Very frustrating to read.

There has always been support allowed for the vunerable .

Thank you all, made me feel a lot better and now I feel I can let go of my annoyance!

You are being wrongly challenged, OP. There is no distance limit on support bubbles, and the person you are bubbled with does not need to be vulnerable or need any sort of care.
I am in a bubble with my parents (I live alone). Some twat on my FB said I have a dog, so therefore not entitled to be in a bubble. A lot of people like to make up their own rules and get mad when other people don't follow them.

Some people are thick / or just not interested enough to read up on it. Put them right and ignore.

You’ve made me feel quite nostalgic for the support bubble rant threads though, now replaced with the much more frustrating why do I need a vaccine / will the vaccine kill me / I’m not having the vaccine threads

Some twat on my FB said I have a dog, so therefore not entitled to be in a bubble.

And they were being serious? Not even trying to be 'funny'? Beggars belief

@RockingMyFiftiesNot

Some twat on my FB said I have a dog, so therefore not entitled to be in a bubble.

And they were being serious? Not even trying to be 'funny'? Beggars belief

I want to say no, but they were deadly serious. They are shielding and most likely not too aware of what is and isn't allowed for people that are not shielding.

@XenoBitch and I think that was the point of my OP.... if they aren't up to speed with what is and isn't allowed, then they are wrong to challenge people who ARE up to speed and not breaking the rules. Bloody armchair critics

As far as I can tell almost no one who doesn't have a child or grandchild under 1 seems to know about under-1 bubbles - you get so many posts on MN MN where people confidently declare completely incorrect beliefs that it's not allowed or that the specific way the OP is using it is wrong, based on nothing but their own ignorance. In my personal experience in 'real life' people are less stridently wrong but just don't know about them - I am certain my neighbours think I've made it up to try and justify breaking the rules.

People also add caveats that don't actually exist to the bubble rules, e.g. childcare bubbles can only be used if the parent is doing paid work at the time, or support bubbles must be local. What baffles me is that people will declare as fact something they've made up in their own heads and then defend it! If you haven't read the actual information then just don't comment...

What baffles me is that people will declare as fact something they've made up in their own heads and then defend it

Me too. Been happening all year on MN.