Is it still the rule of 6

[Jenasaurus]

I am a little confused about the number of people that can meet up inside. My boss had originally organised 2 meet ups of 5 people in one meeting and the other 6 in another meeting. This is the first time we have met up since March 2020 and we are meeting in a coffee shop, but now the team have all decided all 11 of us should meet up on the same day/coffee shop etc. They said we can have 2 tables but near enough to have our meeting, I am a bit uncomfortable about this, although not becuase I think we are at risk of catching Covid, we have all had both vaccines, but because I wonder if we are breaking the rules and it will upset other people, can someone tell me if the above is allowed or not please

Most other people won't even notice this.

I thought it didnt apply if it was work related?

It's all very confusing but I'm pretty sure it must be allowed, the management organising it will have presumably checked!

It is still the rule of 6 but as PP said, work meetings are exempt.

@Waxonwaxoff0

It is still the rule of 6 but as PP said, work meetings are exempt.

Surely that only applies in a workplace whereas they are going to a coffee shop

@dementedpixie I dunno, I read of people going for work lunches etc during the other lockdowns.

Wouldn't it be ok if you met outdoors where it's up to 30 people?

Yep, allowed for work And no one will mind or say anything. Or probably even notice.

It’s allowed inside for work meets, even in cafes etc although many won’t accommodate at the moment. Seems odd that they’re putting you on two separate tables, but that may just be to do with how they’re set up at the moment. Outside it’d be fine work or not.

Rule of 6 inside is for social occasions, not work.

And the reason work have booked 2 tables is to try and cover the fact that you are all together.

Well I'd be pretty annoyed if I went to my local coffee shop to find 11 people trying to have a work meeting - doesn't seem to be a productive way of doing it, especially across two tables. They should book a private dining room for that if they don't want to hold it, I don't know, in the actual workplace?

[quote Waxonwaxoff0]@dementedpixie I dunno, I read of people going for work lunches etc during the other lockdowns.[/quote]
Yes, but it was a dodge, business meetings are supposed to be covid secure, which is unlikely to be the case in a restaurant set up for a social gathering. Two tables of 5 would only be within the rules if there was no mixing between the tables. You have to act as if you don't know each other.

But if you were outside, you can all intermingle as the limit outside is 30.

For the people saying none of this makes sense, there's a lot of modelling and risk assessment behind the rules and limits and it does make sense on a population level.

Rule of 6 does not apply for work meetings. But I think it's pretty off using a public cafe for a meeting to be honest, why don't you hire a meeting room? This is what we do if we are having meetings and we need somewhere a bit bigger.

It will not apply for work meetings in the workplace. Cafes have their own rules to go by

No, the meeting can take place anywhere, inside or outside of work.

However to answer the OP question have you suggested meeting outdoors where larger numbers can freely meet without gaining the state's you might get when meeting indoors

A pub garden would work for 11 and be less disruptive to other customers in the cafe.

@dementedpixie

And the reason work have booked 2 tables is to try and cover the fact that you are all together.

They don't need to cover it they are allowed to do it, however not many cafés have tables to sit 12, hence taking two tables next to each other

Meeting others for work
You can gather in a group larger than six people or two households indoors or in a group larger than 30 people outdoors where it is necessary for your work. When working, you should remain 2 metres from anyone you do not live with, or at least 1m with additional mitigations.

From the gov website. However a cafe doesn't have to allow it.

It’s allowed for work but they’re taking the piss a bit IMO. There’s loads of pubs better set up for this.

Depends how big the coffee shop is of course, but you’d take up pretty much the entire shop in my local costa, if you’re all SD.

You're allowed to do it but many cafes/ restaurants won't allow it. We've just spent a week's holiday on the south coast eating apart from our own children because most restaurants stuck to rule of 6, not even allowing two households that totalled 7 people. Was a bit odd to say the least, but I think it was because many places got hassle last time for trying to police two households (like are you 12x 20-something guys really 2 households?), that they've just said no more than 6 this time.

Anyway, you're allowed to do it for work, and for social if separate tables.

I wouldn't want to be a customer in that cafe while you're having your meeting. Why should people inflict their work meetings on other people?

Isn’t the social rule of 6 allowing social contact (ie getting close to each other if you want, not worrying too much about social distancing), whereas the work guidelines require you to remain so far apart (2m, or over 1m if using additional mitigations, like, eg, masks), that you would have to break the guidelines to all fit in a cafe and remove masks so that you can eat and drink as well as have your business discussions?! It’s is 100% breaking the spirit of the rules, imvho, to meet in a cafe for a business meeting and would totally ruin the social experience for anyone else unfortunate enough to end up in there at the same time as people having a proper business meeting (although clearly it won’t be a proper work meeting, or you would not all be meeting in a cafe in the first place - it sounds more like a chance to meet together socially again in more relaxed surroundings than a workplace, to me).

Depends what part of the UK you are in, rules are different throughout.