Boris Johnson has announced that from Saturday, (13 June 2020) single adult households in England will be able to form a “support bubble” with another household, he said the change aims to help combat loneliness and that people are being trusted to observe the rules.
What does this mean?
Single parents, with children under the age of 18, and people who live on their own can form a bubble with one other household which means they will effectively be treated as a single household for the purpose of the lockdown rules.That means they can visit each other indoors in their homes , they can stay overnight if they wish and they will not have to observe the two-metre social-distancing rule.
What this means
- Elderly people living alone could form a bubble with the household of an adult son or daughter enabling them to visit and even hug their grandchildren for the first time since lockdown, BUT with each household requiring the arrangement to be “exclusive” a family couldn’t form a bubble with a grandparent on either side of the family, so will need to choose which one.
- Single parents could pair up with their own parents allowing them to share childcare duties and reuniting grandparents and grandchildren.. BUT if the grandparents have two or more children who live alone, they will have to choose between them.
- Couples who do not live together will be able to visit and to stay with each other BUT if a person lives alone but their partner has a flatmate, then they can form a bubble but the flatmate cannot then form their own with another household.
- Each person will be expected to only join one household and cannot change who they visit until lockdown is eased further.
- Those shielding will be unable to form a bubble with another household at this stage.
If anyone within a bubble develops coronavirus symptoms, everyone within the bubble must self-isolate for 14 days.
