My experience might be out-of-date, but on an IFR renewal (last millennium) I had to fly from MB to Cowes to fly the NDB and then a DME approach back into MB. On the way down to Cowes it was real IFR, there was an aeroplane shooting the NDB, another waiting in the holding pattern, and another aeroplane crossing our tracks from somewhere from the East. That felt like high workload to me, particularly on a renewal flight. Flight services informed us of the other aircraft, and we negotiated our separation with each other. Crossing aircraft flew above us, the guy doing the approach did the missed approach and climbed on the missed approach until he got above us, and I went into the holding pattern above the other aeroplane in the holding pattern and waited for him to fly his approach. Doesn't it work something like this today, even though it's Class G?