When choosing a nanny, housekeeper or child-minder for your family there are a number of steps you can take to improve your odds of getting the right person. Using the internet is a good starting point as it enables you to do some research about the role. There are a number of articles providing advice, and tips about the how to go about the process and how to prevent making mistakes. There are a number of useful websites to look at including https://directgov.co.uk/en/parents/childcare which provide advice about how to recruit a Nanny any what makes a good nanny. The site suggest that a good nanny should be able to plan and arrange safe, fun learning opportunities. They should know how to plan and prepare healthy meals and snacks. They must have had first aid training as part of their training towards gaining a recognised qualification.
Obviously, given the range of tasks and responsibilities the nanny or child-minder will be required to carry out often simultaneously they will need good organisational skills. The site suggests that it is preferable if the prospective nanny has gained by experience of working with children of various ages, in a variety of different settings. Good nannies demonstrate a natural and genuine an interest in children as individuals and have a confident and positive personality. It may be important to the client that they have driving experience as this may be one of the key responsibilities of the post. Parents are advised to see candidates car insurance to check that business usage is included or to update their own vehicles insurance if the child-minder is to have use of a family vehicle.
Choosing a nanny, housekeeper or child-minder
When choosing a nanny, housekeeper or child-minder one decision to be taken is whether to use a Nanny agency or whether to do the recruitment independently. Given the potential pitfalls and even legal implications of recruiting somebody to care for your precious family there are many advantages of using the expertise of a well-established and reputable Nanny agency. The majority of Nanny agencies can be found promoting their services on the internet and in local newspapers. By spending some time doing research you can make a comparison of the different Nanny or child care agencies in your area. Local Nanny agencies tend to be able to provide a more personal service and you are more likely to be able to liaise with the same member of the Nanny agency team throughout the recruitment process. This person will get to know you, your family members and crucially your precise child care requirements over time. This in turn increases the likelihood of the prospective candidates they put forward matching your criteria. Another benefit of using a reputable Nanny agency is that they will be able to use the professional experience of the child care industry to offer you the advice and support you need to prevent from you from overlooking some detail or requirement that later could become a problem. In addition to providing advice Nanny agencies can usually generate a wider field of suitably qualified, experienced and criminal record checked prospective candidates for the vacancy than you can by placing a costly advert in a local newspaper. Some Nanny agencies provide technical advice with employment contracts including the potentially thorny issues of income tax and national insurance rates. Indeed some have partnership arrangements with specialist organisations such as Tiny Tots accountants that help their clients with all the paperwork. So to sum up when doing something as important as choosing a nanny, housekeeper or child-minder for your family, using a reputable nanny agency such as Family Connections makes absolute sense.