parents – Page 20 – Nannyjob blog

How Do I Hire a Nanny?

Hiring a nanny means finding someone who you can entrust your children to all through the day. As you will be opening your home to the nanny, it is extremely important that you don’t make mistakes that mean you’ll end up regretting hiring her. If you wish to successfully hire a nanny, all you need to do is follow these simple steps.

Determine the Type of Nanny You Want To Hire

Generally, there are two types of nannies: live in and live out. Live-in nannies, as the name implies, are child-caregivers who stay with you in your house. If you are looking for someone who can take care of your children all through the day and sometimes through the night, or your work / life hours are often changeable and you need different hours each week you you might consider hiring a live-in nanny. On the other hand, if you are simply trying to balance your work and personal life, you might prefer a live-out nanny. Remember that a live-in Nanny will need her own space, ideally a bedroom with an en-suite and she will need to be able to use the house a bit like her own on her time off so if you don’t like the thought of someone being there in your family time this may not be for you. Like regular employees, live-out nannies have specific working hours during the day. Nannies of each type provide different benefits. In essence, what seems to be the advantage of one proves to be a disadvantage of the other, and vice versa.

Before the Interview Process

Write a detailed job description including the duties that you want the nanny to take up. Remember though that the more chores you give the nanny, the less time she’ll spend looking after your children. You could ask some of your friends, neighbours or family for essential pointers on what to look for in a nanny.

During the Interview

You can conduct two to three interviews before you hire a nanny. Do not let your children get involved during the first interview. During this phase, you are still figuring out whether or not you move to the second interview. Ask vital questions related to the resume and discuss with the applicant your expectations, as well as your children’s personalities. Make sure that the applicant can provide references from previous employers.

Calling previous clients to ask about her performance is vital before hiring the nanny. Do not hire a nanny without investigating her background and work experience. Ask about previous traffic accidents, driving under the influence, or any criminal offences. You may also want to check her work visa, passport, driving license, criminal record, etc. If you are using the services of a nanny agency, you need to make sure that they have already verified the candidate’s DBS.

If you decide you are interested in pursuing the applicant, you may now want to conduct subsequent interviews that include your whole family. Always maintain a comfortable level of communication so that you can easily spot potential problems before you hire a nanny.

Do not commit to hire a nanny until you’ve had the opportunity to investigate her records. If everything goes well, detail a written agreement with the nanny and make sure the contract includes the nanny’s duties, terms of employment, wages, taxes and insurance.

How to be a Good Nanny?

Anyone can become a nanny, but how to be a good nanny is a totally different story. If you want to impress your employer then you have to be able to demonstrate the qualities of good nannies. Here are some tips for fulfilling the role of a good nanny.

Be Respectful and Well-Mannered

If you offer a full time nanny service, the chances are you will be living in an environment that could be radically different from what you are accustomed to. If you have a different religion, or are from a different race, have different values or culture, will you be able to adapt to and respect their environment? You may have a distinct child rearing philosophy that deviates from that of your employer. If so, are you willing to adapt and follow child rearing rules set by the parents?

If you are a live-out nanny, make sure to let your employers know about emergency absences immediately so they can make alternative arrangements. A good nanny is respectful and realises that parents rely on her punctuality so they can go to work without any delays.

Be Playful and Creative

Encourage the children to be as active as possible. Find something fun and productive to distract them from spending long hours in front of the television. You may take them to the park or museums, read to them, or get them involved in artistic activities. If you are playful and creative you will be a real asset and prove to be a good nanny to the family.

Keep Children Safe All the Time

Always make safety a priority when you are in charge of the overall wellness of the children. You may not be aware of it but your employer will be keeping out an eye on you all the time. Holding the child’s hand while crossing the street, closing the gate, and fastening the child in the car seat are just a few instances where you will be keenly observed by your employer. So if you want to know how to become a good nanny, the answer is straight and simple, treat the children as if they are your own.

Maintain Open Lines of Communication

Your employers need you to openly communicate with them as this is the only way for both parties to catch up. You need to understand that they will be interested in what the children have been up to the whole day. Open communication will also keep your employers up-to-date of any problems. On another note, you need to know how you can communicate with them easily as concerns may arise any time of the day.

It is extremely important to remember that a nanny plays a vital role in nurturing a child. So if you want to know how to become a good nanny, think like a parent wondering how to be a good parent and you won’t go far wrong.

Flying With Small Children: An In-Flight Survival Guide

A recent short trip abroad is all it takes to remind me of how difficult it can be travelling with little ones! The last thing any family or nanny wants is to have attention drawn to a restless toddler or crying baby, but as we all know we’re generally on a knife’s edge between a calm flight and a stressful one with small children.

If you’re a nanny and have to travel with babies or young children in your care, we have put together a survival guide to ensure that you don’t become the person in charge of ‘that annoying child on the row in front’, and possibly even have an enjoyable flight!

Prepare beforehand – when the flights are booked, if possible make sure that you request the front row of seats, so that you have more leg room. The child has more room to move around on the flight, and will not be annoying anyone in front by pulling on the backs of seats.
Nap time – if you have a child in your care who is good at taking regular naps, try to ensure that flights are booked and taken at nap times, so that the child is more likely to want to sleep on board.
Choose toys wisely – in other words, use your common sense on this one and don’t take large toys that will take up too much room, or small toys with lots of fiddly bits that will end up getting lost. A few simple toys which pack lightly and tightly are best, and a small comfort blanket instead of large items.
Concentration spans – a very helpful Nannyjob Facebook fan informed us that children have 1 minute of concentration per year of their age, so if the 3 year old in your care is finding the window shutter more interesting than her Barbie after 5 minutes, don’t expect her to be any different, and go with her concentration, don’t force it.
Be self sufficient – prepare yourself before the flight so that you aren’t going to be relying on airline staff to help you entertain or calm the children. They are busy enough and it isn’t in their remit, so don’t get stressed if the cabin crew overlook your crying toddler whilst serving your in flight meal – they just have a job to do.
Travel light – we’ve all seen those families who seem to be carting everything and the kitchen sink on board, and are more stressed before take off just from lifting and carrying than actually having little ones with them. Only take essentials for both you and the children, and to make these essentials light ones!
Distraction works! – Let’s face it – spending hours on end in one place is going to get a bit tedious for the most well behaved little one, so remember that for those hours it really is down to you to become the key source of distraction! If you sense a toddler becoming irritable and bored, get your creative hat on, become the circus, and think of a totally new thing to sing, play or do! You’ll be amazed what new games come out of a flight!
Don’t apologise – children cry, children get frustrated and bored – it is not your fault, it’s what happens! If you see that smug couple with no children on the row behind tutting at this, then totally ignore them and stay strong.
Be aware of ear pressure – This can be a really big deal. As someone who has suffered from ear pressure pain on flights since childhood, I totally empathise with the crying children I hear on flights when coming in to land. The only thing that works for me is a certain well known brand of sinus pressure pain and nasal congestion relief, which literally wipes the pain and pressure away like magic, and has started doing it’s own range of children’s products.

Do you agree with our ideas? Why not share your experiences on our Facebook wall?

Get Craft Happy For The Jubilee!

Let’s face it, even the least patriotic of us will be finding it hard at the moment to escape the media frenzy around the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee in June, and for those who do love a bit of classic English patriotism, why not get involved in your own creative way?! If you have toddlers or older children in your care, this is the perfect excuse to get their creative juices flowing, whilst teaching them a little bit about our monarchy at the same time!

So, I hear you ask, what kind of things can we make?! Here are a few of our best ideas to keep children happy and creative in time Jubilee celebrations:

Make Bunting:

You will need:

A length on string as long as you want your bunting to be
Coloured sheets of card in red, white and blue
A pencil
Sellotape
Scissors

This is a basic way of making bunting, so that little children can be involved as there is no material to stitch. Simply make a triangular template and get the children to draw around it onto the coloured card. Cut out the drawings and get the children to put them in order – red, white, blue, red, white, blue and so on. Fold about a centimetre of the top of the triangles over the string, and attach down on one side with a piece of Sellotape. Do this all the way along your string, and then attach the bunting either inside or outside the house! This is a fantastic exercise for fine motor skills, as well as recognising shapes and colours for children.

Make a Crown:

You will need:

A piece of cardboard around 4 inches wide, and long enough to go around the child’s head and overlap slightly
A strip of tin foil around 5 inches wide, and the same length as the cardboard
Scissors
Crayons, glitter, or stickers
Glue
Stapler

Glue the length of tin foil on top of the length of cardboard, matching the bottom edges up, so that there is an inch extra of foil at the top. Now, cut zig zags into the foil all the way along the top, giving a crown effect of lots of points going across the top. Now it’s time to really have some fun and decorate, using glue, glitter, crayons or stickers, let your little ones go to town on their individual crown decoration on top of the tin foil. When the decorations have dried, make a ring with the crown and staple each end together, to fit over the child’s head.

Union Jack cupcakes (makes 12):

What you need:

4oz caster sugar
4oz margarine
4oz self raising flour
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla essence
1 tsp baking powder
12 white cupcake cases

For the icing:

1 packet white ready roll icing
Apricot jam
Blue and red food colouring pens

Method:

Line a cupcake tin with 12 cupcake cases and preheat the oven to 180 degrees.
Cream together the sugar and margarine with an electric mixer. Gradually add the eggs, flour, vanilla essence and baking powder whilst mixing.
Half fill the cupcake cases and put into the oven for 20-25 minutes until golden and well risen. Take the cupcakes out of the oven and place onto a wire rack to cool.
Roll out the icing to around 3mm thickness, then use a circular cutter to cut out 12 circles.
Put some apricot jam into the microwave for 20 seconds to make it runny. Brush the cooled cupcakes with the jam, and then place the icing circles on top so that they stick. Draw a basic union jack with your blue and red pens on to the icing on each cupcake.

You now have some really Royal treats!

Adding to the ideas we’ve given, why not try making some red, white and blue pompoms, or get some plain white serviettes and get the children to colour some red and blue onto them, or even onto a plain white paper tablecloth. There are hours of fun to be had, all in the name of Queen and country – have fun!

The cost of employing a nanny

You want to employ a nanny and you’re setting out your budget. Here are some costs you need to consider…

What you pay your nanny – this is known as the net wage. You may be able to get childcare vouchers which can go towards paying this amount.

Frequency – weekly or monthly (we recommend monthly to simplify reporting to HMRC)

What you pay on behalf of your nanny – this is tax, National Insurance and (depending on your staging date) work based pension contributions. This combined with what you pay your nanny is the gross wage.

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Spotlight on cars

If a nanny drives as part of her (or his) job then they may use their own car or a car provided for them by their employer. Nowadays most nannies have their own cars but may not be happy to use them for work. If they are then there are several things to take into account:

Mileage – anyone using their car for work can be paid 45p/mile for the first 10,000 miles free of tax. If a nanny does over 10,000 miles this drops to 25p/mile. Miles done should be recorded (most people find a little notebook helpful) and submitted at regular intervals.

Insurance – nannies using their own car need to have business class insurance and the insurer needs to be aware what their job is.

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Sleep Difficulties with Children – How a Nanny Can Help

Having a young child who won’t or can’t sleep can have a knock-on effect for the entire family.

Sleep problems for babies and young children are becoming more commonplace and routines can be extremely difficult to stick to, especially when you’re not around your child 24/7. That’s where a nanny can step in and help to keep the routine running smoothly so that everyone in the family stays fully rested.

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10 reasons to hire a nanny

Thought about hiring a nanny but not convinced? Here are 10 reasons to take the plunge.

Beat the morning rush. You can leave your children to get up at their own pace and even you’re your nanny sort breakfast for them while you get ready. No more turning up to work with snot and porridge on your jacket.
Calm evenings. If you want, your nanny will do bath or dinner or both, meaning you don’t have to pick up the children from childcare, get home and do the whole evening routine.
No time off for sick children. Nannies will care for poorly babies and children that childminders and nursery won’t take.
A strong, secure attachment. It’s vital, particularly for babies, for children to form a secure attachment to a limited number of caregivers. A nanny provides consistent, loving attention.
Things done your way. Want your children to eat organic? Nap at certain times? Go to the library twice a week? You’re the boss.
They cook and clean, and tidy, and shop. Only for the children but they will prepare children’s meals, including dinner ready for you to reheat, do their laundry, clean their bedrooms, make sure you have bread, milk and nappies and generally leave the house in the state you left it that morning (if not better).
They bake. Seriously. Most nannies will happily bake with their charges meaning cake for you, we mean, cake for the school bake sale, saving you precious time the night before.
Cheaper for larger families. It might seem the pricy option but it’s about the same as two in nursery, or one in full time nursery and two in wraparound care. And no unpaid time off for you while you’re still paying childcare (see point 3).
You choose them. In a nursery you don’t get to choose who looks after your children, but with a nanny you have a great deal of choice. You can find someone who fits perfectly with your family or speaks a language you want your children to learn.
Extended hours. Arranged far enough in advance most nannies will agree to the occasional early start or late finish, which means you aren’t scrambling around to fill the gaps if you have a big business trip. Live in nannies are even more flexible and may regularly start early, babysit, or even work overnight.

Explaining Terrorism to Children

As parents and caregivers, it can be extremely difficult to answer questions from children about terrorism. It’s a heart-breaking subject that you might wish you could push away or not discuss, but it’s quickly becoming a necessity due to the world that we live in.

The act of terrorism and the horror it brings is hard for even most adults to come to terms with and understand, which is why, following the terrible events occurring all over the world, we’ve put together some advice to help explain terrorism to your children.

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Why You Shouldn’t Micromanage Your Nanny

Many of us are familiar with the frustration that comes along when your boss or manager constantly breathes down your neck telling you how to do your job. It’s undermining, infuriating and annoying, and if done often enough, it can make you hate your job.

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Now imagine how your nanny feels when you tell her exactly what time she needs to put your child down for a nap, how many grapes he can eat, which games she should play with him, even what shape to cut his sandwiches. Sound familiar?

Your nanny is good at her job. You checked her references, read her resumé and can see she knows what she’s talking about. Bear in mind that a great many nannies have more experience with childcare than most parents have at simply being parents. She’s been doing the job a long time, it’s her life, her passion, and you need to learn to let go of the reigns a little and trust her judgement.

It probably won’t be easy, especially if you’re a new parent, it can be difficult to relinquish control to someone new and to put faith in them being able to care for your little one the way you would. However, if you don’t do this, there’s really no point in hiring a nanny in the first place and all your micromanaging will result in a frustrated nanny, a tense relationship between you and your nanny (that your child will probably pick up on) and you’ll find yourself feeling tired and on-edge, when you should be more relaxed and confident that your child is in capable hands.

That’s why we’ve put together our top tips to help keep your micromanaging to a minimum:

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