Is this reasonable for an au pair job? And when should I start recruiting?

In particular, a CRB check is useless for someone who has spent most or all of their life abroad. Most European countries operate a system of police checks though, you have to contact them directly: the embassy web site is a good place to start looking.

Totally agree, Frakio. You can never tell with an agency. My aupairs have previously told me the level of checks vary from agency to agency, some of which are shockingly little to none.

I personally use aupair world (which is good for German aupairs, in particular). The most important part of my due diligence, apart from paper references, is to get an English-speaking non-relative/non-family friend employer reference and to call the reference and ask their views about the aupair specifically. I don't hire without such a reference.

mummy please tell me you did at least verify the checks?!

A good agency will do them, a bad agency will say they do but don't or will do them half-heartedly. You can't know which is which just by looking so you should always verify the info. It's safer to recruit yourself and do the checks yourself than rely just on the word of an agency.

There are other benefits to agencies if you want additional support but supposed background checking and knowledge of employment law are on my list of disadvantages rather than positives.

Ps: I'd start recruiting at least 8 weeks before. If you use an agency talk to them a few times to give them a better idea of what it is you're looking for.
x

I think you're on the right lines looking for an au-pair. Not a nanny!

We have an aupair (our second) and she takes the kids to school, hoovers, tidies up, babysits twice a week (by arrangement) and does their laundry & ironing. It's about 25 hours a week.
In return we pay her pocket money, include her in all our family outings (if she wants to!) and treat her like a member of the family.
We are not paying for english lessons - the agency I used (an excellent one called www.findanaupair.co.uk) suggested that paying for lessons is not an expectation of host families. Can I suggest that you DO use an agency - they do al the legwork, all the CRB checks are done etc, and it's far less stressful How would you know the person you see on Gumtree has had all these checks?

I am quite stunned at some of the rather snotty remarks left on this thread!

Direct message me if you have any queries. Good luck!

I would advertise on Gumtree or aupair world (personally don't like latter but many swear by it) stating exactly that this is what you're looking for and what you're prepared to pay.

When good people respond double check they are happy with this deal. If they are, then bingo! So long as you pay reasonably I'd have thought it was perfectly possible to find someone.

"Usually au pairs are young girls/boys, aged 17-19 with very little child care experience."

Very many au pairs are graduates aged 21+, this is particularly true in the current European econimic climate: you choose the AP to suit the role. Picking up from school at 3.30 and sole charge till 7 when parents get home is very common, 12 to 4.30 is not much different and the earlier finish and lack of morning split shift is more attractive to many.

Hi,

I think 11.30-4.30 Mon- Fri hours are perfectly fine as is Saturday babysitting occasionally as long as you give them enough notice.
I personally think that as long as hours (excl babysitting) do not exceed 25 and your AP knows exactly which hours she is working, that is fine as that gives them a chance to plan their social life around the hours they work.

We have it in our contract that she babysits on a specific day every week, so that she can plan her social life around it. If we want our AP to do any additional babysitting (which is about one extra night every fortnight) we pay extra.

Paying for their language course is a perk. If you want to contribute to her course fee I would offer to reimburse her for however much you want to contribute, once she has stayed six months (or whatever you think is appropriate minimum stay).

We always recruit our au pairs well in advance. It is perfectly reasonable for you to start looking in May for Aug/Sep start as that will give you enough time for phone/skype interviews and if you wish a weekend trial with the final one or two. We always do this and I strongly recommend it. Worth every penny.

I hope this helps.

Usually au pairs are used as wrap around care, not THE child care.

Ie, my au pair would get up with me in the morning, help get the kids ready for school/nursery, and then take them there. Then she had the whole day off, until 3pm pick up time, when she brought them home and spent time with them until I finished work. Or she took them to the park, or to spend time with another nanny/ au pair friend and their charges.

I worked four days per week, and on that day, she took the kids to school/nursery, and I picked my youngest up from nursery, and did fun things with him, while she picked my oldest up at the regular time. Unless we did something together all of us.

The 4.5 hours were spread out as help in the morning, and after school, NOT 4.5 hours sole charge!

Your au pair will be looking after your child from 11.30 to 4.30 - so 5 hours.

Who takes your child to nursery? You?

What time does your au pair need to leave home to be at the nursery for 11.30 pick up?

So, I take it your au pair will have free time every morning until 11, when she needs to get herself ready to pick up your child. Then spend 5 hours with him sole charge until you get home from work.

You want her to tidy his room and do his laundry.

When does she eat dinner? With you, or will you expect her to cook her own food?

I honestly think this is too much for an au pair. Usually au pairs are young girls/boys, aged 17-19 with very little child care experience.

I would not leave my child so many hours with unqualified child care.

On the subject of trial weekends, we (and a number of other MN AP veterans) swear by them. Cheap European air travel makes it a practical proposition, certainly less than an agency fee: we have saved ourselves from two disasters this way.

"We are based in australia so we are not governed by what appears to be tight UK management of aps"

This is a myth promulgated by the British Au Pair Agencies Association. There are in fact NO regulations applying specifically to au pairs in the UK (although Bulgarian and Romanian nationals and anyone entering under the Youth Mobility Scheme are subject to certain restrictions).

Mumsnet au pair threads are always full of people saying that the OP is expecting too much, shouldn't give sole charge etc. In RL au pairs often willingly work more than this OP is envisaging. Their pay should reflect this but it's v normal.

I would always go for Canadian or Australian au pairs so there is no language barrier and language courses are of course not a factor. They often come for the experience (although most want London) and weekends off to party and travel are a must but they are usually happy to work hard in the week.

Your minimum (4.5 hours per day, five days a week) is 22.5 hours of work, unsupervised. If you added one Saturday morning (five hours) per month and one babysit per week, that would be a reasonable amount of work.

OP - the aupair is supposed to get something out of the experience other than bed and board. I think you need a childminder and cleaner.

I am no expert but have had aps for 5 years now. We are based in australia so we are not governed by what appears to be tight UK management of aps. Ours with only one exception have stayed a year and had a great time. I figure I treat my ap like a younger .sister. I dint expect much in the way of house work just to be tidy and help out as a part of the family. My ap does at most 3 days a week and normally two. Every weekend off and time to travel around my leave and juggling my roster. I fear many people have ap as live in slaves? I guess I am soft.. but I do all the washing, I tidy bedrooms, I clean up and I cook. But my ap gives me peace of mind that my children are looked after at home, collected from school, Kindy.. and all for a sensible amount of money and offering someone a new experience.

... and paying for language school is very rare.

Well it's not quite totally up to the employer and employee to agree, you have to comply with certain aspects of the Working Hours Regulations, in particular regarding daily and weekly rest breaks.

But I don't agree with the early posters on this thread, particularly this:

"Sole charge childcare [of a 3 year old attending nursery] 4.5 hours x 5 days, domestic duties (laundry, housework etc), babysitting." - this is EXACTLY the description of a typical au pair role.

Dik, I don't agree with your 'rules' on weekend babysitting. Everything is subject to agreement between the host family and the aupair. It is an employment relationship, as any other.

I have never heard that 'rule' abt saturday babysitting. It is definitely NÓT standard never to ask them to do it in the evening. We pay extra and woukdnt do it more than twice a month but of course an AP Will babysit on a sat evening from time to time.

As others have pointed out, I don't think you can expect the au pair to clean whilst looking after your three year old. I also don't think that it is reasonable to expect her to babysit on a Saturday evening, she is supposed to have the whole weekend off unless you give her two consecutive days off at another point during the week (which needs to be mutually agreed upfront). Saturday mornings are a no no as well.

Normally au pairs are expected to follow language courses during the day, not during the evening! Alternatively, you could look for an au pair who has already got very good command of English and is not interested in following a course.

Sam, why do you need someone to arrive mid-Aug to be available end June? I think 4 weeks is plenty of time, so start looking around mid-July, as Harriet says, is fine. I have hired aupairs in less than 2 weeks from start of looking to their arriving where it was a childcare emergency.

The risk of hiring too far in advance is that they might find other things to do in the meantime and then you would be left high and dry if they don't show.