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Paid childcare

Discuss everything related to paid childcare here, including childminders, nannies, nurseries and au pairs.

Original poster

Childcare for a trolley dolly!

35 replies

Trolleydolly1 · 23/04/2014 13:38

I'm a flight attendant who finds herself in the position of being a single parent. My ex lives in SA so him as my childcare is not an option. I'm trying to find childcare for my daughter and dog for when I'm away, min 2 nights max 3/4 nights a couple of times a month. I haven't a clue where to start and what type of child carer I need, Au pair or nanny. I don't earn much so I'm thinking Au pair £70 p/w.
As it would only be a couple of times a month I think an Au pair would end up with a lot of free time and expensive for me. Anyone got any useful ideas for me please.

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Thurlow · 23/04/2014 14:36

If you don't need someone in your house all the time doing other week an au pair might be too expensive.

In your situation I'd either to be tempted to see if there were any of your DD's friend's parents who you suspect might be interested in having her to stay regularly for cash, or whether there is a retired/semi-retired childminder or nanny or, at the other end of the scale, someone who is training in childcare or similar, who would come and stay when you are away.

Original poster
Trolleydolly1 · 23/04/2014 14:36

That's an option, do you know roughly what that would cost? Thank you!

OP posts:
wednesdaygirl · 23/04/2014 14:31

What about a reg overnight childminder

Original poster
Trolleydolly1 · 23/04/2014 14:21

Thank you for all your replies. Yes it's a mega tricky situation that has me at a complete loss! My daughter is 12 and is at school from 8.30am until 5pm, so the only job she would have to do is walk my dog, leaving the rest of the day to herself, I really don't need my house cleaning or my ironing done as it can be two weeks between trips and I'd need something to do!!!!! I'm only part time and my wages are not great. I nearly choked on my coffee at your calculations icanneverremember!!! Grim as it is I have to face reality. I get my schedule two weeks before the month starts and a night-stop trip although is 3 days I'm only actually away one whole day and 2 nights. So say I leave Monday evening I'm back Weds late afternoon or early morning. We live in wimbledon. I'm hoping for some luck soon!!!! The more I look into it the harder it seems!!

OP posts:
rocketjam · 23/04/2014 14:09

My friend works as flight attendant for big airline and she has a part time nanny, who is actually a retired social worker. The nanny is grateful with the schedule and happy to stay the night. It's luck though, you might have to look and look. An au pair should not be responsible for young children overnight, I think unexpected is right.

Unexpected · 23/04/2014 14:05

How much would you charge per night though juneybean?

juneybean · 23/04/2014 14:04

Could be a job for a part time nanny - this is the sort of thing I'd do, as I'm self-employed and pick up work wherever I can.

Unexpected · 23/04/2014 14:03

What age is your daughter? Au pairs have limited childcare experience and should generally not be left in charge for long periods of time, certainly not 24/7 for a period of days. With regards to expense, if your daughter is old enough to be left with an au pair overnight I think you will find that by far the cheapest form of childcare for you! If you have to pay a nanny or overnight childminder (difficult to find) for several nights per month (particularly if they are not fixed nights) you will end up paying more in a night than you pay the au pair per week.

icanneverremember · 23/04/2014 14:02

Actually I was just doing some calculations...

Assuming you were away for three nights, twice a month that works out at 144 hours per month. Possibly less as, not knowing what hours you would actually be away I'm assuming 24 for each day which is probably a bit much.

I'm not sure what night nanny rates are but if you work on an average of 9 per hour it would be 1296 per month Confused
Our AP works for about 100 hours per month (usually less) and gets 80 per week.

I hope someone can come on and give you a more accurate idea I feel I'm giving you a very grim view, sorry

icanneverremember · 23/04/2014 13:54

I think Au Pairs are fantastic (we have one ourselves) but I'm not sure I would feel entirely comfortable with that level of responsibility. How old are your children? A big downside of an Au Pair in this situation is that they may not stay with you for very long and your children would face spending long periods of time with a relative stranger while you're away. Having said that, it is certainly possible to find an Au Pair who is looking for a longer term position and you could even ask them to complete some training courses during their time with you (first aid for example).

Alternatively you could try and find a part time nanny who would be prepared to do overnight stays. Have you looked at childcare.co.uk? You could advertise your specific requirements and see what comes up.