Would you employ a nanny without qualifications in childcare...

Well, if I do say so myself, i can give a world of helpful advice. Most of which I learned on MN):

1. Never trust an agency. They have a vested interest in inflating the nanny's salary and they are know to lie to you both.
2. Always write your conract for Gross.
3. Refereces are the gospel. Never ever hire a nanny without SPEAKING to the referees.
4. If you need a list of questions to send out before the interview, CAT me. Mine are infamous.
5. If you are looking for a live-in don't underestimate the value of au pair experience. The expereince of living in someone elses's house can be a difficult one, and if she is going to live in your house you might like to know she's done this before.
6. Write SSP only in your contract. And pay sick time at your discretion.
7. CAT me for my house rules and contract. I am happy to share them both.
8. Nannytax is the most expensive payroll company I know of. Try nannypaye.co.uk (or some others that are often mentioned on here but whose names escape me now)
9. Keep the kids out of the nanny's room when she is not on duty. ESPECIALLY saturday morning!

How's that so far?

What helpful advice can you give lola then?

And do you think that MN has all the answers? And do you think I feel better because you say, I meant well?

Discuss.

God I wish I could have a drink too but it's only 4pm here and I have a 4 hour physiology lecture to go to shortly. Might actually understand more of it with a couple of vinos in me LOL

Thanks, mananny. gulp gulp

LOL at Athene and hands her a large one.

Oh WTF!

"The safest way to find a trustworthy nanny is by contacting a nanny recruitment agency. " My arse. The best was is come onto MN.

OMG, that website it totally giving parents advice on whom to hire.

A good nanny should:

be able to plan and arrange safe, fun learning opportunities
know how to plan and prepare healthy meals and snacks
have first aid training
have driving experience if required
show good organisational skills
have an interest in children as individuals, and a confident and positive personality
have experience of working with children of various ages, in a variety of different settings

Ohhhhh... is the government giving me advice on healful meal planning. Cause I have a whole lot of time to sit down and discuss the shit they serve at my DDs school for school dinners. I would to start with crappy white bread nutrisweet.

Incidentally, I know you meant well, wotzy. This is just a subject I feel very strongly about. Can you tell? My rant is directed at the nanny state. And not you.

I'm a nanny with no qualifications - but I have done a few short courses over the years.

Looking back I find it hard to believe that I got my first sole charge nanny position at the age of 16. My Mum said at the time that my boss obviously felt I was right for the position and must have been a good judge of character. I like to think that I did the job as well as an older nnny - though as mentioned in another thread I did find the emloyer/employee relationship a bit difficult. I had grown up around children and had been babysitting from 13 and from 14 looked after my cousins children after school for an hour and a half between her going to work and hubby getting home.

As an unqualified nanny it took me longer to work my way up the pay scale but now that I have 24 years experience (and 2 children of my own 20 and 15) I am paid the same as an experienced qualified nanny.

wot Jura sed.

Wotzy, your first post on this thread starts with a link to the direct.gov site and then says "families looking to employ a nanny should expect them to have a childcare qualification..." so I gathered you were linking us somewhere that would tell us whom to hire and not what our responsibilites are once we become employers. Employer guidance is most welcome (and is very helpful to may on MN -- nannies and employers alike).

Well I didn't say see the site to see government guidance on how to choose a child carer. It has useful links for Lola. I didn;t see where the other comments were going TBH!

If you have x post in the meantime. Just get on with it.

I do! But I think 25 years experience counts for something!

I have no qualies but got a job But I don't have years upon years of experience, a year at most? And 6 months of that was voluntering I have 1000+ hours with 7-18 yos (mainly 7-12) though, which is helpful.

AtheneNoctua, so you know all about your employer requirements without government guidance then?

As well as dealing with your employee's tax and National Insurance contributions, you also need to be aware of your other obligations as an employer. Anyone you employ - even if they're part-time or temporary - has employment rights. So you know all about that then without government guidance? Good for you.

LolaTheShowgirl, you should make sure your employer treats you fairly, just because you don;t have any qualifications yet, still means you are entitled to be treated fairly and within the law.

Exactly Athene. Takes the whole Nanny State thing to a new level.

direct.gov?!?! Do people in this country need government guidance to choose a child carer.

I am very confident that I better qualified than any government agency to decide who can or can't look after my kids.

I am that nanny and have never had a problem finding a job based on my 12 yrs experience and fab refs.

www.direct.gov.uk guidance Most agencies and families looking to employ a nanny should expect them to have a childcare qualification although this isn?t a legal requirement.

But I would if they had "many years of experience" as they would have had time to get some, you'd think anyhow.

yes