Does anyone employ a Housekeeper?

[brawhen]

Does it seem feasible that I could find someone to do the following kind of things, for maybe 2 days (or say 16 hrs spread out) per week? I think it's a kind of housekeeper role, but maybe someone could suggest a better description...

• Cleaning
• Washing & Ironing
• Mowing the grass (summer)
• Basic DIY maintenance tasks
• Liaison with tradespeople (e.g.organise getting plumber to service boiler)
• Take in & put away online shop
• Ad-hoc errands
• Maybe an occasional dog walk
• Anything else I think of along these lines!

Also any thoughts on what we would need to pay to attract someone? We currently have a 3 hr/week cleaner who charges £16/hr. But I pay my full time junior staff in the business the salary equivalent of about £11/hr. We are north of Glasgow.

One alternative would be a sort of au-pair without the childcare?? We have a spare bedroom, and had good au-pair experiences when the DC were young primary age (lived elsewhere then though).

For context - there is me, DH, two teenagers, pets. Semi-rural 6 bed house (part of which we use as our offices) - not quite a Downton Abbey housekeeper role 😂

This is really helpful feedback, thanks all. Also generally positive, which gives me hope.

We had a housekeeper when the children were small. She started as our cleaner but took on more as we got to know each other better. My husband worked away from home all week and I was home with the kids and overseas student lodgers.

She took on laundry/ironing, meal prep and occasional shopping and made my life much easier. I never asked her to do anything in the garden though, felt like crossing a line somehow. You should probably look at hiring a gardener too,

I have a gardener who comes bi weekly in the growing season and basically does everything, mows the lawn, cuts the hedges, weeds etc. costs £25 per visit. I can't see a housekeeper wanting to do gardening.

I have a handyman who comes to do any of jobs, I usually save a few up, he charges £30/hour. You could get a housekeeper to arrange for him to come but tbh it's just a couple of text messages. Again I can't imagine a housekeeper wanting to do DIY.

Am I living in a parallel universe here? £20 an hour for a cleaner+ ? Fuck me that's £41k FTE

Totally OTT and I live in expensive SE so not usually shocked by hourly rates!

I’d say do your research. We used an agency in the area and found out they recruited staff mostly via Facebook adverts and were taking staff on who were clearly below par.
I advertised myself and employed them directly very successfully. And no agency fees.

We’re in the NW now and £20 ph is the average.

For perspective I earn just over £17 an hour as a doctor, and not an especially new one either… FML. I’ll come and put your pics up and mow your lawn for £20/hr.

I think you would struggle to find one person with the skills to do all of things things competently. For example, I wouldn't trust anyone without proven experience working with dogs with mine nor would I want someone just having a go at DIY tasks in my house unless they really knew what they were doing. It's a bit jack of all trades master of none territory to me. Also seems a lot to get done in only 16 hours a week.

I feel you @Crabbity 😩

For those who are shocked at a £20/hour rate, remember that someone doing this kind of work isn’t likely to fill full-time hours with this kind of work, so it’s unlikely they’d make more than a doctor, etc!

I’m a freelancer and charge similar rates (different kind of work) but when you factor in juggling between clients and all the general admin involved in working for yourself, my annual salary works out at just below the annual average, and certainly not more than a doctor.

@Crabbity I was a nurse earning £15.86 an hour. I have recently set up my own cleaning business and charge £15 an hour - the going rate in our area. A lot less stress for just 86p less an hour! I am fully booked too.

Op I think as others said, find a gardener to do the lawns. The job would be appealing to me but the gardening part would put me off applying, and may put others off too. My gardener charges £10 to cut our front lawn, alternate weeks.

Interesting that the lawn mowing puts people off. IMO there's no more skill to it than cleaning. I do it, DH does it, teenage kids can do it... This is why I need outside opinions ☺

Basically my ideal job, exactly the kind of thing I’m looking for. Sadly you’re too far away though.

Mowing the lawn would be fine too, bit of weeding, planting, overseeing anything more specific. Could do the diy bits too and project manage any bigger jobs. In a job like that I’d want to do cooking prep too, get the evening meal prepped or put in a slow cooker. And bake a cake every couple of days!

where would I find a job like that?

Also that people think the DIY needs special skills, and that the role in general is highly skilled. Yes it needs some nous, but not a degree.

Illustrates good feminist point about undervaluing of traditional housewifery.

@honeyandbutterontoast I think I'll add a bit of cooking or meal prep (without needing a full on chef!)

Is anyone reading this anywhere near my vague 'north of Glasgow'?! 😁

This type of thing is really common in Europe. My MIL has a lady who does cleaning, cooking, odd jobs, admin etc. She's been with her for several decades. Wonderful! I wish you luck finding the right person.

I think £20 is too much if you are offering 20 hours a week. That’s a half time job. Say going rate in Glasgow for a cleaner if £16 per hour for self employed but cleaners paid by the school, local businesses will be getting less than that as they have secure hours, holiday pay and no down time between jobs.

i have a salaried job and my hourly rate is a third of what I could charge for consultancy here and there.

I applied for a job like this last year but with a bit of childcare as well. I loved the idea of variety and doing something as well as childcare (I had been a nanny for many years) Unfortunately after offering me the job the family decided they didn't want a housekeeper after all But roles like this exist definitely and we're up in Northumberland so nowhere near London. I hope you find the right person

I think you are looking for too many things in one role. The DIY and gardening is out with the remit of a housekeeper. Ours does coming, cleaning, dealing with shopping, laundry, bed changes, ad hoc childcare.

I'm the same. Does anyone know where to find jobs like this? I had a Google but all the agencies round me seem to be advertising cleaners, but not housekeepers.

Any thoughts on whether I'd do better to offer it as a freelance role (like you would a cleaner, say 16 hrs/week at £15/hr) or an employed role (and could then quote an annual salary, holidays etc)?

My parents have a lady who does all of the above including cleaning, £15 per hour.

I’m in the midlands and pay my cleaner £13 an hour. She does seven hours and is flexible so does things like changing the beds, putting on washing, feeding the animals, watering plants etc. She has the dogs when we go away. I know if I asked her to she would do things like be around for deliveries etc.

My old cleaner now works for a friend (we moved). She does three hours a day for them and that includes cooking the evening meal.

I recommend paying them on a self-employed basis - if you employ them it brings with it a whole load of admin (tax, NI, sick pay, holiday pay, insurance) which is a lot of work given the number of hours you’re talking about.
I’m feeling bad about being pessimistic now. To qualify what I said earlier: I think it’s realistic to look for a ‘cleaner plus’ - someone who will be in for deliveries, unpack the internet shop, water the plants etc. Where I’ve struggled is with tasks one would regard as in the remit of a ‘housekeeper’, eg getting the spare room ready for overnight guests beyond putting clean sheets on the bed; keeping track of the animals’ flea and worm treatment; preventing cupboards from becoming clutter vortexes of doom, etc.

We have a housekeeper.

She typically does laundry, bed changing, cooking, shopping, buying and wrapping gifts, tidying rooms.

We found her through word of mouth and pay her via an online agency, £16/hr