To consider a part time nanny in these circumstances?

[user1487755366]

Please be kind- the childcare landscape is totally alien to us and pretty overwhelming. We have twins. I am considering leaving my job and going exclusively freelance which allow me to mainly work from home and mainly online. I’m not in a position to commit to this yet but would probably have another couple of months before I would look to resign. We have looked at some local nurseries but they are:

1. Very very expensive for 2 places
2. Very sought after.

Babies would be starting a few days a week at age 9 months. Today I’ve started reading about part time nannies. I’d consider taking somebody on for 1-2 days a week in the first instance. I think this would be cheaper, allow the babies to be cared for in our home and also buy me some flexibility with my work.
The question is, do these kind of part time nannies exist? Would we have to commit to fixed days a week? Do nannies consider working where a parent works from home? Will the babies miss out on the social element of nursery? They’d still be quite young. Will it be disruptive for them? How do you advertise?

Lots of questions!

Yes it's an option. Be mindful you will be the employer so look at the full cost of it. A nursery should be what 45 quids a day? A nanny would be about 12quids an hour. So for 8hours it would be 96 which is more than a nursery for 2 places in my area anyway.
Don't forget to consider the tax free childcare payment option from the government which saves you about 20 percent of the cost of childcare unless your DH is on more than 100k.
Some nannies will be absolutely fine with you being at home. I'm looking for one atm and me or DH will be working from home and I've 5 v keen and v good nannies so far so I don't foresee it being an issue.

Nannies do work part time but generally it's fixed days so they can have other jobs. You might get lucky though. The social side of it isn't important at this age. There are toddler groups, play centres etc that you or nanny could attend once they open again.

Have you considered a childminder? They might be able to offer more flexibility and there will be other children or their own children there.

It may be tricky to find a nanny looking for just a day or 2 but it depends. One of the nannies I interviewed is looking for a new job because she only gets 3 days from her current employer so if someone like this is near you it could be interesting.
But yes you'd need to give fixed days really.
Look at childcare.co.uk to search for nannies near you

@oblada where do you live for £45 quid a day. Ours is £75 a day each not inc lunch!

A nursery here was £95 per day and 5 % discount for the twin when I was looking some time ago and nannies considerably more than £12 ph @oblada so depends where you are.

There are part time nannies but they will prefer set days and for a set period as they will normally be making up to FT.

It's a nightmare, good luck.

Nannies definitely do a couple of days. Ours does 1 day with us snd has other families other days. Depending on the nanny but set days are preferable. Look for a nanny that will take them out for days out (factor in expenses) and playgroups.

Some nannies offer nanny shares too for a partially reduced rate. I found mine on childcare.co.uk

The question is, do these kind of part time nannies exist? Would we have to commit to fixed days a week? Do nannies consider working where a parent works from home?

Yes, they exist.

Yes, majority will want a fixed days arrangement. Otherwise how would they earn a living the other 3-4 days of the week?

Most nannies would prefer the parent was not at home. Mostly because it can be disruptive to everyone - parent, nanny and child. In the current WFH environment, though, I expect a lot are having to get used to it. They key to it being successful is that you stay out of the way while the nanny is in charge - no hovering, no worrying if one of the babies is crying, no 'just popping my head round the door' etc. If you're working you are working in an office with a shut door.

Will the babies miss out on the social element of nursery?
No. Most nannies have their own social networks and take charges to baby classes etc.

Will it be disruptive for them? - see above about how you set up the working from home element.

How do you advertise? Try childcare.co.uk in the first instance? Ask around if you have any friends with older children - word of mouth is great.

Obviously cost of nannies and nurseries will vary by area.
I'm in the NW and average nanny salary is around 11quids gross. And the nurseries round me are about 40-45quids a day.

Thank you. Average nursery place here is 55-60 a day with some offering a 5-10% discount for the twins of one place so not a huge savings. A quick look online on childcare.co.uk is 10.50 an hour for a nanny.

Sorry should have said hourly rate not salary :) anyway!
Don't forget to add up cost of employer NI (if pay meets the threshold) and pension and of doing the payroll. And expenses (lunch for nanny, activities etc

@user1487755366

Thank you. Average nursery place here is 55-60 a day with some offering a 5-10% discount for the twins of one place so not a huge savings. A quick look online on childcare.co.uk is 10.50 an hour for a nanny.

Childcare.co.uk also says 10.50 is the average in my area but for any decent nanny I need to pay 12quids an hour and more. Especially for twins I would say. Ask around if anyone knows anyone etc. The salary I'm offering currently comes to about 12 to 12.50per hour on a full time basis and seems attractive enough. Also because it is full time. The risk of offering 2 days to someone is for them to leave if they find a full time offer (of course it depends on their own personal situation). Some nannies are cheaper if they bring their own kids with them. Look for someone OFSTED reg (you may have to pay that fee) to make use of the government tax free childcare thing.

There are definitely part-time nannies and nanny shares. But yes, would usually be fixed days, unless they don't work other days or have lots of flexibility. If you are freelancing, it should be fine to set your working pattern though. 1 day a week is unlikely, 2-3 is more typical. And yes, they would be fine with you working from home (one of my colleagues does this with her part-time nanny). You do need to have a private place to work though and not in the main bit of the house, otherwise it's really distracting.

Me personally, working from home, I'd rather have my dc out of the house all day so I can get on with work. It's a bit of a nightmare even with someone else fully caring for them, unless you have a garden office or fully separate working space (think children screaming in the next room while you try to have client meetings). At the moment, it's lockdown so everyone expects this, but this won't always be the case.

Nannies are expensive though, plus you have to think of things like sick pay and annual leave and redundancy pay, etc. I would probably be inclined to look for a childminder. The socialisation aspect is a non-issue now, but I would want an environment where my dc had consistent friendships (not just toddler groups) from age 2.

The right childminder will be a million times better than any nursery and cheaper than either a nanny or a nursery. Mine was amazing. But a lot if it's down to luck in finding the right person.

It eont be £10.50 an hour though. It will be that plus on costs plus money for activities. I doubt you will save much although a nanny does have some very tangible benefits.

A part time nanny is absolutely possible but depending on where you are, competition for them can be fierce.

For costs, do take into account cost of paid leave/NI/Pension/payroll etc but overall, I suspect with two children it is no more than nursery, if not cheaper, and you have the benefit of in-home, care with some flexibility - eg many nannies will happily stay late/ do additional days if they have capacity, although how much notice is required will vary massively from person to person. Nannies also care for sick children, which is a huge boon. You do need alternatives for when nanny is on leave, but that can be planned unlike sick leave for the DC. Also you can agree set times that are convenient for you both upfront - eg you may prefer someone who starts early and finishes early which can be difficult, if not impossible to arrange at nursery. Our nanny came at 10:00 but left at 18:30/19:00 which worked well for us.

Socialisation isn't an issue at all as any half way competent nanny would want to be doing things with the children and would discuss options with you - from attending groups to meeting up with other nannies and their charges. Our nanny had a wide network who were quite spread out which worked brilliantly as DD loved meeting other children but also doing quite different things if they were off to meet someone outside of our immediate area.

for instance if you find someone for 11.5per hour for 16 hours that will cost 184 per week. Add to them about 12quids for employer NI and pension. So 196. Potentially cheaper than nursery.
The equation changes if you need to pay more or need more hours of course.
Also there will be more cost if you need to pay a payroll service to administer the pay. But otherwise you can do it yourself.
If she is Ofsted reg you can pay via the government tax free childcare thing so in practice it should cost about 160 (pension cannot be paid that way). Versus nursery which would be 55 + 50 each day approx so 210 then with tax free childcare it would be 168 for instance.
However with a nanny you need to add in cost of her lunch and activities so say 10 quids a week minimum.
So all in a nanny is unlikely to be actually cheaper/that much cheaper.
You also need to factor in sick pay if the nanny is sick and her 5.6 weeks holidays. Some of those you'll chose but some she will want to choose herself. In my contract I plan to give 6.6 weeks, 4 of those I'll choose but with discussion with the nanny as I'm flexible, 1.6 is bank holidays and 1 week she can choose as she wishes pretty much.
You also have to draw the contract of employment. I'm in HR so this side is easy for me. And ensure you have employer liability insurance, usually already there as part of your home insurance.
I think that covers the main point to take into consideration. And the OFSTED reg which you may be asked to pay which is 100quids or thereabout.

Add up your numbers based on your chosen nursery and write down pros and cons of both options.
A nanny can be sick. The nursery is unlikely to be closed. But a nursery will not look after your sick child whereas a nanny can (within reason of course). There are many benefits to a nanny but cheaper is unlikely to be the main criterion in my view.

Also a nursery is usually opened 10+ hours per day with some flexibility around drop off and pick up.

Part time nannies do exist (I was one), but would probably want fixed days each week as they would probably need to work more than just 2 days a week. Depending where you live, (if nannies are more common in your area) you might be able to find a nanny share, which would bring the cost down a bit and might give a bit more flexibility over the part time aspect, but it would depend on the other family and the nanny.

I did work as a nanny with the parent at home and it was a bit of a nightmare as she would pop down if she heard the baby cry, would do a really slow retreat in the morning and come back if the baby was at all upset (baby learnt to cry to get her to come back very quickly), she micromanaged me massively, but paid well and I was happy with the terms and conditions so stuck it out. I imagine nannies are having to suck it up that parents are at home at the moment as there is no other option.

I don’t think babies need the social aspect of nursery as much as parents believe they do. A responsive, consistent care giver is far more important at that age. Nannies will generally take their charges to groups and meet other nannies/parents So the children will meet other children and build friendships with each other as they get older.
How you find a Good nanny could be More tricky. My first nanny job was for a family I had baby sat for, their circumstances changed and a nanny was needed, I was Unhappy working in a nursery, so they offered me the job. My next jobs, I joined an agency who placed me, but this can be pricey, but they would do all the checks for you and ensure your nanny has a dbs/first aid etc. You can advertise on childcare.co.uk or maybe gumtree To find someone, but be sure to check references, dbs etc properly yourself. Nannies can also be ofsted registered which may give some assurance too.