What is the youngest age babysitter you would use

[firstpregnancy1]

I know this topic is heavily debated and standards now are vastly different from 10,20,30 years ago.

I have a 7month old and a 2.5 year old.

My husband and I would like to start getting fitter and pre babies we would regularly play tennis in the summer evenings.

My children both go to bed at 7pm and very very rarely wake up once in bed. If the baby did it would be a quick dummy plug in and job done.

We have never used any kind of babysitter before.

I see 'ofsted registered' childminders offering babysitting services but we don't really need a whole evening and would they even be interested in coming for just 1-1.5 hours.

It got me thinking about whether it would be ok to consider a neighbour teenager?

Both kids would be in bed.
We would be gone roughly 60-70 minutes.
We would be about a 2 minute drive from home if they did wake up and sitter called us could come home immediately.
My toddler knows this teen ('not amazingly well) but wouldn't be startled or scared if they woke up as we would tell him that 'x' is coming round tonight . The 7m old wouldn't really know.

In this situation, with these set of circumstances, how old would this teenager need to be in order for you to agree to this.

13?14?15?16?17?18? Not at all unless an ofsted registered professional?

I consider myself quite overprotective and I can't tell if my judgement is normal.

If it's relevant, the teenager is sensible, reliable, has basic common sense and a 4 year old sibling so she's 'good' with children.

Interesting thread as I’m waiting till my oldest is old enough to babysit his siblings in the evening so wondered what age other people would leave a sibling to babysit so I will be following this (I know it’s not a sibling but same thing really) I was thinking 13 but mine are much older not babies/ toddlers so that will make a big difference in your situation I would say around 15/16

At those ages, only a registered and certified baby sitter.

When older, over 7 - maybe 15/16 (if sensible)

In your circumstances I'd say 15 if they are sensible since you are so close by. Obviously go through with them that if at all concerned to call you and know when to call for an ambulance etc.

At your children's ages I'd want an adult babysitting. If the children were older I'd say 15/16.

I would use a 14 year old, as in a specific 14 year old that I know and trust and who is really good with my youngest, who is 5 (oldest is 12 and doesn't need babysitting as such but gets on well with the 14 year old). Already had her look after DS at events when I've been busy volunteering, so I was still around if there was a problem but she was looking after him.

Never younger than 16, and only if I and the children knew them well.
With babies/toddlers as young as yours I would only leave with an adult. Situations can deteriorate very quickly when children are that small.

Regardless of what you decide, make sure that any sitter knows that you are watching them via the monitor.

I babysat from about 14. I think it depends on the babysitter and how well you know them.

I left my 2 yr old with my 14yr old neighbour last week. It was fine but her mum (who I know very well) was next door.
To me the fact you have a baby makes it different I would say with a 7 month old in the house. 16 would be the youngest I’d consider.

With a baby I'd say 17, unless the teenager has their own mum/dad at home they could ring if they aren't sure about something.

Wow at these responses. No way I’d leave a 14 year old with a baby. The baby could cry they pick them up, do something daft.

for me, 17 min, I wouldn’t leave a young teen looking after two infants.

My kids started babysitting at 12/13.

I think that age is fine for a few hours, with a responsible kid, for a pre-schooler or toddler.

A 7 month old it would really depend a lot on whether they had a lot of experience with babies. I would generally look more to about 15 for a babysitter for that age.

I actually find the 14/15 age group can be much better than, say, 17-19. The older kids have a tendency to be less engaged, and somehow don't seem to have the same motivation to show they are responsible.

You’d leave them with a 7 mont old and a 2,5 year old?

I used my neighbour's dd in similar circumstances, she was fourteen first time and eighteen last time and never had any problems whilst we were using her. I was reassured knowing she could call her mum (a friend) if needed and she was mature, sensible and responsible because before she babysat she had looked after our rabbits when we went on holidays.

At 13 I was very sensible and serious, and I’d also had first aid training via junior lifeguards.

But I knew nothing about babies, had never been around them, and wouldn’t have been suitable. Same at 16 tbh.

So for me it depends on her experience as much as her character.

I think some of these answers are literal, as in how old for you, but the posters have much older kids,

the question is really how old to look after a 7 month old and a 2.5 year old, alone.

A 7 month old and a two year old? They’re super young. I wouldn’t leave them with a teenage babysitter in a million years. I’d only leave them with one of the grannies, but that’s just me.

My teen is 15 and quite happy with toddlers/ slightly older kids but I wouldn't leave her with a baby till she had been around and had some time with the baby a couple of times and was happy lifting them etc. Depends how much baby experience they have. She was looking after kids from 14. Sometimes just a couple of hours when the parents were working from home and kids needed entertaining, sometimes in an evening when parents out. We would be on call and parents were out locally. I was looking after a toddler like taking them to a park at 12 but that's not really full responsibility.

I was going to say the same thing, if this is the case then probably a sensible 14 year old, if it's only a short period early evening and you're nearby. I used to babysit until 2am for strangers when I was 14 but different times :)

Tricky one. Mine have asd/adhd and don't sleep so I am very picky about who looks after my dc and I've only left them about 5 times in 17 years so I can have fun, it's normally for an unavoidable appointment that I have left them with someone. I would say a 16/17 year old would be capable of looking after a sleeping baby and toddler. Although I do remember some of the things I got up to while I was babysitting a sleeping baby as an older teenager

Personally I'd say an experienced 18+ yo. Your babies are so young and wouldn't be able to communicate if anything happened. I'd be more willing to leave a slightly older child with a younger babysitter that could clearly communicate ( for obvious reasons).

My eldest is 4 in a couple of weeks and I'd still be reluctant to leave him with a teen of any age. Luckily for us, my parents are close enough to watch the children in the odd occasion that I need someone.

If you are planning to use the teen on a long term basis (I'm assuming tennis will be a regular activity and not a one off), I'd organise some times for the teen to watch the children supervised and slowly build up to fully unservised for an hour+. That way you can see how that goes before making a final decision.

With a 7 month old baby I'm afraid I'd want an experienced adult. One of my neighbours asked DD to sit for a similar aged baby when DD was 16. SHe and I discussed this and agreed that it was too young. We compromised and offered that DD was the official sitter but I went with her just in case.

I might be overcautious but the nanny I employed had been fully trained (Norland) but had a case of SIDS in one of her charges early in her career. 15 years later she was still asking herself if there was anything she could have done. In her case almost certainly not but with a teenager who won't be that experienced in sole charge of a baby there is the risk that there could be.

On your issue of would someone want the work. If there is a local nanny around and you offered the job at the tail end of her shift - so say 6-8.30 it might well be convenient enough for them to take it on.

14 or 15, assuming their own parents are home and willing/ able to help if there was am emergency.

It really depends. We started using twin daughters of friends when they were about 13 or 14, but our kids were youngest about 5 oldest about 9 so it was more just play with them and tell them to go to bed at a set time. I have an 18 year old DD and she would have no idea what to do with a crying 7 month old, has never changed a nappy.

Toddler and a baby, 16 as a minimum but only if they were used to babies.