To be down about no babysitting work ?

[ToSunshineAndRainbows]

I am really wanting to babysit but literally cannot find any work. I only charge £11 per hour , I am qualified and experienced in childcare but despite having all my profiles up on the main sites such as bubble and childcare I cannot find any babysitting work. I’m near London too. I’m thinking it’s either how I look (I am unattractive), my age (Almost 40) or the fact I don’t drive. Maybe all three ?

There are so many people offering babysitting and cleaning now on our local Fb groups op, so I voted yabu because I’d say the fact you worked in childcare would mean more to people than any of the things you think. It seems hard for people to get these jobs, sorry have no answer but best of luck, there might be a better way to advertise?

Are you registered with an agency?

How would you get home at the end of an evening? Would you be asking for taxi fare or a lift from the parent?

That you don't drive would be the issue. I would think age works in your favour as I would much prefer an experienced nanny than some 18-year-old. I don't think anyone (except cheating men) care about how their nanny looks.

I find my own way back and always make that clear to prospective families. I either use public transport or arrange a lift back.
I know many sitters who don’t drive and they have no problem getting jobs

I admit I'm not in London but around here you can get a teen too baby sit for a lot less than £11. My own teen doesn't do we much now as he has another job but he did it for £5 an hour. First aid trained, experienced with young children.

I'm not saying it is right, we should really want to ensure that those trust to look after our children are well trained and pay them accordingly but frankly, with the cost of living so high, the occasional night out has to be carefully budgeted and £11 am hope quickly adds up.

I think it is just people's lives now, they go out less on the first place and are less likely to pay out for the more expensive options.

OP we use babysitters near London, but I don’t use the apps you mentioned. I look for people who post on our local community Facebook groups or parent chat WhatsApp groups, and often ask someone to come over and spend time with me first (paid) before leaving them in our home. Rates wise. Most of our sitters do not drive (London location understandable) BUT I do ask them how they plan to get home safely. If an Uber is required on top of rates, it can be the difference between whether we decide if we can afford to go out or not!

Personally, I wouldn't use a babysitter that wasn't known to me (family or close friend).

Maybe worth canvassing people you know?

Or would you consider something different if strapped for cash e.g. pet or home sitting? Obviously a totally different job, but I'd be happier hiring someone I didn't know for something like this.

Are those apps popular? I know nothing about this service as I've never used a baby sitter that wasn't family/friend. I actually don't think I know anybody who has used a stranger as a babysitter tbh.

Have you tried on nextdoor.com in your local area?

Surely it’s cost of living at the money? Nights out are expensive enough without paying £11 an hour on top for babysitting. Most people we know use family, or local teenagers that charge a lot less.

You might get further changing where you advertise.

Local Facebook groups are where people are more likely to look. You could also offer a discount for first booking/recommend a friend kind of thing.

Only £11 I pay £6, that's your problem.

Also, think about your market. Most people with older kids 5+ are happy for teenagers to babysit them, and teenagers are cheaper.

Maybe put together something that emphasises how trained you are, what experience you have and that you are very happy to babysit younger children.

Anyone with kids younger than five is more likely to want someone trained/experienced - many families ask people who work at the nursery etc.

My DC are all grown up now, but we only ever used either family (rarely) - mostly the teenage DD of friends/neighbours.

I wouldn't have paid £11 an hour for a stranger to look after my children. I don't care whether you've worked in childcare or not. It's too much for basically sitting in my house watching tv and it makes the evening out too expensive.

Have you tried approaching people with links to organisations working with children? People are more likely to choose someone they know or someone recommended by a person they trust. We never used complete strangers, though we had friends who used Sitters where they verify qualifications and experience.

One of my daughters used to babysit as a teen. She was in Guides and knew the Brownie leader. She asked her if she could give out fliers to the parents and got some custom from that.

There are plenty of people who would pay that much for an older sitter with plenty of experience and not a teenager. The going rate where I live is £10 an hour.
Have you advertised on local Facebook groups?
The non driving thing would put me off. I wouldn't be happy about our sitter waiting for a bus or taxi really late at night as I would feel responsible for them getting home safely.

PS another of my kids was friends with several children who had a childminder that I knew from school pick up time and playdates with said children. The CM also did babysitting for us. We used to pay her £10 an hour- this was well over 5 years ago (in London). However, she never told us what she wanted to be paid (said it was up to us) so we found out what others paid and £10 seemed about right. But we only used her 3 or 4 times a year for special events because it did make a night out very expensive. So for a birthday party, but not a trip to the cinema or local meal for the two of us.

With the cost of living now, and the fact you're on anonymous sites, I can see why you're not getting work.

People can't afford it. 5 hours babysitting adds £50+ to a night out.

My DD at uni has been babysitting since she was 14 and a lot of her regular families have either drastically cut down their use of babysitters or stopped it completely. The only ones that haven't changed at all are the ones who use her while they work or a couple of very well off families.

Also a lot more nursery staff and TA's are offering babysitting with the CoL and people are far more likely to use someone they know if they can

Do you have a day job and this is for extra cash in the evenings? If so, what is your regular job/qualifications? Could you increase the hours of your regular job? Could you work in childcare or as a nanny? Any experience of children with special needs? Respite care etc? Play specialist in a hospital?

We got our first ever babysitter recently we are in a London comute Town the babysitters rates were £15 an hour and we actually paid more because we felt it was too low. The things you've described shouldn't really put people off though ? On paper you'd probably be a good fit have you g9t enough describing you as a person ? You're experience rather then qualifications ect ?

If you can get a few jobs from people you know, then they will recommend you to others. I've never used a total stranger, and I don't think I would.

Also at the end of the day £11 an hour adds £55 to a night out when you include travel time. It's enough to make a parent think how much they really want to go, and limit their socialising. I tend to only go out when someone can do me a favour or a child-swap can be arranged.

The things you've described shouldn't really put people off

I agree with this.

£11 an hour to mainly sit and watch TV. Who the hell can afford that on top of dinner etc, that's what £150 for a night out....I'm not convinced that many of my friends like their DP/DH that much 🤣

Unfortunately your job is going to massively be impacted by COL. I highly doubt its anything to do with your looks.

Agree you’re probably being priced out by teenagers. A lot of people aren’t going to care whether their babysitter has childcare qualifications, you don’t need qualifications to sit and watch TV all evening which in reality is what most babysitters do.