Ay nannies/nanny employers who can answer a couple of (basic) queries for me please?

[Helzapoppin]

Hi

I have a DD (24 months) who is looked after 2 days a week by her Granny. DC2 is due in August and after Jan 2012 I will need someone to care for both of them on a Friday (when I work from home for half a day and because I will also be starting a doctorate). As DD will need dropping off and picking up from preschool and I'd prefer them to be at home, rather than someone else's house, I'm thinking of employing a nanny. But I don't know where to start!

If you have any thoughts on these queries, that would really help me to make plans:

What's the best way to go about finding a nanny?
Would anyone really be interested in one (short, 9-4.30) day a week?
Is the paperwork/admin (tax, NI) etc. a pain and is it worth it for just a day a week?
If you are a nanny, would you be put off by DC's mother being around while you are trying to do your job?
Can I use my employer's childcare voucher scheme and if so, how?
What experience, qualifications and qualities should I look for in a nanny?

Thanks, sorry for all the questions! :)

Loads of nannies work a 4 day week with Friday off as that is the pattern of work of a lot of working mums.

I have always been able to find someone to look after my DC on a Friday.

Try Gumtree - be very specific about what you want - otherwise you will be inundated with responses.

Speaking as a nanny best way to find one is either agency route- you have to pay them or you can use many of the childcare sites such as www.childcare.co.uk, www.netmums.co.uk, www.findasitter.com, www.gumtree.com

Important to ensure they have a crb check, references are checkable (not just their mates pretending to be an ex employer!), certificate checks.

One day a week wouldnt be a problem esp a friday as many part time nannies do mon-thurs, tues-thurs.

Maybe consider a nanny with own child will reduce your costs.

Yes you can use childcare vouchers nanny would need to be ofsted registered - some people say nanny should pay for this and some say family should - nanny gets no benefit from being ofsted registered so a good plan is to agree to pay for it however if they leave within 3mths it decucted from their final salary, if within 6mths 50% - just to cover yourself there.

Mum being around isnt an issue to all nannies as long as mum makes it clear on that day she will be "x" room working and children do not go in and equally mum doesnt "intefer" with what nanny is trying to do and backs nanny up if she gets a toddler crying at the door "nanny wont let me do x,y and z".

As you will have a baby and toddler I would suggest a nanny with baby experience, experience of caring for more than one child of different ages (harder than some people think to see to a baby and keep a toddler entertained). Do you want someone who can cook? do you need a driver?

Also check nanny can change nappies, make up baby feeds correctly, weaning experience.

Qualifications - I am not up on nanny qualifications I am a qualified childrens nurse so thats my child related qualification

Qualities - only you know whats important to you - but friendly, reliable, consistent, punctual, non-smoker?

sure some nanny employers will come and give advice soon.

What's the best way to go about finding a nanny?

There are many routes: gumtree, nannyjob, netmums local childcare board, childcare.co.uk, word of mouth, ads in a local magazine or newsagent window or an agency.

Would anyone really be interested in one (short, 9-4.30) day a week?

It might be a nice short day for someone doing a 3 or 4 day job who wants some extra cash.

Is the paperwork/admin (tax, NI) etc. a pain and is it worth it for just a day a week?

It's not a total pain but as your nanny will very likely have a second job you'll need to operate full PAYE. With this is mind agree a gross wage up front - many nannies talk net still. You can outsource it to a payroll company but that would be expensive for 1 day a week, or if you're in the South-East there's an agency which will employ the nanny for you. In terms of is it worth it, well, it's definitely easier not to have to do it but how much is having your DC's cared for at home worth to you?

If you are a nanny, would you be put off by DC's mother being around while you are trying to do your job?

Yes and no. It can be difficult if the mother interferes but if you allow the nanny to get out and about/generally get on with things then it can work. Brutally honestly it will put some people off. Is there any way you could 'go out' in the morning to work at the library etc?

Can I use my employer's childcare voucher scheme and if so, how?

Yes, providing the nanny is registered with OFSTED. You will probably want to specify an already registered nanny when advertising as the norm is for the employer to cover the £103 cost of registration, which for a 1 day job probably outweighs your potential saving.

What experience, qualifications and qualities should I look for in a nanny?

That entirely depends how much you want to pay and what you want them to do. As a guideline, for 1 day a week, age relevant experience is probably your biggest concern. Someone with previous shared charge experience/WFH parents may be ideal as they're used to working with parents around. As you need nanny to be OFSTED registered they will have a basic childcare qualification, the standard for most is a level 3 NNEB/DCE/BTEC/NVQ. If you're confused at any point about what is/isn't suitable come and ask on here because there are lots. A 1st Aid certificate is a must, as is liability insurance, but any OFSTED registered nanny will have both of those.

It's difficult to pin qualities down but I'd be using key words like flexible, adaptable etc in the advertisement as you'll be working from home. Beynd that think about what you want in a nanny and work from there. Be as specific as possible: do you need a driver? Do they need to have their own car? Do you want them to be sporty, outdoorsy and active or happy to stay at home? Do you want them to do any household duties/cooking whilst they're with you (unusual in a 1 day job)?

If you are not in England, then the use of childcare vouchers will be different. Are you in England?

If you've got the time and confidence, it's MUCH cheaper to advertise on the websites that have been suggested. If not, use an agency but shop around for the best service/fees.

There are lots of nannies who want to work 1 day a week - Fridays and Mondays are the best days for this!!

You can use a PAYE company (some are cheaper than others!) or we can employ your nanny for you.

Some nannies would have no problem with you being around, others would. It's just a matter of finding the right nanny.

As others have said - if the nanny is Ofsted registered you can easily use childcare vouchers!

An agency can help you think about what experience, qualifications and qualities you should look for in a nanny by asking you lots of questions. OR you could look at other adverts for nannies to give you some ideas of what to think about. If you DM me, i'd be more than happy to give you some pointers :)

QUote: "You will probably want to specify an already registered nanny when advertising as the norm is for the employer to cover the £103 cost of registration, which for a 1 day job probably outweighs your potential saving."

The savings are not pro rata, the limit for tax-free childcare vouchers is £55 a week, it doesn't matter how many days you have childcare for, so you should get the maximum saving from just one day a week childcare.

I thought you only saved the tax and NI on that £55? Doesn't the maths work out as you get £300 worth of childcare per £1000 of earnings, so depending on how much you earn actually paying for the nanny to register might cancel out the 'saving' of having a nanny rather than, say, a CM. Especially if you're relying on the vouchers to make a nanny affordable.

I thought you only saved the tax and NI on that £55?

Yes that's right, so if you earn between about £10,000 and £42,000 that's £17.60 a week in 2011/12 (if you are paying higher rate tax it's only £12.10 unless you get in before the end of March).

Doesn't the maths work out as you get £300 worth of childcare per £1000 of earnings,

No. You may be thinking of the publicity that some voucher companies use saying for every £1,000 of vouchers you only lose £700 of your salary, so get £300 'free'.

so depending on how much you earn actually paying for the nanny to register might cancel out the 'saving' of having a nanny rather than, say, a CM. Especially if you're relying on the vouchers to make a nanny affordable.

Well with the cost of registration being £104 and the savings being at least £12.10 a week it won't take too long to get it back

But that's still potentially 2 months just paying off the cost of registering the nanny?! It might only be a few days which is needed to break even but if you're only using the nanny 52 days in a year and 5.6 of those are holiday anyway....

I can see why employers of very PT nannies don't want to have to fork out the cost of registration, especially if the nanny expects the employer to contribute to 1st aid or the course as well (which I personally think is quite cheeky but many do).

Also add to that the bizarre economics which means OFSTED registered nannies seem to earn more and some expect a ludicrous payrise for registering...

Sorry SnapFrakkleAndPop, you are still missing the point. The savings per week are exactly the same whether the nanny works full time or part time (as long as they earn more than £55 a week, or £110 a week if both parents are using vouchers).

But you're saving £12.10/£17.60 a week by having the vouchers, as opposed to not. And up front you're paying £103 for the nanny to register (and potentially paying more for the nanny on an hourly basis to incentivise them to register and contributing to other registration costs) that just seems a pretty small saving to me, especially when some employers are being asked to pay £300+ to cover the costs of registration including upgrading a 1st aid/qualification. Sure you can pay £55 worth of the nanny's salary/week in childcare vouchers but that's not the actual saving, is it?

I'm just thinking that for a 1-day nanny it's effectively costing you £2/day you use them to have them registered (or £6+ if you need to pay everything) which, admittedly, still gives you a £10+ saving. Whereas if you have an already registered nanny you don't have to work out that £103 plus whatever. You might still get the slightly higher hourly rate but that may or may not happen anyway.

Anyway - you're the accountant, not me (I don't do maths!), but if I were the OP I wouldn't be too keen on shelling out the cost of registration.

Hello
Thanks for the messages, some really helpful thoughts. TBH I got a bit lost in the voucher dialogue!
Hopefully if our nanny is also working for someone else, (s)he'll be OFSTED registered anyway and so we won't necessarily have to pay (or could pay just a proportion of the costs).
POinters to the websites were really useful and there looks like I may have a couple of leads already. Fingers crossed...