Is this situation suitable for an Au Pair?

[Dragonwoman]

Hi.
I will be going back to work full-time and have 3 school age children under 10. I need them to be taken to school in the morning and collected after 3 pm and supervised til I get home. Plus full time care in the holidays. I will probably need to travel a bit meaning the AP will need to work later sometimes and be responsible overnight. My DH also travels a couple of nights a week also. However he works from home when not away so there is some flexibility there.
My questions are - is this too much responsibility for an Au Pair? She would usually be free in the day however.
Also we live in a fairly rural area about 45mins from Liverpool. One bus an hour into the nearest town. Would an AP want to live here? I wonder if they generally prefer a bit more lively areas? I would be willing to taxi her a bit in the evening when I can but don't want to buy her a car & insure it due to the cost. She would have a double bedroom with own TV/DVD but would have to share a bathroom. Any thoughts?

I have messaged you

Depends how you define "au pair". An experienced au pair who might be looking to transition to a "nanny" in the not too distant future could do this. An 18 year old looking to brush up on her English and see the world might not be up to the task.

We have a very similar position. We do have an "au pair" at the moment. But, as she does the school hols woth all 3 kids (one is a baby), she is more of a nanny over the summer.

I did hire someone who wanted some free time for English lessons during the day but who also had a bit of live-out nanny experience in her own country.

I think an older AP would be required, sure. And I would take some hols myself when the schools are off so she would have a break. We can walk to school and there is a good local park which has council run playschemes in the summer. One shop. Otherwise everything else needs the bus or a car.

Why not register with an agency and see if anyone matches your needs. Some agencies will send out profiles before they ask for any money. My current au pair is terrified of the city I live in as she is from a rural part of Hungary. Perhaps I could give you her number

The situation sounds a bit like my old nanny job but was a nightmare without a car especially entertaining children in the hols and me having no independence at weekends. I ended up buying my own car which made such a difference and gave the family more family time as i could go out. When I left job boss bought a run round for next au pair as did not want to go back to being taxi after having extra freedom.