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Paid childcare

Discuss everything related to paid childcare here, including childminders, nannies, nurseries and au pairs.

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Original poster

Paying nanny's parking charges?

48 replies

Nannysearcher · 15/08/2012 19:57

I have just been recruiting for a nanny.
One candidate said that she would like to drive to us for the 2 days a week we would need her, but we did flag up that parking costs (on street) are £10 per day and that, while we could make a contribution, we could not really cover that as we would not cover the public transport costs for other candidates.

She has come back and said that she has often had her travel costs to work paid and that lots of other jobs are offering to pay travel costs and parking vouchers.

Is this true/reasonable? Inner London.

OP posts:

MrsGuyOfGisbourne · 16/08/2012 13:02

Op - since you already have niggling doubts about toher apects of her attitude - please look elsewhere! I buried simlar issues as the nanny seemed good - she was unreliable, and I regretted not acting on insticnt.

Strix · 16/08/2012 13:13

I not only would not pay parking travel, but I think anyone who can't be arsed with a thirty minute commute door to door is lazy, and I personally would mark her off the list on that account. I like my kids to walk places because it's good for them. And I dont feel this would be someone to promote that.

However, you might be happy for your kids to be driven round.

I have the laziest child in the world for whom I actively seek out opportunities to peel him away from the Wii and onto his own two feet.

Blondeshavemorefun · 16/08/2012 16:07

its not a 30mins commute makes them lazy strix - just that as we work long hours that anyway we can cut down on commuting time then we will

so if much shorter time to drive then bus it then i would - saying that no buses ran past my work - one wont even fit down the winding country lane lol and would be a mile walk to a bus stop at the very least

janesun · 16/08/2012 17:32

I think it's a bit unfair to say she is lazy. She is just l

janesun · 16/08/2012 17:39

...sorry... I think it's unfair to say she is lazy. She is just trying to find the most efficient way for her to get to work to fit her lifestyle, as everyone does. I am sure there are employers in other industries who contribute to parking/ transport costs and as she said, it's something other employers have done for her. It is not unusual for employers to offer perks to encourage a candidate to take a role/ keep them motivated etc.

If this is something you can afford and you think she's otherwise perfect for the position, go for it. If it isn't, that's perfectly understandable too.

Original poster

Nannysearcher · 16/08/2012 18:29

Thanks, all.

Definitely not a case of much longer by public transport, Blondes, as we are in inner London with a bus stop less than a minute from the house (3 bus routes), two tube stations and other bus routes about 10 minutes walk away!

Ironically I know exactly how long her journey would take, as last year I went for an interview near to where she lives - I judged it at 30 minutes and would have been planning to use the bus myself!

No driveway and no permits are available - the only option are the visitor's vouchers at £10 per day. Nor would we expect, or indeed want, our child to be driven around as it is just not necessary.

If she were a fantastic candidate and if we could easily get a resident's permit at a reasonable cost then I would be happy to arrange this, but I can't stomach £900 per year and definitely get a whiff of entitlement from her attitude.

In conclusion, we have decided to look elsewhere.

OP posts:

longjane · 16/08/2012 19:49

nanny searcher would require your nanny to baby sit?
and if so do think it would be ok for her to home late at night on the bus (if there is a service)
would buy a permit then or would proved a taxi
these are just question for you to bare in mind as i see you are looking elsewhere

claudedebussy · 16/08/2012 20:00

well my borough says no permits unless your car is registered there. (inner london) i phoned them up and explained the situation. they said i could have a business permit for my nanny. was £165 for the year i think. we cover that.

Blondeshavemorefun · 16/08/2012 20:10

Sounds fair Claude :)

Strix · 16/08/2012 20:22

My commute is an hour and a half each way. 3 hours a day. 15 a week. So if I had a candidate moaning about 30 minutes each way, I'd have difficulty being sympathetic.

Still think she's lazy.

Blondes, public transportation in Kent is a very different matter and I would expect to travel by car there, and would completely expect my nanny to do the same.

But 30 minutes on a bus that goes door to door and comes often is hardly a hardship.

HolyOlympicNamechangeBatman · 16/08/2012 20:54

Strix you have no idea if she goes straight from work to the gym/to a friends house/the shops/to care for her elderly mother, you have no idea why she wants to drive to work. If she wants to drive, that's her choice, it doesn't make her lazy. Maybe pull the judgy pants down just a bit?

Strix · 16/08/2012 21:04

Ermmm... Maybe she does, but who asks their employer to cover parking cost because of after work personal commitments. Live out nannies make more money than live in because thay are covering their own living costs, so I think she should cover her own living costs.

But actually it's more than the money. What happens when a visitor permit isn't available. Mum's job to sort it out? Just seems like a burden of chores I wouldnt take on as an employer/parent.

I would feel very differently if we weren't talking about someone who lives and works in Lomdon where public transportation is easily available.

HolyOlympicNamechangeBatman · 16/08/2012 21:08

If it's true that her previous employers have covered the cost of parking then I don't see why she wouldn't ask. As I said earlier the two nannies I know who have the same issue both have their permits supplied by their employers.

It's completely fair enough that neither you nor the OP would want to do this, but it's unfair to label her 'lazy' and it's unfair to suggest she's asking for something massively out of the ordinary.

Original poster

Nannysearcher · 16/08/2012 21:27

If it was just £165 for the year then it would not be an issue!
Seriously, there is no 'permit' option available. I telephoned the council and they confirmed that there was nothing available apart from the £10 per day vouchers:

Residential permits - no, unless the car is registered at the address
Business permits - only for non-residential premises
Carer's permit - only in situations where someone is providing care to a person with disabilities

Or, you can get a universal permit for the bargain sum of £3,450!

OP posts:

Original poster

Nannysearcher · 16/08/2012 21:29

longjane - we probably wouldn't need much babysitting, but if so we would either drive her home or provide a taxi.

OP posts:

HolyOlympicNamechangeBatman · 16/08/2012 21:36

Is there not anywhere nearby that she could park?

claudedebussy · 16/08/2012 22:49

in that case you can't offer parking. just the way it is. so she probably isn't a good fit for the job.

Blondeshavemorefun · 16/08/2012 22:57

strix, im assuming your commute is included in your nannys day

the nannys commute is on top of her day where your 3hr a day is included in her day iyswim - so if she works 12hrs a day, 3 you travel

i did 7-7 a while back, and was 30mins drive, so left my house at 6.30am, meaning i got up even earlier so my day was 6am - 7,30pm - 13.5hrs a looooooooooooooooong day :)

ceeveebee · 16/08/2012 23:15

£10 a day is extortionate for visitor permit parking. We pay £2.20 per day in SW London but can only get 100 days per year, and we can get a carer permit for nannies for £150 ish pa but only for 4 hrs a day.
What are her hours - if she is working 7-7 I don't blame her for not wanting to take a bus though. Is there a nearby carpark? Or maybe offer to cover one day but not both.

SuperDuperJezebel · 17/08/2012 11:30

I drive to work (SW London zone 2) and have a business permit on my car which I paid for myself - circa £600! I resented the cost somewhat but when I added up the cost of my bus fares for the year it worked out cheaper, and cut out walking 15minutes to the bus stop in the rain in winter and a 45-60min bus journey home after that. I can literally walk out the front door of work and be home in 20min, so was more than happy to cover the cost myself.

Fillybuster · 17/08/2012 11:39

I don't think you can generalise about these things. When we first got our nanny, she didn't need to drive (everything was in local area) and she said she was happy to get the bus to/from us, and out and about with ds. She had had a car for her last job but didn't expect one from us.

It was apparent pretty quickly that her journey to/from work wasn't sustainable - although ti was only a few miles across London, it was taking her over an hour each way on 2-3 buses. That meant she was leaving hom at 6.15am and getting back at 8.30/9pm every day. We ended up buying a car for her to use. In the end, that was a great decision, as by the following year we needed her to be able to drive ds (and by then, dd1) around.

Having said that, we chose to buy the car because it suited us (and because she had already started. we thought she was great and we wanted to keep her). I definitely would not provide parking permits/travel costs because someone demanded them.

ghislaine · 17/08/2012 14:09

I realise the OP's moved on but in my borough you can get a professional childcarer's permit for £125 p/a. Strange how London boroughs aren't consistent on this.

I paid it because my job starting times are totally inflexible and I need to have my nanny not be late if there are any public transport problems.

SE13Mummy · 31/08/2012 22:26

We're in inner London too and pay parking costs for our nanny but we only have her for part of the week and only then during school terms.

It wasn't something we particularly intended to do but we decided that the advantages of her being able to drive to us e.g. taking the DDs to ballet, dropping off at Brownies on her way home etc. were worth the cost. It used to be the case that weekly permits cost £7 which worked out as a reasonable and affordable cost. That cost was quadrupled by the Council so, as she doesn't actually spend much of the day in/near our home we've started buying the newly introduced 1 hour permits (£1 per hour if bought in bulk) which she uses as and when she needs them e.g. first thing in the morning.

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