nanny just passed driving test - help!

[itsybitsy]

Our lovely Nanny has just passed her driving test and we're wondering how long we should leave it before she takes the children out in the car. She looks after our DS2 - 15mths for 2 days a week and DS1 - 5 yrs after school when he's dropped home by a neighbour.

We have a real need for her to be able to use her car as we live in a remote area but on a busy main road so it is not safe for her to walk by the road (and there's nowhere to go anyway) and there is no public transport whatsoever. At the moment she stays at home all day both days and this was great when DS2 was a baby but he is now needing toddler groups or swimming or the park. My DH wants her to have been driving a full year before she takes the boys in her car but I think that's too long - she says she doesn't get bored at home all day but I suspect she watches daytime TV while DS2 plays and it's probably not that stimulating for him.

Any advice?

I'm not a cm but have to drive a work vehicle to transport people with learning disability. anyway - our policy to be an authorised driver is minimum 1 yr driving experience post passing test and no driving convictions. licences with speeding points on them are considered on their merit and authorised further up management chain.

is she using your car? if so, insurance gonna be hit hard also think you should go out with her on a regular basis as the hardest thing as a new driver is getting used to other cars or at least employ a driving instructor to do this for you.

personally, i passed my test first time and really wasn't that confident driver for a least another 6mths.

she's got her own car and drives to her other job at a nursery 3 days a week and quite a bit at weekends so she's getting lots of experience. She would also only be driving locally but maybe you're right that the first 6mths it is all so new, maybe I should wait this long.

personally while the weather is still ok, and there is more things to do at home, e.g out on garden etc then i would leave it a few more months. maybe at the end of the summer you could ask her to take you out etc so that you can sit and chat to her and still see how her concentration is. also found out if she takes other children out as she may take a cousin, or family member out every now and again and that wold get her more used to driving with noisy young things!!! hopefully both you and her will have confidence before the horrible weather starts where it would be more beneficial to your toddler to be going out.

I would suggest leaving it for a few months, or maybe once a month ask her to run yu to the shop or something to see how well she is getting on. Ask her how she feels about driving children around, she may not be 100% happy about it yet and may be relieved for you to ask. Just sy you know children can be distracting, can we just leave it for a month or 2 and then maybe see if you are happy to take just me out etc. Its definatly a hard one!!

I remember passing my test 9all those years ago)...

for ages i ahd to REALLY concenrtate on things like roundabouts (that are 2nd nature to me now) and i would reqiire silence and radio turned down etc (just for those few moments)

for those reasons i would never let my own children travel in a car where the driver was not experianced etc (which i think depends on the driver but generally i would say a MINIMUM of 6 months / 5,000 miles.... unless a notehr adult is in the car to take care of the children... if they drop something / need a drink / start crying or whatever...

thats just my opinion though...

IMO chidlren can be far more distracting than what i consider talking on a phome would be (dont worry i dont talk on a mobile when driving (except hands free)) but thats just an example...

Im always passing drinks / apples etc from front to back and being handed pieces of rubbish etc etc

Personally I would agree with your DH and say at least a year. And I agree with NannyL about roundabouts -- hard to believe now that I found them sooooo difficult, but I did.

If you really don't want to wait that long then review after six months, but I wouldn't feel comfortable with it if it were my children.

I'm a Registered Childminder, I waited a year after passing my test before taking out minded children in my car.