Advice please, thanks.

[CupcakeME]

I don't know what I am doing wrong but I find very difficult to find a nob.
I am struggling to find something from September. It's just me or you guys find it difficult as well.
I mean, I live in London, which is full of business people who are looking for a nanny, I am looking for a full time job preferably but since my husband has been made redundant I am looking for any kind of job what involves childcare, ie, part time, share, etc.
I do have 7 years experience. No other qualifications and at the moment I honestly can't aford to spend to much. Maybe my cv is not very good...

Please do help me as I am desperate!
Any advices are welcome.

I mean this kindly but have you got someone to proof read your CV and applications? There are several errors in your post but I am sure this isn't the case in your formal application/CV.

Have you thought about doing some short qualifications? e.g. first aid.

Oh, yeah, I saw my mistakes, I am actually using my phone. I apologise for mu mistakes.
Also, I have a first aid, I have crb check....

Can your previous employers help? I recently found our nanny when her previous employer "advertised" her on a local forum, said how great she was and they were sad to have to let her go, etc. Would your previous employer do something similar?

Can you get a DBS? They're the new CRB and having one has, for some weird reason, impressed people who've interviewed me both families and agencies.

Have you approached agencies? They're your best bet especially with 7 years experience.

Qualification-wise, you may be able to get a grant from your local council, not helpful for now but for later it may be. My local council offers full bursaries every now and then so you don't need to pay a penny.

How old is your first aid? Is it Paediatric or generic?

My first aid is paediatric first aid.
I am trying agencies as well, but they are not very helpful. They need either someone with driving licence or high qualifications. I did register with some but I haven't received ang answer yet.
My previously employers gave a excellent references. I don't want to bother them with my problems.

It's a bad market at the moment. Are you registered with agencies? Have you put a profile up on all the websites? Are there any particular circumstances that make you 'seem less employable (own child coming etc)?

I'd second getting your CV looked over by someone. Sometimes a fresh eye can spot things that you just don't see any more.

Hm, how old is it? Old enough to be renewed?

You do have to bug agencies persistently, if they have a job that interests me I find excuses to call up or email every day until they give me an answer as to if I have an interview and if not will I hear anything.

Are you wanting a higher salary? Can you try to specialise?

Some agencies won't accept you as you don't drive, don't have a formal qualification. However not all agencies will refuse to take people on their books who have experience, so see if you can find a couple who will accept you. Then via the agency, update things like DBS check.

Make sure your CV is perfect. Make sure for each nannying job it gives some detail, a few sentences, about what you did with the children. Include anything special, an outing they enjoyed.

How can you make yourself different from other applicants? Highlight on your CV any special skills you have, such as languages, music.

Personally I feel not being a driver is the biggest problem but I don't live in London (I'm about 24 miles outside) so maybe you can get away with not driving there. Has it been a problem at all over the past 7 years?

The market is pretty quiet at the moment. I've been a nanny for 27 years and have been looking seriously for nearly three months, although I left my previous position in May.

I'm not even getting many interviews. It's tough out there, it's not just you!

Call as many agencies as you can, they don't even need to be local to you, people use word of mouth with agencies, not the closest. If you live Central London then I don't think being able to drive is essential.

Check Nannyjob and gumtree, there are other sites that people may recommend but personally, I hate childcare.co.uk as it is not easy to search, it needs part time/full time, temp/perm, nanny/au pair/babysitting searches, in my opinion! I usually get 2 pages in and get bored!

Good luck, I hope something comes up soon, for both of us!

Sorry but actually just lol at 'find it very hard to find a nob" lol x

(it is a bad time at the moment - i am a cm and everyone i know is struggling to fill their vacancies)

I just mentioned that I used my PHONE to post this topic....
I did got registered with lots of agencies, I tried gumtree,childcare,nanny job, I have found some full time jobs but I refused them as they didn't offered me more than 7£/hour!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?We have HUGE responsibilities looking after a baby/child it's not like looking after a pet...OMG...I am right?Even a cleaner takes more that 7 pounds per hour...I am shocked .

your main probs are that you dont drive and you dont have a qual in childcare, tho you do have exp :) and the more exp you get the less people care about a qual if that makes sense

in todays current climate i think both are essential as there are so many other nannies about who do have both iyswim, so agencies may not bother trying to push you

salaries are also less then say a year or even 2 years ago, i agree £7 isnt great if gross, but if nett (and damn parents and agencies who quote nett) then its not a bad wage

im happy to look over your cv if you want to send it to me, have helped a few nannies on here over the years

I think without qualifications and as a non driver £7 an hour is probably not unreasonable (but I admit I'm not in London). Remember most of the level 2 girls in nurseries are on the minimum wage and get about £7-7.20 for level 3 and whilst you have experience when someone can entice a driving Level 3 qualified person out of a nursery for £7.20 they'll probably favour them over you. If you're currently unemployed surely a £7 an hour job is better than job seeker's allowance? That way you have an current employer as a reference and can keep looking for something better

Do you want a nanny/ housekeeper job? I know of one going near holland park but its prob 60% housekeeping and only 40% nannying ( although maybe diff ratio in holidays etc)

I do think qualifications are what people look for now. 7 years is a fair bit of time but to many that's only 2 jobs (4/5 years in each if until school age). There are unfortunatley many people on agency books with 7 years experience, plus qualifications/ extra language/ driver/ skier/ up to date courses. How old is first aid and crb?

What ages do you have experience with?

Could you do night nannying if newborn experience?

Jobs are not as available as they were a couple of years ago...full time jobs are hard to come by and tbh right now £7ph net isn't bad for full time...considering the job market right now I would take that...and I say that as an Ofsted registered/qualified nanny

so you were offered jobs but turned them down because they offered £7ph. You don't drive, and you hold no formal qualifications or training.

Your desperate for a job and your husband is unemployed. . . I wouldn't be so picky if I were you.

Perhaps you need to recognise the job market for what it is and have a wee think about earning £7ph or earning nothing.

Everything is sorted out ,just needed to be patient.
I know my problems,I know what I am capable of,I am a hard working person ,very good with children of all ages,my referee can confirm that,I used to work with 10£/hour 5 years ego girls!!The wages should go UP not down ,I mean you don't have expectations after 7 years of experience? I find difficult to accept less money then 5 years ego! Let's stick to the market price,this way some the people give 7£/hour because some accept that amount!
They have expectations from you,why you don't have expectations from them as well?
I am not that kind of nanny who goes to work and when parents are leaving home,I start talking on the phone all day,no way ,no me.
I take this job very seriously!
Thank you for your advices !

AGO*

Well I think my wages should have gone up not down when I changed jobs too, and I'm not nannying any more. Unless you're staying in a job it's not a given these days. That's free market economics. People are looking to pay less and are (unfortunately) willing to compromise on quality for that, so while you might be able to swing £8 instead of £7 by being an outstanding candidate (which over a week still represents a huge chunk of money for some parents), there's no way you're going to get them to add 50% to their budget.

There are higher paying jobs out there but they're few and far between and more people are chasing them now than there were 5 years ago when demand for nannies was huge. The market just isn't getting better, except right at the lower end, maybe because people will take a much lower salary because it's a job and parents see high quality candidates applying for lower wages.

It's one thing to have principles but another to live in the real world, although I admire you for sticking to yours.

I am roughly on the salary I was 5yrs ago

I'm one of the highest paid nannies where I am - and slowly others are catching up with me as I'm at the top end

You say you were on £10 5 years ago - assume this is nett so £12.50/13 gross. Tbh it's rare to be paid much more then £13/14 gross tho obv some jobs do

You are also not qualified and to some families that makes a diff - and fair enough - I went to college for 2yts and studied hard to get my NNEB

As a night nanny I charge £15 and £17/18 for twins but that's nights and on. Im self employed

I'm not saying you have to drop your salary lots but as nom
Said there are fewer jobs and more nannies and def an employers market and again 7yrs exp isn't lots compared to oldies like me with 22yrs

I have 3 times your exp - I won't be paid 3 times more then you

It's better to accept a lower paid job then have no work - esp if dh is unemployed

Can I ask if you are a native English speaker? I know you are posting from your phone but there are a lot of expressions which make me think you are not and that is potentially a problem for school-age children. We had a fantastic nanny when our boys were younger but she was not a native English speaker and by the time she left us (the eldest ds was about 9-10) homework was becoming a bit more of a struggle because she couldn't always pronounce spellings properly or explain unfamiliar words in reading books. After she left, I felt I definitely needed fluency in English in the next nanny.

It's all very well to say that salaries should go up not down and that you are experienced and a good worker but it's a really competitive jobs market out there (not just for nannies) and you are competing with people who drive, have formal qualifications, better First Aid qualifications etc. That doesn't necessarily mean they are better nannies but it sure as heck makes their CV look better and them more likely to get an interview.

With regard to salary, bear in mind that many people who employ nannies haven't had a pay rise in some years. The Evening Standard tells us that there a couple of thousand bankers who earned £1.6m each last year but many professionals who need nanny care in order to do their jobs haven't had a pay rise in 2/3/4 years - my dh is one of them!

The market is driven by supply and demand.

The £11 net jobs are out there, but you are competing against people who have as much experience as you, and childcare qualifications and who drive and who are native speakers.

So those jobs that were once within your reach are simply not in your reach any more, because parents have more choice than before.

Amongst my friends, many have swapped from nannies to au pairs because they are able to get qualified teachers, qualified chefs, grads with childcare qualifications, etc. All willing to work for £3 per hour, or thereabouts.

Whether any of this is fair or not is another thing, but this is the reality of the market.if you want to get back to the higher rates you need to have more to offer than the others. So work out what you can do to distinguish yourself. If you don't have anything unique to offer then your salary needs to come down.