Nannies! Where do you find your jobs?

[rockybalboa]

We are looking for our first nanny for our 3 boys and I have spoken to 3 local agencies and registered with Nannyjob with a view to posting an ad on there. Having looked at current positions available in our area to get an idea of what vacancies there are, it seems that a lot of the jobs advertised are placed by the local agencies, most of who I have talked to. What is the benefit of me using an agency to find a nanny or should I just stick with the nannyjob ad? We would use Nannytax or similar for a contract and payroll so the agency would literally just be finding me someone which it seems I can do for free. Is it just a case of an agency whittling down applicants to only the most suitable candidates and therefore saving on time/input or can an agency add to the process in a way I might not have thought of? If you use an agency, is it normal/beneficial to register with just one agency or more than one?

The only people I know with a nanny found her on Gumtree and I've read on here that's not a great place to start.

So, if you are a nanny, do you go to an agency for jobs or look directly and why please?

Incidentally, we are looking for a 2 day a week only job (9 hour days) on two fixed and immovable days of the week if that makes any difference to your opinion but we don't need the nanny until April which is why I am starting to look now (as advised by the agencies I spoke to at the end of last year).

Thanks!

PS I'm wrong to say I can find someone for free via Nannyjob, I know there is a fee to pay, just not as much as an agency fee would be.

I find most of my nanny jobs on childcare.co.uk. You may have to register to contact potential nannies, but i think it's only £20 which would be alot cheaper than agencies. Where abouts are you?

I registered on there when I was looking for a CM (then found one on he council website and then decided a nanny is a better option so cancelled her). We're in East Anglia.

But.... we are less than a 10 minute walk from the train station which has a 50 min fast train service to London and we can provide a car for use here so I guess that might attract people from further afield although really I have no idea about this at all.

My last 2 jobs have been through childcare.co.uk and nannyjob. I had registered with agencies but found jobsIin the meantime as it takes a while to set up with the agency - they meet you in person and then check references, qualifications etc before putting you forward for positions. This slows things up somewhat as things can move much quicker in these days of the Internet. For my last job I emailed 2 agencies and 1 job advert on Monday evening, interview from job advert on Wednesday evening, 2nd interview on Sunday morning and job offer that afternoon. My meeting with 1 agency was for the following Thursday and agency 2 still hadn't replied to my email.
Advertising yourself just means that you have to do the sifting through emails to select suitable candidates and the do the reference checks.

My last 2 jobs have been through childcare.co.uk and nannyjob. I had registered with agencies but found jobsIin the meantime as it takes a while to set up with the agency - they meet you in person and then check references, qualifications etc before putting you forward for positions. This slows things up somewhat as things can move much quicker in these days of the Internet. For my last job I emailed 2 agencies and 1 job advert on Monday evening, interview from job advert on Wednesday evening, 2nd interview on Sunday morning and job offer that afternoon. My meeting with 1 agency was for the following Thursday and agency 2 still hadn't replied to my email.
Advertising yourself just means that you have to do the sifting through emails to select suitable candidates and the do the reference checks.

I found my nanny on childcare.co.uk - I had several good applicants for the job which I only posted on there.

For me, when I was starting out in my career I found jobs through nannyjob and private ads. I got a job in Brussels through greataupair.com (even though it was a nanny job).

As I get older, more experienced, and require a higher salary I use agencies as they tend to pitch me well to prospective families on a matchmaking basis. That's not all of them mind you, but the ones I continue to use.

I like that my references are checked by the agency, they can personally recommend me, and they tend not to waste my time. I reiterate though, I've had mixed experiences with agents and only work with ones I still like!

I use nannyjob, childcare.co.uk and gumtree. Some agencies are great and others are awful (speaking from a nanny's point of view).

Since you have plenty of time, advertise yourself but do check refs carefully. Speak to the potential nannies before you invite them into your home or meet in a public place

Paula, that's something I hadn't thought of. So initial meeting in a local cafe or something to see whether personalities gel before seeing the home? Is that what people normally do? There must be some info online about how to screen your own nanny, I need to do some further research on that, just trying to get past the first post at the moment.

Thanks for all the other replies. Definitely not sure it's worth the 3xgross weekly wage of an agency fee as I have the time (and hopefully the ability) to do initial screening myself. One of the agencies said she had someone in mind but a) that may have been sales talk and b) she also said they'd advertise if it turned out there was no-one suitable on her books.

Oh, and am I advertising too early or not? I assume that good nannies only leave their jobs because the kids are starting school/nursery/whatever or someone relocates so presumably know quite a long time in advance but I might be totally wrong about this.

My current job I got through an agency. However I only registered with the agency because I saw the add on nannyjob.
There are many rubbish agencies, I registered with 4 (tried to register with another one but they never replied to my emails!) it took about a week to arrange a time to meet and register with each agency. One agency has had no contact with me, another kept phoning me about unsuitable jobs (even though they know what I was looking for) and the other 2 were pretty good. There were about 5 local agencies that I didn't even bother trying to register with as their adds had appalling grammar and spelling!
Sorry for the rant! What I'm trying to say is that only about 1 in 5 agencies are any good, so definitely register with lots until you know which are the good ones!

One good thing about a personal add is that you get the family's / nanny's own words and not 'translated' through an agency. If you clearly state the non-negotiable bits of the job (eg. which 2 days you need), then it shouldn't be too difficult sifting through the unsuitable candidates for yourself.
Imo agencies are extremely over priced. I am happy to use them as a nanny but there is no way I would ever pay for their service!

I found my first 2 jobs on nanny job, current one was with an agency and the rest have all been through word of mouth.

I've always registered with nanny agencies and also looked and advertised on nanny job and childcare.co.UK, I don't rely on one form of job search.

I don't think it's too early to advertise now it might take awhile to find the right nanny and then they might have to give notice.

The agency can get a DBS check done, which you can't do yourself. However I think there may be ways to get it done as some agencies offer a basic screening service [[
www.tinies.com/nanny-screening-services/nanny-dbs-pvg-check/ such as tinies]], and training companies like Babyem.

Hi rocky balboa, can I ask where you are based? I am a nanny with possibly 2 days free from the end of November. I've found all my jobs on gumtree, childcare.co.uk or through word of mouth xx

Hi GR. We're in East Anglia but we need a nanny to start after Easter when I go back to work after maternity leave, sorry.

I wouldn't use an agency unless you're very short on time or have money to burn tbh. Nearly all nannies look on childcare.co.uk/nannyjob/gumtree so you will almost certainly find the same nannies for £20 on there as you would with an agency for 20x that amount.

I've never heard of anyone having an interview in a café and would think it quite odd if someone suggested it tbh.

I was interviewed in a Starbucks once. Odd experience.

When I go for interviews at private homes I text the details to my mum and call her when I get out.

Really don't know why I put end of November lol. I actually ment the end of April :) x

Tbh all of my perm jobs apart from one were from agencies - other gumtree and spent over 5 happy year there and still see them :)

I look on gumtree nanny job netmums - I do look on childcare.co.uk but 1) it costs me to send a message 2) most family's who do contact me although my ad states my gross rate many would ask if I would accept £3/4 less - ie personally I find childcare jobs pay or want to pay a lot less then THE Going rate :(

Def good to look now - a lot of nannies have 4/6/8 weeks notice and by the time you check cvs interview check ref 2nd interview and offer a job - then 2/4 weeks could go by

Rockybalboa, if you speak to the potential nannies first and get on well, invite them to your house. But if you can't speak to them by phone for any reason, do meet in public.

I get a lot of work through my website and frequently meet with people in carluccios. How do I know that the man calling me is a new parent and not some weirdo?

You have to trust your instinct. Any good agency will interview all of the nannies personally, face to face. If you do get an agency involved, they will have done an interview, checked refs and certificates/qualifications.

I honestly wouldn't bother meeting in public, it's a waste of time. If you can't establish via phone or email that they seem to be who they say they are, just don't interview them at all.

They're going to be on their own, you're at home with DH, kids etc. I really don't think there is any danger of them turning up and killing you all! Has anyone ever heard of someone turning up to a nanny interview and then doing anything other than having an interview?!