Offer of Employment Letter, Ofstead status?

[meggleshs]

We're at the stage of wanting to offer employment to a nanny. What needs to be in the employment letter? Also, they say they are Ofsteaded, but would like to verify b/f offering employment. How do I check this? Lastly, my understanding is that if she is Ofstead registered, that means she's been DBS checked, right?

You can ask to see her certificate of registration and also her Dbs check, surprised she didn't offer to show them to you at interview.

She will have an Ofsted registration number and certificate, you can then check her status with Ofsted.
She will have a DBS certificate.
Please note when a nanny pays for her annual registration fee Ofsted do not re issue any certificates; so the date on her Ofstec Registration and DBS will be from when she first registered not the current year.
Ofsted say this saves them money! For £106 personally I think they should re issue with a current date. But Ofsted are rubbish as everyone knows .

If you ask her for her Ofsted number you can check on the Ofsted website whether her registration is 'active' or not. If it is active then it means she will have a current DBS check. AFAIK (I checked earlier this year) Ofsted no longer conduct the DBS check, it's done by a third party and they don't send out certificates for renewals only the first time you apply, so she may not have a recent certificate, but that doesn't mean her check isn't current iyswim.

'For £106 personally I think they should re issue with a current date'

I once had a lengthy argument about this with Ofsted. I had a very anxious parent who wanted to see it, but they wouldn't send one and wouldn't speak to her on the phone because of 'data protection'. In the end they told me 'everyone knows DBS checks aren't worth the paper they're written on; they're out of date as soon as they're issued'. That's a £100 well spent then!

Agree Outraged don't think the system is the best.

We're at the stage of wanting to offer employment to a nanny. What needs to be in the employment letter?

I would put things like:

Agreed start date (if agreed)
Agreed salary
I would include a copy of the proposed contract (written statement) for them to look at and so they can request any modifications, if you will consider modifying it.

Also, they say they are Ofsteaded, but would like to verify b/f offering employment. How do I check this?

You should ask to see the registration certificate. It is a requirement of being on the voluntary register that the certificate is shown on request.

If you know their registration URN, you can use Find and Inspection Report to locate their details... though don't expect it to tell you much. Mine says: Home Childcarer, Date of registration, Register type: Voluntary Childcare Register.

Lastly, my understanding is that if she is Ofstead registered, that means she's been DBS checked, right?

They may have been CRB checked. DBS has not existed that long. I registered in 2007 and back then it was a CRB check. So with Ofsted registration they will have either a CRB check or a DBS check. That check may be quite old and it is up to you if you accept that. In theory Ofsted should be notified of any updated info from police and other sources.

If you wish to do a new check, it can be done but costs quite a lot. A nanny agency may offer to do it for you - Tinies Nanny Screening Services offers DBS checks for employers to do on employees, as will other nanny agencies.

If the nanny has a recent DBS check and registered for the DBS update service, then you may be able to get an online status report of the check. Details here.

The system is not the best it could be.