Oh no. Our nanny just gave notice...

[JugglingChaotically]

She is lovely. DC all like her.
And I feel sick.
We had hellish year and so needed 6 months of stability.

I would pay higher to keep au pair longer. Def need to add at least a bus pass, especially as they can eat into actually income and they will add tube on top as needed. Presumably they will use buses at least with children also.

£150 - wage a week
£50 - bus pass and phone top up ( so they can def get in touch with you when with kids if needed). Plus extra food.

So £200 a week. For 25-30hrs. As older children I would suggest offering less term time and more term time if possible. So say 20hrs term time and then 30 during holidays ( could be 2/3 full days if easier for you to cover the other two)

These wages sound high. I have found there is little correlation between pay and retention as long as you follow the norm, which is £80-£120 all in frankly. This stuff about phones and Oyster cards and gym memberships is somewhat surreal and well away from what the majority of families lay on, as most agencies will tell you. After all, for £250 a week or so you can get a Norland probationer who will do 50 hours a week.

Boffin - most au pairs get a bus pass and phone. I know because I'm an au pair. 130 plus bus pass/and or phone is pretty much what most au pairs get for 35 hours. If I didn't have my bus pass I'd never even leave the house because of how much travel would eat into my wages

Isn't 35 hours a lot for an Au Pair. I thought it was meant to be 30'ish including any babysitting?

I think its technically an "au pair plus" at 35 hours?
Would appreciate views on £130 pw plus bus pass?

reality will be less in term time and longer in holidays but one of DDs is almost 17 so even in hols, the hours are ok
Plus I will be at home 1 day a week regularly.

OP £130 and bus pass is great

We have identified one possible au pair - still liking just in case it falls through.
We have Skype and emailed. How much checking to do?

I have asked for references.
She is lovely. Spanish. Can I sack for CRB equivalent?

Also I have seen some websites refer to medical checks?

What should I ask for?

Any advice on how to make sure we have best chance of safe and good person to fit our family??

Oops.

ASK for CRB equiv. iPhone auto correct! Anyone know what the police check is called in Spain and how long it takes?

Anon - Tks for conf re pocket money.

Any advice from seasoned au pair family would be really appreciated!

Thank you ....

Anon. Advice from au pairs/ex au pairs welcome too!

I think you could ask for crb but I don't think that many families do.

Thanks anon.
Any suggestions on how to ensure good fit?

Always go with your gut feeling. Make sure to skype and get a really good feeling for what they're like. I personally went for the families that laughed and smiled and I had a nice chat with over the ones that offered loads of money and barely had 5 sentences to say. Ask as many questions possible, try to find out loads about them!

Thanks - Anon
We have Skyped and swapped several emails. Also photos.
Waiting for her to send references.
Will keep interviewing others until I have refs.
It is scary for us but must be terrifying for au pairs.

Have had aupairs for years, last one stayed 2.5 years, the previous one 1.5 years. I pay ??100 for 25 hours a week and ??120 for 35 hours plus 2 babysits a week. No oyster, no gym, no phone. We are good to work for. We have give a clear job description we stick to, we back our aupairs up in front of the children and we accept there needs to be flexibility on both sides. Most of our aupairs do extra cleaning and babysitting in their free time to earn more money. I really don't think you need to pay more if you are in an attractive area.

Anon, I think this must depend on the part of the country you live in, so unless it's central London I think the picture is very different (and indeed when I lived in central London we didn't provide things like that either). Around here it ranges between ??80-??120 without those things, depending on the hours worked. Employers might provide a bicycle for sole use and occasionally share of a small car if kids need driving to school, but that's it.

I probably should just mention that if the overall value of the package you offer is more than ??672 a month (over 21) or ??777 (under 21) you will need to be registered as an employer and start paying National Insurance on the au pair's behalf, as well as (eventually) employer's National Insurance. So the kind of ??200 a week deal Artandco is suggesting doesn't actually comply with the law unless this is done.

So basically the value of the weekly allowance, plus any perks, needs to be ??154 or below. Otherwise you get into difficulties with taxation regarding benefits in kind and so on - phones are a specific example given by the HMRC in their documentation.

I am sure an accountant will now come on and explain this further.

I would add a personal thing to that last post. IME if you take someone from a modest home (as is the case for quite a lot of au pairs) and lavish them with the extraordinary consumer bounty that many wealthier metropolitan British homes regard as normal, you can actually end up affecting the relationship between au pair and family negatively as it starts to revolve around finance and acquisition. More does not necessarily mean better in this regard, and it is generally more prudent to give your time, attention and general friendliness rather than throwing lots of financial perks their way. Hope I have put that diplomatically enough.