Is finding a babysitter hard?

[philippamain]

As a long term babysitter who's babysat, nannied, and lived in with families for the last 10 years, I still find the process of parents finding us really inefficient. A family round the corner from me only just found out about me this year. They haven't had a babysitter for 3 years.

I wonder if we can make the babysitting/parent matchmaking more effective.

Is this just the case for me? Parents, have you found it difficult to find trusted babysitters when you've needed them? Where have you found your babysitters? How could it be more efficient?

(I make mobile and web app's for a living, and wonder if this is something that needs improving. I'd love to help make it better!)

I think that something like uber would work

It could work. It is hard finding people. We used a CM, not a nursery, and so I never felt comfortable asking our CM to have DC even more. So the only other option was to pay a fortune to go through one of the online agencies.

We found ours when an enterprising teenager from the next street put flyers through people's doors. Met her and her parents, seemed very nice a sensible, so we were happy to use her. Having said that, we might be in a rarity that all we needed was a sensible person to sit in the house while DC were fast asleep - hence not wanting to pay £8 an hour for a professional.

The only downside would of course be about DBS checks and training. I imagine most people prefer to pay for a qualified professional.

I use sitters as i couldnt find someone myself

maybe something where people can leave reviews about the babysitter and about the family?

How have you found Sitters? Are you able to create a rapport with the babysitters that you find through them?

I heard from another mother that she rarely gets the same babysitter again, and finds that it throws her child every time. She'd prefer someone more regular. I know they say that they try to give you your favourites. How have you found it?

I use sitters and normally get the same one. She knows my kids really well and gives them christmas presents etc! Occasionally she isn't available but I get her about 90% of the time. I have used her for about 7 years now and she used to take DS to playgroups etc. There are another couple I've used a few times. Never had any problems.
I would book her directly to be honest but she'd get in trouble with sitters if she did.

With any type of childcare it's usually through word of mouth that trust can be established. We have three or four women babysitters/nannies on our books and I'm happy to share their details with other mums who are looking for a babysitter.

I don't think you need to be a nanny to be a babysitter. Most people use a local teenager. The world will never becshort of teenagers wanting to earn a few quid.

When we moved to a new area, I put a poster up at the local college childcare course noticeboard and got a few people who were in their second year of their NVQ. They were doing placements in childcare settings and had CRB checks.

We used one of them until we moved house and she was really great.

we use sitters too and use it in hotels that we go to. Not difficult at all, although currently we have an au pair.

We've used sitters in London and we'd often get the same sitter twice and now in beaconsfield we very rarely get a different sitter on the very rare occasions we have exceeded out babysitting allowance and need an external sitter.

However, I do think there is a niche market for new parents with babies who want a night out, especially if you as the owner come with the DBS checked, very experienced, CV'd nanny who came early for the hand over and would offer to stay until the next day so that the parents have a lie-in.

I'm a nanny who recently moved to a new area. Tbh I don't really think there is the market for a new app. Childcare.co.uk is fab, has and app and you can leave reviews. I think it's just a case of more people needing to know about it. I really struggled to find babysitting work (been here about 7 months now) but all of a sudden I have found many families, through childcare.co.uk, through playgroups and through word of mouth. I'm also planning on printing off flyers and handing them around the block as I would like to find very local families as I'm more willing to sit if they live closer. It's hard to start of with but as you know more people they can then tell other people.

Ive found sitters a lifesaver. There are around 3 different babysitters that theyve given me. Over the years we have gotten to know them

I use teenaged children of friends. When I moved to a new area, I put an advert on Gumtree & found a great teenaged girl that way. We live in a fairly small town though.

We used teenagers, and also occasionally friends whose dc had grown up and left home but who didn't yet have grandchildren of their own. Didn't have difficulty finding people. Would only use people that we knew personally or were recommended by people we knew well though - I wouldn't get someone who'd put a leaflet through my door, or advertised in a shop window that I didn't know from Adam.
I remember one time we phoned a teenage babysitter who we'd used a few times and she wasn't able to do it and her Mum offered to come and sit for us instead - she just said she remembered what it was like when the dc were little, and was happy to pay forward the help she'd been given when hers were little.

When I was a teenager (probably 14 to 18 I guess) I could have babysat most nights of the week. Once you babysat for one family, you'd get all the parents' friends ringing. Had drama one or two times where family A introduced me to family B then family B booked me for a night when family A were also after going out...

Mostly fine though. I did volunteer with kids a lot which probably helped, and I was cheap!

I think as far as advertising goes, parents who want a relatively responsible teenager to sit in the house and watch TV while school age kids sleep are really different to ones with babies who want a childcare professional. I'd have thought the second category might need more help than the first.

I have been a nanny and babysitter for over 10 years and received work via childcare agencies, word of mouth/recommendations and advertising online. I became a childminder in 2012 and also joined my local Facebook parents group and realised there was very high demand for childcare but many parents had no real experience in where to start! Together with my back up childminder, I created a Facebook childcare group for families within our local borough to post/meet nannies, childminders and babysitters. This was over a year ago and we have over 900 members when I last saw the count. It has been very successful and both parents and childcarers have been really pleased with their findings

I'm looking for a babysitter to help me out with my daughter during the week.But the only thing it is for 10 hours a week in the Forest Gate area.....

Matthes3 I think you're looking for a part time nanny.....

Ohh. That's a good suggestion thank you!

I use sitters and wouldn't use anyone else, it's reasonable, reliable and all the ladies we have are lovely.