Becoming a nanny advice?

[mummybear1003]

Hello, I gave birth to my first child earlier this year and was hoping I could make a career change to suit my family life a bit more, I currently work all weekends and every other Christmas. I have wanted to look after children for years but since having my own this feeling has deepened. To become a nanny in the uk do you need certain qualifications? How do you start out? And basically any tips or advice??!! Thanks in advance!

Technically, there is no minimum requirement to work as a nanny in the UK.

In practice, nearly all employers will want either some form of qualification or experience in working with children, a first aid certificate and a DBS check.

Many will want you to be Ofsted registered. To become Ofsted registered you will need a suitable qualification (this can be done via home learning and is quite straightforward), a first aid certificate (Ofsted approved course), insurance and a DBS check.

I think you may struggle to find someone who is willing to employ a nanny who wants to bring their own child who has no previous qualifications or experience. There are NWOC (nanny with own child) jobs around, but they tend to go to people who were nannies before having children and are therefore qualified, experienced and come with references from other families.

I'd start with getting the necessary qualifications and checks for Ofsted registration and building up your experience working with children. You may be able to get a mother's help/babysitter type role initially.

What country are you in Mummybear? As NuffSaidSam says, many parents want a nanny who is registered as that means they can use childcare vouchers towards the cost. There are different ways of becoming registered depending on which country you are in... Ofsted covers England only. Other regulators in other parts of the UK.

Location will make a difference - there are nanny jobs in some areas and not many in others. Have a look for a nanny agency in your area and see what sort of jobs they list.

We quite often see posts on here where people want nannies just for a few hours a day (e.g. after school): I wonder if that could be a "way in" if you can afford to do restricted hours for a while to get some experience under your belt?