Housework and nannies

[Christmaspanic24]

How much child-related house chores is a nanny expected to do?

So we have recently employed a nanny. She will care for our 3 children, 3 days per week. The oldest is in full time school, middle child is 3 and doesn't nap most days now, youngest is 1year old and naps twice a day. She will be doing school pick ups /drops for eldest. She takes the younger 2 to playgroups in the mornings etc. She works from 7am till 7pm. She's doesn't cook dinner, but reheats food I've left.

Apart from tidying up after meals and ensuring toys are tidied away at the end of the day would you expect the nanny to complete any other chores during the day e.g. helping with children's laundry. Or do you think just caring for the children will completely fill her time? Thanks

Putting a wash load on - children's bedding perhaps. 3yr old does not nap but might 'help' with stripping beds and putting in washer.

Making a dent in the washing can help, as they do three days per week maybe one load of clothes, one of bedding.

I’m a nanny I have a routine, every Monday I change his bed/sleep sack and do a laundry wash hang it up etc. Fold it when it’s dry.

I cook his meals, I batch cook a lot as well so there’s always something in the freezer.

I always leave the play/eating areas tidy and clean. I don’t mind emptying/stacking a dishwasher etc

On my last day of the week I give the toys a bit of a sort out.

That’s about it really.

The only nannies I know who do housework are ones who look after children who are at nursery / school for hours.

We expect the house to be left clean and tidy at the end of the day (so basically as she found it). So any mess created by her or children to be cleaned up.
Cooking for the children should be done by her rather than you.
With 2 children at home during the day, I suspect she won't have much time to do much else apart from put a wash on, but I would add nursery duties as time allows to the contract as I assume that your 3 year old will go to nursery at some point soon and then she'll have a bit more time.

I do all nursery duties
Changing children’s beds
Washing and ironing
Dusting and tidying their bedrooms and playroom (playroom must be tidied by children/parents at weekends too though!)
Cooking and cleaning up after meals

I also do family on line shop and menu plan for the whole family. I will also prep vegetables and marinade meat/fish for my employers 2/3 times a week or pop potatoes in the oven before we head up for bath so they are ready when employers have read and said goodnight to the children.

I will empty kitchen/children’s bathroom/playroom bins (I fill them during the day so why wouldn’t I?)

I will empty the dish washer in the morning (again, I fill it during the day! Approx 2/3rds is mine and the children’s)

I will occasionally pop employers clean washing in the dryer/on the airer, fold it and place in their bedroom but I do warn them not to expect it!

I buy all children’s clothes/shoes with a little input in shoes from MB as our shoe tastes differ, once I’ve been with a family for a while I get to know their taste and have a little more autonomy.

I buy all craft equipment for my charges craft afternoon. MB has stated that anything under £10 I don’t have to check with her.

I run errands for my employers, dry cleaning, clothes repairs, post Office Depot to collect parcels, post office to send letters and parcels, anything else they need me to pick up.

I source handymen, electricians, gas men, cleaners, window cleaners, repairers for white goods (I found a very reasonable insurers of white goods when they moved house and all were included in the sale, we had a new for old washing machine, tumble drier and dishwasher from them in the last 2 years. DB loves me for this!) deliveries (order and state delivery times for DB’s wine and MB’s clothes!) I’ll take the car to the garage for service/MOT/any other problems, get it cleaned inside and out when needed (usually monthly) and make sure the tank is full on a Friday!

The latter two are as and when I have time when children are little and during nursery/school hours once they are older.

I have had 1-4 children throughout my career and have helped all my families in similar ways.

I feel a nanny is there to make the employers home life easier. They get so little time with their children so I make their weekends as free as I possibly can so they have quality time with their children, not running off here and there to drop/collect things, fill up the car, clean the house (they have all had cleaners and current family, cleaner does two wash loads (adds children’s if the load isn’t full) and ironing each week)

Wow, Caillard, you do a lot!

Thanks for all your responses and sorry for me being slow getting back. Calliard very impressed, you sound incredibly capable. I suspect our nanny won't have much time for house chores until my son starts nursery hopefully in the spring. Thanks again!

Hi
You say the nanny takes the two little ones to playgroups. Do you mean mum and baby type groups? Where the nanny would stay.
I work three days per week , 7 am to 7 pm.
I have one under five at home in the day , who naps on the afternoon. In holidays also have a four year old at home.
I always make a point of having my break. Statutory 40 minutes. Paid as i have sole charge. I take this when toddler is napping. If older child is home , he sits with me and plays with quiet toys or watches a TV. He understands im putting feet up and not available to play , although of of course i supervise him. Sometimes i do get up before 40 minutes and batch cook.
Housework in three days:
I strip, wash, dry , remake both childrens beds each week.
Hoover , damp dust playroom each week.
Most days i do a childrens wash, hang up or dry , put clothes away.
I clean all toys.
Keep buggy clean.
Buy food if required.
Prepare lunch and dinner. I often batch cook when toddler sleeping. Always prepare food from.scratch.
I also take parcels in, collect dry cleaning, post parcels etc.
We do activities at home every day, eg craft, painting , messy play, as well.as meet other nannies at groups, park etc most days.
I would ask your nanny to do childrens beds one day a nd do a childrens wash the other days. Dont get her to iron their clothes , its a waste of time imo for children. She should also be able to cook a meal for them each day. If she os young/inexperienced then introduce this all gradually.

It’s easy if you get in to a routine and make a game of it with the children. Monday morning when I start, I go straight to bedrooms and strip beds and grab child/ren’s laundry basket and towels, head downstairs and pop bedding in machine, get lunch out, empty dishwasher while children are eating breakfast with one or both parents. Take children up to get dressed and remake the beds while they play/help depending on their age, spend more time throwing the duvet over them or burying them in pillows than actually making the beds! Get the children washed/dressed/teeth brushed, quickly clean the toilet, sink and bath and empty bin. Take laundry out if machine and put in tumble drier or hang on washing line, put next load on. Head out to classes/toddler groups/see friends, picking up or dropping off anything if I’m passing.

Home for lunch.

While lunch is cooking, fold dry laundry, hang out wet, pop in another load. Children to bed up to 2 hours or quiet time in their room 45-60 minutes.

Tidy up from lunch, iron bedding, sort laundry. Prep dinner for children, myself and employers. Make any phone calls, send orders. (In winter I usually prep meat and veg to put in slow cooker the following morning a couple of times a week)

Get children up, usually have a story, tidy and dust bedrooms and put pyjamas and clean towels/face cloths in bathroom. (Pyjamas on radiator in winter!)

Children have a snack, I finish sorting laundry. We do baking/crafts/meet friends/go swimming/educational play/park and then free play while I finish dinner or play with them if it just needs baking or in slow cooker. Tidy playroom, dinner, children have 20 minutes tv while I tidy up from dinner, sweep and mop the floor if needed.
Check downstairs is tidy, head up for bath, bosses home sometime between 6:30/7:30 and I’m finished.

Tuesday lunch time I iron any clothes that need it.

Wednesday nap time is free time after tidying lunch and dinner prep is done (usually simple dinner!)

Thursday morning I grab laudry baskets again and iron at nap time.

Friday is free time after tidy up, prep and I sit in front of the tv and meal plan and do Ocado shop to arrive Monday lunch time.

I have plenty of time to play with the children and do fun things with them. I also have plenty of down time whilst sitting with children while they play. I encourage all my charges to play by themselves for 15-30 minutes while I sort laundry and meals.

I work 10-12 hours a day, we are out of the house for 2-2:30 hours in the morning and 2 hours 2-3 days a week depending on the weather so I have plenty of time to do my chores.

calliard you are a total godsend to your employers! id love to have a nanny like you!.

I would describe calliard's role as that of 'Nanny/Housekeeper' - it's not usual for a nanny to be so involved with the running of the family's everyday life.

As a nanny myself, I'm happy to do the washing up/load and empty dishwasher, set off washing machine (though would expect employers to sort loads into bags ready) and hang out to dry, cook for the children, clean up any mess the children had made with me, empty the kitchen bin when full and draw the curtains when it's gone dark.

I wouldn't voluntarily dust, hoover, iron, cook for the parents, change lightbulbs (unless it was say, the only one in the child's bedroom), do a big shop or tidy up after family, and would be pissed off if asked to do so.

I wouldn't mind (if asked nicely!) running simple errands for the parents (posting a parcel, dropping off dry cleaning, picking up bits from supermarket etc) arranging dental or doctors appointments for the little ones, stripping children's beds, taking food out of freezer for parents, feeding/cleaning out pets or watering houseplants.

How happy your nanny feels about doing extra 'household' stuff will largely depend on what you're paying her - If I were calliard I'd want a good £10,000 on top of the average nanny rate if working full time! Their feelings will also be dependent on what you're doing while she's working. I used to think dark thoughts on the dad from my last family when he'd spend the morning getting under my feet in the house, and the afternoon out killing things, and then moan at me if I hadn't lugged the boxes of recycling out to be collected. If I'd been working for a surgeon working 14-hour days I expect I would have felt differently!!

littlemiss as someone who is married to a doctor, believe me you'd still harbour dark thoughts!!

@littlemisscomper - I class myself as nanny/house manager.

I don’t do employers laundry, I tell them at interview that I will dry/fold on occasion, if it becomes expected, I stop doing it at all.

I don’t dust, vacuum or iron for the employers but I’m happy to make or prep extra for their dinner, doesn’t take long to do extra and employers are told at interview that it is only done if I have the time. I like to do the family shop as I then know exactly what is in the house!! If I leave to to employers, I usually have to run out to get ingredients, which is a pain if you’re cooking/prepping whilest the child/ren are napping! Also know that all my yummy snacks/drinks are in as half the time employers do food shop in the lounge and forget about the shopping list on the fridge, in my experience anyway.

I do not get involved in pet care (unless it’s an emergency) and I don’t do gardening, apart from growing a few things with the children.

I do not get involved in putting out bins but I will bring them in once emptied, mainly because the dustmen leave the bins right in front of the gates!!

I get well paid for what I do. I get a lot of extra holidays each year (last year almost 12 weeks, fully paid. My employers are also very generous with Christmas, birthday and anniversary of my start date (which includes a very nice pay rise, without asking!)

I make it clear at interview that I will not be taken for granted, things stop happening if they don’t appreciate all I do!!

Oh! I also book bin cleans bimonthly!