Nanny /au pair

[Countryandconfused]

We have an 8month old little girl and both work from home where our business is based. I have been on maternity leave and will be until dd is a year . We have had a fabulous girl for a few hours a week for the last 3 month help with dd. Highly qualified , warm and interactive and dd loves her . However she has another job too and with me going back to work the hours won’t suits .
We are looking for someone to do 5 half days a week as with lots of the work dd can be with me . Weekends off. I’m wondering should we be looking for a nanny or aupair . Dd is very young and I get the impression that aupairs are young students ? We have lots of space to have someone live in if they preferred but they wouldn’t really need to as their hours wouldn’t be hugely demanding . What should a nanny/aupair cost for those hours ?

Au pairs are not suitable for a baby but you may struggle to find a nanny with limited hours.

Half days might work out for a nanny who has another job before and after school and time off during the day.

You can get grandparent aged Au-Pairs - Google "granny Au-Pair" or similar. They'd expect to live in - retirees including early retirees of 50+ looking for an affordable way to travel and see the world, maybe improve their English for fun. Worth a thought given your child's age.

Thanks for your replies . Will look in to older aupairs and look at nannies too.

Au pairs aren't recommended for sole care of such young children, generally they're on a gap year/ 6 months. They also don't stay long term.

You need a nanny.

Agree, definitely a nanny. It might be harder to find someone who only wants half days as it limits their opportunity to earn extra elsewhere. Would you consider a nanny with their own child? I take my daughter to work and have been in a temp role for a while, where mum works from home 25h a week over 5 days, it works well for both of us because I am flexible and didn't want to work full time, and it's provided her little boy with company. I'm leaving in the new year as I have a permanent role but it's been so successful for them that they're hiring another nanny with her own child to fill the role permanently.

Disagree re au pairs. The OP is not wanting help until the child is one so not a very young baby. Plus she will be in the home, although working she is there for an emergency.
I have had friends who have had older au pairs in their late 20s.
The main thing with au pairs is the number of hours per day. A morning job seems perfect. With such a young child I would not expect them to do much additional housework. I would also pay for them to do a paediatric first aid course. Generally cost @ £80 to €100.
Alternatively there are nannies who might be happy with these hours. But you would need to pay a high rate to compensate for reduced hours and extra travel. It is common for nannies to work 12 hour days and thus only 3 to 4 days travel per week I stead of 5.

Hi there, I’m a nanny. What exactly are your work hours, location and pay rate please. Thanks.