Costs outside of salary

[CallMeThePooPatrol]

Hi all,

I am considering hiring a nanny & we’ve checked our finances & we can afford to do so with some careful spending on our part. However I realise there will be additional costs outside of the nanny’s salary. Please can you share some guidance on what I can expect? Should I be leaving a kitty for going out (how much?), do I need to pay mileage?

As a caveat, the nanny will have 1 of her own children with her all the time, and occasionally her other child.

Thanks!

Kity - yes, you may find £2.50 per day per child about right. Bit of experimentation at first. Will depend on activities and local costs. Also travel costs.

Mileage - yes, up to 45p per mile for work mileage done on your behalf.

Biggest cost is often Employers National Insurance. Talk to your payroll provider for an estimate of that, pension and other payroll associated costs.

Bringing their own child with them will
make a difference to activities and possibly cost. Have a chat with them about what you would pay for and what they would pay for their own child. It's hard for them to take your child to the science centre but not take their own - so if there is a per child admission cost who pays what? Find something on which you both agree.

Thanks for the advice. Yes I’ve taken into consideration everything that comes with being an employer / gross pay etc.

That’s a good point regarding activities. I am more of a person that looks for cheap / low cost activities - park, nature spot for scooting, church run baby groups etc. I would usually save farm trips etc for the weekend when my other half could come with us.

I usually give £20 a week for trips etc and £50 in school hols. She uses our car so no mileage required, if in rare occasions she does use her car we pay the HMRC published mileage rate as it avoids arguments. I assume you're also factoring in employer liability insurance premiums, mandatory employer pension contributions, subscription fees to use a payroll company (nannytax), the fact you pay 28 days holiday a year and will then need to pay for holiday cover for at least some of that, and some additional food spend , as it's customary for her to have all meals at your house when she's on duty.