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Paid childcare

Discuss everything related to paid childcare here, including childminders, nannies, nurseries and au pairs.

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Original poster

Nanny bringing her own child to work...

13 replies

TheGoddessBlossom · 09/10/2007 14:36

A childcare option I am considering is a nanny who has her own 1 year old son. She would look after my 1 and 3 year old sons. What are people's experiences of this kind of arrangement?

TIA

Bloss

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allgonebellyup · 09/10/2007 14:40

i have been working as a nanny with my own child and it always worked really well. x

Original poster

TheGoddessBlossom · 09/10/2007 14:43

Hi All gone. I must say I think it does sound like a great idea as her 1 year old could enterntain mine and vice versa. How many children do you look after with your child?

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Original poster

TheGoddessBlossom · 09/10/2007 14:44

What is a typical rate? She says she charges £8 an hour does that sound fairly standard? And do you do washing, cooking for the kids etc?

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Furzella · 09/10/2007 15:18

I think £8 is quite high for someone who brings her own child along. Usually I think you pay less if they do. We're just hiring our second nanny who doesn't have her own children and she's got 5 years of experience, super-glowy references and is qualified and we're paying her £8 per hour, net. We're in SW London.

I know people for whom this arrangement has really worked, but we didn't want to do it because of the problems when they're ill. I couldn't run the risk of my nanny not being able to come to work because her own child was ill - and certainly our dds got various colds and bugs all the time after they started socialising with other children. I guess it depends how completely critical your childcare is and whether you have back-ups. Also, I couldn't do my job completely objectively if I had my daughters with me. I'm sure some nannies can manage this really well, like allgonebellyup, but I do think it could be a bit of a risk.

Original poster

TheGoddessBlossom · 09/10/2007 16:12

yes the whole ill child issue did occur to me, but tbh if they are treating the job like other employed women/people do, wouldn't they try to get alternate childcare for their child so that they can still come to work? Of course this may not be possible...would have to find out about their own back up plans....

This woman has 13 years experience, and I do think it is a high hourly rate but hopefully we would be getting what we paid for....

OP posts:

JennaJ · 09/10/2007 16:24

Yes it works fine if you get the right nanny. I was a nanny for 10 years before I had children and work as a part time nanny and part time reg childminder.
I have 2 children of my own and for part of the week I nanny for 2 other children who are slightly younger than my own. As for sickness My children come to work even if they are ill..they just go to bed at work! All the boys ADORE each other, we are all like one big family. I get on brilliantly with the mum and adore the boys and it is the best arrangement for all of us.
I would say her hourly rate is very high.. you would expect to pay a nanny without her own children £8ph...I charge £6 an hour gross (as a childminder I pay all my own tax and NI out of that). I wouldn't charge more as its on a 'nanny share' basis with my children....

Do look into it closely, check that your nannies child is behaving in the way you would like your children to behave, check that the nanny has similar ideas of parenting methods as you (it can be very complicated if your children get told off for something that the nannies child is allowed to do!). Ask about what will happen if either set of children is sick (nanny may not want her 'baby' catching chicken pox from your boys etc).

Good luck
Jenna

ljcooper3 · 09/10/2007 17:54

One of my friends takes her little girl along to her nanny job, shes now 3 years old. She takes a reduced pay cut at £6 an hour, she is in SW London.

CBW · 09/10/2007 22:56

I've always had a nanny with her own child. Like previous poster she brings child to work when ill and everyone has a quiet day. I preferred the idea of company for the eldest when he was an only. It gets more complicated as they get older with nursery and school runs. I would recommend it though.

UniversallyChallenged · 09/10/2007 22:59

I did this when my oldest was 1 and the lady's children were 1 and 3. Worked well as the LOs could toddle together and I could play with the older one. Even when i had morning sickness i never had a day off as i thought "well Ive got to entertain dd1 so may as well go into work"

nannynick · 09/10/2007 23:04

Not having any children of my own, I've never had the issue of bring a child with me as a nanny. In theory the idea sounds good - you have someone for your 1 year old to play with - but to go with that, it is also someone else to argue with... someone else wanting attention from carer (from mummy in the case of nannies own child)... someone else who may not share toys (though will happily share illnesses). There are pros and cons.

Wanted to pick up on something...
'She says she charges £8 an hour'
Firstly, as the employer YOU decide how much YOU are paying... not the nanny. The nanny decides if they accept the job on the terms you are offering. Important I feel to get that clear in your mind to start with. Next: Net or Gross. As a nanny I get an annual gross salary, just like most other employees (it works out between £7 and £8 per hour gross - family with 4 children (2 at school), outside of London (Surrey/North Hampshire area), live-out). Hard to know if the rate is fair or not as several factors to consider, such as area and working hours. Shop around a bit, see what other applicants are expecting - see what other nanny jobs in the area are offering.

As a nanny I am contracted to cook for the children... but not washing/ironing etc. However, did two loads of washing today, plus a nappy wash. So much for not doing washing If you need washing done, then write it into the contract. If it does not matter, then leave it out, and you never know your luck it may get done anyway!

nooka · 09/10/2007 23:13

We had a nanny with child first time around, and it worked OK for a while, until I had dd and her ds started at nursery at which point it became too complicated. We then had a nanny without children who was fantastic, dh at home which was also good, another nanny without children (but a little brother during school holidays) who wasn't so good and now a childminder with three children of her own. With the childminder it is reasuring to see her very nice children, who all seem to like our two (and vice versa) and one of the reasons we picked her, but that's for just a couple of hours after school. With thr nanny options, I think that you need to measure it up against other options. It is easier and less complicated to have a nanny without children, but it shoucl be cheaper to have one with, and if you like her and you think it will work it probably will.

1dilemma · 09/10/2007 23:29

imho (which is not huge) but £8/hr is too high we were quoted around £70/day gross a few months ago. London, nanny didn't have her own child and around a 10-11 hour day

1dilemma · 09/10/2007 23:29

sorry my opinion is huge its my experience which isn't!

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