Babysitters - Who you haven't met

[nannynick]

I've just had 2 phone calls in a 5 minute period, from 2 different families both wanting a babysitter for tonight.

It still amazes me how some parents will be very trusting and contact a babysitter they have never met. While I appreciate that I may come across as a great babysitter, fully trained, Ofsted Registered etc... I would have still thought that most parents would not leave children in my care until they have met me.

Am I out of touch with this view?

It depends on how they have heard about you. I use an agency so occasionally have a new person, esp if I've left it until the last minute. But I trust the owner and know that she is very diligent in interviewing. Day care is also very different from sitting in the house with sleeping children.

Via Yahoo search - Weblog shows search keywords and that they viewed just the main home page.

I can come across as being an agency, so perhaps that gives parents added confidence. Perhaps I am just out of touch and parents are more trusting, then in the past.

Off to work now to care for 18 month old... back later I expect.

I quite often get sent to jobs without meeting the family first through my agency. I definitely wouldn't have anyone look after my ds who we hadn't met first though.

Same here!

I find it very odd. I've even said to parents (phoning to book me for the first time) "Would you like me to come over to meet your dcs?"

They v rarely say yes, even though I make it clear I wouldn't charge them to pop by for an hour or so.

Really strange, especially with babies and toddlers, and with families who aren't friends of people for whom I regularly babysit.

They could be very confident that their children will sleep (eg mine have woken twice for sitters in 7 years). In which case you are left with assessing whether the babysitter could be an abuser or is otherwise untrustworthy, and I'm not sure that simply an interview would give you sufficient reassurance on that score or not.

Exactly!

How do they know I'm not going to burgle them, phone Australlia or wee in the wrong loo?

This happened to me once. I was asked politely if I would use a different freezing lesser loo, ffs.

I used to babysit from an advert in my parents shop, we lived upstairs. If any asked about the ad or about a babysitter in the area mum would get me down from room to meet parents! Was once asked, at 13, to babysit for family so they could go watch boxing said OK then found boxing was at 3am! overnight in a hotel room! (from newquay, hotel not unusual).

Have babysat for downs children, groups of 6+, newborns without meeting parents first. All on reccomendation of my mum! never heard of agencies till I qualified. different in london I suppose.

I could never leave my 7 kids with a stranger, but since working for an agency I do know you have to meet certain requirments. They insist on childcare qualifications,at least 5 refs and more than two years experience.Any one getting a stranger from an ad is asking for trouble.

In 20 years, I've never known an agency ask for more than 3 references.

They often don't check references and qualifications, and these are easily faked.

I'm in London, where there are several billion agencies. There are only 2 I would ever use or recommend.

I do know that to be true the agency I work for did impress me with this and i know my refs were checked out. This is the only one I would use myself hope its one of your two wanderingholly

I do know that to be true the agency I work for did impress me with this and i know my refs were checked out. This is the only one I would use myself hope its one of your two wanderingholly

saff, I don't know of any babysitting agencies who will provide a babysitter to babysit 7 children. When you have / had (not sure how old your children are) someone babysit your children, did agencies require that you had two babysitters, not one?

PS. Welcome to mumsnet saff... not seen you posting before.

I've used a babysitter who we hadn't met previously, but was from a well-known agency with CRB check and references...but then, if it wasn't an agency arranged thing I would have insisted on them coming to meet the children beforehand. It's not something we would do unless it was our only choice though, usually use family or ex/current nanny (actually, usually we just don't go out). I was more concerned about how the children would feel being left with a stranger than anything else, as it was she scared them stiff (wasn't obvious when we left them, but discussing it later they said she was scarey), but it was only a couple of hours and they were asleep for the second one. We won't be using that particular sitter again.

WanderingHolly - I've got to ask - how did they know you had used the wrong loo?

I never went out when they were all small now oldest can baby sit so never had that dilema but hyperthetically would use the agency i work for