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Paid childcare

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

Original poster

Koru kids pay

20 replies

nannypaywoes · 08/08/2022 21:28

We have an after school nanny from Koru kids for the last 2-3 months and she's been great. We have her for 30 hours a week and the we pay Koru £15/hr

She did some babysitting recently and charged us £10.80/hr cash and then I realised that out of the £15 I pay Koru kids she's only getting £10.80?! That's 1/3 off almost? I'm quite shocked by how much they take off

I haven't said anything yet to her but I am considering just terminating the contract with Koru and hiring her directly so at least the pay I give her goes directly to her? Anyone else done this? Will there be any penalties for doing this?

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Muppethotel · 08/08/2022 21:45

Are you sure £10.80 is the rate she gets from Koru? Is her babysitting in the evening when kids are in bed? Could she charge less in those circumstances? Our boys nursery worker charges less to babysit him at night then she does in the day.
there are pros to going through an agency, and £10.80 might not be her Koru fee, so I wouldn’t do anything drastic x

Original poster
nannypaywoes · 08/08/2022 21:49

I just checked the Koru kids website and it really is £10.80 gross for nannies which I am so surprised by. I think I need to give Koru a call and ask them where does the £4.20 go..

The babysitting was during the weekend hours so if anything she should charge us more..

OP posts:
Ylvamoon · 08/08/2022 21:51

Check your contact (and hers), there might be something in there to prevent this from happening.

Plus, the agency might give you some "perks" like holiday & sickness cover. And your nanny might be employed rather than self employed and have better working conditions.

TeachesOfPeaches · 08/08/2022 21:55

How do you think the agency makes their money if all of the fee goes to the nanny?

Original poster
nannypaywoes · 08/08/2022 22:05

Thank you for the feedback, I think you are right that holiday pay is included as part of that hourly rate.

Of course I knew that the agency had to make some money of the hourly rate but 30% feels excessive?

OP posts:
Schoolchoicesucks · 08/08/2022 22:14

I think there will be a hugely punitive charge stated in the contract for if you do hire her directly. Of course they may never find out. But there is a risk.
You will have to register as an employer and submit payroll returns, pay employers ni if earnings are high enough etc. And pay holiday. There are agencies that can provide this and it may be cheaper than the £4+ per hour you're paying Koru. But it's not free or hassle free.

Schoolchoicesucks · 08/08/2022 22:15

nannypaywoes · 08/08/2022 22:05

Thank you for the feedback, I think you are right that holiday pay is included as part of that hourly rate.

Of course I knew that the agency had to make some money of the hourly rate but 30% feels excessive?

Holiday pay will be 12+% of that 30%

tenbob · 08/08/2022 22:19

Is Koru paying her tax and NI?

don’t underestimate the cost and hassle of employing a nanny directly, and having to run payroll, pay tax bills, keep a track of holidays etc
Them doing it for you for a set fee has its advantages…

But £10.80 is a very low net salary for a nanny. The going rate for nannies around me is now around £14 net

Muppethotel · 09/08/2022 07:38

To echo what others have said, I don’t think £4.20 an hour is much to Koru at all. They’re taking a lot of hassle away from you, plus they need to make money themselves. If she was your employee you would spend a lot of time and energy keeping her on the books. It’s horrible to see costs broken down like that, but I think we would get a shock looking at cost breakdowns of any industry. Having said that, £10.80 is very very low. I would want mine to be earning more! We pay £11 an hour for when he’s fast asleep and she’s watching Netflix! Where in UK are you?

NurseryNurse10 · 10/08/2022 19:00

I'm with koru kids although not found a job with them as yet. When I do start working with them, I will only be getting £11 an hour. This is despite being fully qualified and years of experience in many areas of childcare.
I'm not surprised your nanny is on that wage. I guess it's the price to pay for all the perks. Them finding the jobs for the nanny, taking care of tax and NI as well as insurance.
If you didn't use the company anymore, you would have to take on all that which many parents do not like. That's what made me go with koru kids as finding a job independently means many parents don't want the responsibility of becoming the nannys employer.

tenbob · 11/08/2022 19:42

@NurseryNurse10

Just out of interest, why are you registered with Koru?

all the ads I’ve seen for them seem to suggest their USP is that they match up students with spare time and families looking for after school care (which most professional nannies don’t want because it isn’t enough hours)

I would have thought a professional and experienced nanny is going to be massively overqualified for the jobs Koru can find, and beyond the expectations of most families

RNBrie · 11/08/2022 19:51

I worked it out and it was pretty much the same cost to me going through Koru Kids as it was employing directly, Paying NI, tax and pension and a payroll company to administer everything and my nanny would have netted around the same. I stuck with Koru Kids to avoid the admin.

Koru Kids USP is after school care. Most fully qualified nannies around here want full time work, our two Koru Kids nannies have both been students and both been amazing.

NurseryNurse10 · 11/08/2022 22:19

Koru kids isn't just after school roles. There are many jobs on there, just more known for after school nannies.
To be honest many parents don't want the hassle of sorting out tax and NI or they want ofsted registered. Most parents I have had potential jobs with have wanted me to become self employed which is why I decided to go through Koru. Unlike other agencies, I can choose my own families and work on my own terms. They sort out all the legal stuff even contracts and the like.
Being a highly qualified and experienced childcare worker does not necessarily make the whole finding a job thing easier, believe me.

Henddraig · 11/08/2022 22:31

I didn’t hire through Koru for this reason. It would have meant our after school nanny would have been paid less than the london living wage. I don’t really see how they can justify taking almost 1/3 for admin. It doesn’t include the tax - that is taken from the nanny’s share. So they pay tax on the £10-12ph. The family is the employer, not Koru.

Original poster
nannypaywoes · 11/08/2022 23:09

Thank you all for the feedback. It's turned out after adding holiday pay on top, our nanny gets paid £12/hr
We still pay her for holidays on top as well (she still puts the hours in via the timesheet)

koru have said after 6 months they increase her pay by 50p an hour then at 12 months another 50p so she will be on more then.

OP posts:
NewmummyJ · 13/08/2022 11:09

Isn't Koru Kids owned by multi millionaire wife of Rishi Sunak...? so I expect that's where the money is going, whilst they pay nanny's less than the London loving wage....

HeartofAss · 24/07/2023 17:42

She only owns about 1% of it and from Companies House it looks like it isn't making much so I doubt that

Rupiduti · 25/07/2023 22:58

It's shocking how much agencies make. I'm not going to name and shame but I know of a nanny agency that charges £45 an hour for a nanny at a festival but only pay the nannies £12 an hour. It's crazy!

Childminder60 · 09/12/2025 13:46

The nursery worker should be charging more as it is out of hours

Childminder60 · 09/12/2025 13:49

Of course it is not meant to happen but how are they going to find out? Spy on your house. It happens all the time.

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