16 year old babysitter during day at weekend

[Newtothis12345]

Hi,
I’ve seen an advert for a 16 year old babysitter, who is off to college soon to do childcare. She has done a bit of babysitting before. I have asked her mother how much she charges but she isn’t sure yet. Before I meet her I thought I’d get advice from others.

We are looking at having her for 3/4 hours on a Sunday- we would be around the house so we wouldn’t expect sole charge at all, it would more be like a big sister role. It would totally depend on the mood of the children but the aim would be to give my husband and I a bit of time to do some exercise, catch up on housework, life admin, etc.

We have 2 toddlers so would expect her to play in the sandpit with one/both, push them on the swing, read the same story 1000 times, do some cooking with one of them etc. Basically be another pair of hands to keep the kids happy.

I’ve seen the minimum wage for under 18s is £5.18/hr. I have used a nanny on an ad hoc basis (she’s mid 30s, totally qualified, has both children sole charge, capable of driving the children, putting them to bed, nappies, keeping the house tidy, cooking for them, not fazed if they’re ill etc), she’s amazing and charges £12/hr. I will keep using her when I need solid childcare for work but she seems a bit over qualified to be an additional pair of hands on a Sunday morning.

Any thoughts?

We are outside London, about 3 hours drive away, quite rural, if that makes any difference.

16 year old is way too young to have responsibility of a child let alone 2 toddler's and expect them to follow all those requirements.

Hi, maybe my initial post wasn’t very clear. I would be in the house. It would just be another pair of hands. She would not have responsibility of any children and the only requirement to follow would be to keep the kids happy. So if one was happy painting with me and the other wanted to play football in the garden, she would go out and kick a ball around. In an ideal work, once the kids had warmed up to her, they might both play in the sandpit with her while I did a fitness video in the living room. I would be in the house and obviously provide all meals and be on hand if my kid got upset, hurt themself, wanted me etc.

I understand, you did state it in your original post but still 16 years old far too young to take on that kind of role... Imo, wouldn't u rather have someone with more experience than an inexperienced 16 year old?

Sounds like a great idea. If she’s off to do childcare soon then this will be great experience for her and she wouldn’t be doing anything that an older sibling of that age wouldn’t do for pocket money. Go for it 😊

I think it all sounds fine but you might need to try it and see how it goes- if she's fairly outgoing and food with kids she might be great at keeping one or both busy but if she's a bit shyer then they might take longer to warm up to her and keep gravitating back to you. If she hasn't got much experience then she might find it hard to keep them engaged. Could go really well and be a useful arrangement, could end up not being a huge help but I don't think there's any harm at all in giving it a go. You're around so she won't have to manage any issues alone.

I think this sounds like a nice idea and certainly worth a trial.
Are the kids used to interacting with other people in the house and not disturbing you if you are busy with something else?
One of my little ones would have definitely sought me out in this situation, which would be fine if I wanted one on one time, while the other was entertained elsewhere, but I wouldn't have wanted to pay much for that.
£6-8 an hour maybe, a couple of trials and see how it goes?

I think it sounds fine. They aren't in sole care, you are around.
They gain extra experience, you get some help.

I think it’s definitely worth trying

Sounds good, give it a try and see how it goes
although depending on her personality and the kids they may not immediately warm up to her and the idea of a random playing with them while mom/dad is there

I'm surprised at the first comment, some 16yo live alone with their own child so a 16yo is old enough to do some babysitting alone never mind just being in the house as an extra pair of hands while the parents are also there. Sounds like a win win situation, you get help and she gets experience in a safe and managed way.

Was the normal thing when I was growing up but on a Saturday . Looked after kids whilst parents went shopping or out for coffee . But it was hard when parents were around as naturally kids preferred parent. Maybe drop off at softplay in bad weather, off for walks in good . If baking, etc. don't be wandering in , leave them to it .

In my teenage world, the role of a babysitter was to put kids to bed, read a story, and then watch a bit of telly listening to make sure they were okay while they (hopefully) slept. You are asking a lot of her if you are expecting her to cook and bend with your kids

Bake not bend

Sounds fine to me if you are around in case she gets overwhelmed.

Eh?

It's basic babysitting and the parents are around. What exactly is the 16yo too young for?

Not debating over this I have my opinion and you have yours... Just because 16 year olds have kids and their own place doesn't mean they are experienced to take on that role as well as cooking as the op stated aswel

I assumed 'cooking' meant make some cookies or fairy cakes, not make a 3 course family meal.

Like I mentioned I have my opinion you have yours... Not going to start a debate on the op post about it.

Sounds lovely and a perfectly reasonable arrangement, no idea what to pay though! When I was 15 I looked after 2 children Monday to Friday in the summer holidays, we had a blast.

Most 16 year olds don’t have their own place or their own children. Most 16 year olds, esp those going into childcare, are capable of playing with younger children, keeping them occupied while adults are in the next room, and sticking a pizza in the office or making chocolate crispy cakes, If they can’t them they need to be brought up to speed quickly.

No debate is necessary.

Hi, the cooking would be rice crispie cakes or smoothies or similar. It would just be an activity for the kids. I would provide meals for children.

I was married with a child at that age and funnily enough managed not to kill either my son or my husband. I was also babysitting from 12 years old. 16 is NOT too young to care for a child.

Come on of course it's not

My daughter used to charge £7 per hour and it’s great experience. She is now a trainee teacher and was able to draw on her experience for her Uni interview.