Norland nanny or otherwise for a medically challenging child?

[WheatHeat]

Hello,

I am in the position of having a child who has some unexpected medical needs that require someone to get to know them really well and give them concentrated attention in order to not miss any dips/minor seizures that need treatment.

We were considering a nanny, and not knowing much about this world (first two children were at a nursery), were thinking we need someone for whom childcare is a vocation and is trained fully in first aid / willing to step in in this way. Norland nannys came to mind - does anyone have experience of them especially in slightly more complex situations? Any other suggestions are very welcome! Not too sure how far out to start looking for one or even where to go.

Thank you

I would say it's more about the person than their qualifications. Anyone can be trained in your child's condition as long as they are willing to learn and have the right temperament.
Many years ago, we employed a young NNEB qualified (now NVQ level 3) nanny to care for our DD with disabilities and complex health needs - which subsequently included seizures. Having reflected in our actions of employing this person, we have always concluded that we were very lucky to have got the caring, capable person that she was. She had zero experience of the level of need that my DD had (only of mainstream children) but was calm and willing to learn, which were exactly the attributes she needed. After all, I had no 'qualifications' in DD to start with either, so we were all on a steep learning curve.

Is this a money no object situation for you? Because Norland trained nannies will be looking for top salaries.

@legoplaybook it's doable, a stretch but doable. Has the added benefit of meaning we don't need to pay for wraparound care for other children, but yes, certainly more than we planned. Only for three years before school.

@ohtowinthelottery that truly sounds ideal. How did you find your nanny? Childcare.co.uk is awash with nannys but none stand out. Ones I've met out and about who I would be happy with have met their families through unusual ways, seems a needle in a haystack for such an important person.

@WheatHeatWe live in a rural county so the choice of agencies and available people wasn't huge! We just interviewed 2 people and tbh we were taking a gamble at the time. She was a lovely young lady with some post college experience, but not with children like our DD. She later (many years later) admitted that she went home and told her mum she didn't think she could do the job. When we rang and offered it, she was so shocked she just said "thank you". She stayed for over 4 years until DD started school full time. We just hit lucky.

Does your DC have a social worker? If so, have a chat with them and see if you can get any help from social services. Sometimes DC will be eligible for direct payments, which allow you to choose and manage the carers yourself. If there is no existing social worker and you think your DC might qualify for help, you can contact your local council and ask for the social services team to do a needs assessment for your DC.

We were just really lucky to be honest - we also ended up unexpectedly needing a nanny for DS2 because of his health needs. We spoke to a family at DS1's school about how they'd found their nanny as she always struck us as very nice and engaged, and it turns out that they were moving to school wrap around the next year and so she was able to come and work for us. She was particularly interested in working with children with additional needs, and just like you say for her childcare is a vocation. She was just registered on childcare.co.uk though, I don't think there's any special sites for children with more complex needs.

https://www.snapcare.co.uk/childcare.aspx

I’ve heard a few people over the years have good experiences with this agency for children who have a slightly higher need for whatever reason than standard childcare offers. Haven’t worked with them directly myself but was the first place that sprung to mind when I read your post.
Hope it helps 😊

@ohtowinthelottery and @WheatHeat Do you live anywhere near each other? I just think the person @ohtowinthelottery employed sounds perfect.

I know you said it is 'doable' but Norland trained nannies frequently earn £50000, sometimes double that.+ Unless you are in London you will probably need to provide accommodation.

abodestaff.co.uk/how-to-hire-a-norland-nanny/

@sashh The person I employed went on to gain further qualifications after she left us, and now has a career that doesn't involve nannying (although still works with children and families).

@ohtowinthelottery that's good, I'm glad she is still involved with children.

When you register on childcare.co.uk you can write your own job description.. laying out exactly the kind of nanny you are looking for.
(Nannies look for jobs there too. I'm only saying this incase you've just quickly looked for nannies and not realised.)
I was an x children's nurse and explicitly put my qualifications and experience in my profile..
You can always state you are willing to train the right person..
As a PP above says sometimes you find the perfect person...
Good luck..
(I'm retired now but if you had been local I would have jumped at the chance to be interviewed...)