How to find an au pair?

[LeRoom]

Is it still possible to legally host an au pair? I read that Youth Mobility Scheme visa holders can still come to the UK for this type of arrangement but i don't know if that's correct.

I'd love to host a young adult and have my kids learn about another culture. We don't really need much in terms of childcare or housework although I think that, for the arrangement to work for us, I would want some light aftershool childcare and occasional babysitting. So it would count as work and they would need a suitable visa.

How do people do this now? Are there reputable agencies that anniversary can recommend?

I think it is way more difficult post Brexit. I used to used childcare.co.uk and Au Pair world. Our last Au Pair was Canadian and had a two year visa to work in the UK. Good luck

The majority of au pair agencies have folded as there aren't enough candidates.

https://www.aupairworld.com/en/find-aupair

The people who can work here are Canadians, New Zealanders and Australians who can get Tier 5 youth mobility Visas. South Africans are also worth looking at as some of them have ancestry visas/ UK passports.

Usual hours are 25 at min wage, around £200 a week absolute minimum, most au pairs won't want less than that as the visa costs are quite high.

I agree with the comments that Brexit all but killed au pairing in the UK, though it does look like a (not huge initially) partial recovery may be on the horizon.

www.theguardian.com/politics/2025/dec/05/uk-eu-youth-mobility-scheme-could-let-tens-of-thousands-live-work-abroad