How long did it take you to recruit your au pair and how many

[HarrietTheSpy]

sites/agencies, etc were you using at the time?

TIA

H harriet, you would have thought.. well i did that loads of english nannie would be cueing up to come but not one bean from a british nanny...OMG are we that bad? a few americans and a german show interest but so far nothing good... wel no one who can start asap. one who can start 21st decmeber and another on 31st december....arse. May have tp pay large sumd of money for some one local till then. really dont want to do that! and i want some continuity.
Still will keep plugging away.

Chloe any weekend joy? Almondbury said they thought it would take us A WEEK to find something. Responses from both have dwindled to zilch. Weird. Maybe they assume we've found someone because it's been up for a month now?!

ditto one amercan girl interested. but needs a passport... and a visa..
noone else has replied and i emailed about 20 people.
will have to look else where i think.

I'm losing track of which people I've emailed Chloe. Progress?

Regarding the yank and a visa, in November the rules change, the old au pair scheme is dead and you have the new and shiny youth mobility scheme, she may be eligibile.

Nobody seems to know how it is going to work and what little details the government has are here

I think Chloe is in Australia though...

Oops apologies.

Though I believe the new UK system was copied wholesale from recognised the best practice of the Australian system

Okay all
How many people have had au pairs who are planning to use their time to get a language qualification?

I am thinking the time commitment would mean that an au pair plus schedule may be unrealistic...

Hi harriet, I think we have found someone.. eueka.. a lovely english girl who can stay for 12 months,seems great. not much experience with babies but has some with toddlers so sure she will be fine. her parents speak highly of her and she can be here on october 16th... ideal as i stat work on nov 3rd so a couple of weeks to adjust ect.
Note usre about the language thing. i hd one that wanted to go to english school and i turned her down because it wouldnt ahve worked because i work shifts and couldnt say yes ill be free on friday and wednesday for example.
still depends what works for you..

hi chloe
I'm having another 'chat' with someone tomorrow. If it goes well, I'm hoping she can come for a week beforehand as a sort of trial. We can get to know each other a bit and she can see the lay of the land and if it's likely to suit. It won't be EXACTLY the same because I'm on maternity leave but I'm sure the personality mix and whether we can communicate is going to be about 70% of whether it all works out.

In terms of expenses, I was planning to compensate her for the train fare and food along the way. It's a pretty straightforward trip. And then paying her for the week.

Has anyone done something like this before?

Hi again. we finaly have someone.. well two.. i have found a home for the spare au pair too! a really nice sounding normal 22 year old snglish girl. hows your hunt going? Id do just as you say pay her for the weeka nd train fare etc. we dont have that luxry. had to go on gut instinct. ours flys out on the 16th october so all fingers and toes crossed.

Pleased it's all worked out for you. Everything crossed. We are doing the trial run. It's eating up a good deal of our half term but I think it's worth it.

Good Luck!

Chloe
How's it all going? Swimmingly I hope!!!

Ours has been and gone and I think...we're there. I have some lingering doubts. One is that it's difficult to take up any references as she's only babysat for her parent's friends...or else been at university...so, I could think I was making myself feel better by taking them up but they could be anyone. Seems genuine though, very well mannered, good with the baby (who obviously speaks no English)...seems a little bit scared of DC1 who said tonight: "She's not very good at English is she?" Also, she won't be looking after the baby (maybe only collecting her) who is going to nursery. A bit quiet, but we've put her in some daunting situations to be fair. (Not sole charge but children's parties with lots and lots of people and confusion...and meals with friends - who do speka her language to be fair but didn't that day.) Given some of the problems I hear about on here, I feel we've drawn a good lot overall. I'm inclined to give her a break re the quietness as I've lived with families abroad before too where I didn't speak the language and I know how exhausting it can be. But the other thread going on here at the moment which talks about au pairs with a general unspecified sadness worries me...also DC1 is what people describe as a 'handful'and I supposed I'm a bit worried about how she'll cope when we're not around. She'll have her for three and a half hours a day, three days a week, on her own.