What do I pay a teenage babysitter?

[boogeek]

The last time I had cause to worry about such a thing I was 15 myself, and the going rate was £1 per child per hour! I suspect it has increased somewhat since then.
I have 2 children, 2 1/2 and 5. I'll have them all ready for bed but she will need to read a story and get them into bed (they are very amenable so I don't anticipate any problems) then hopefully she should have a peaceful evening. She's 18.
I was thinking £5/hour, does that sound about right?

bump

sure any 18yr will be happy for £5per hour so over min wage for sitting on her bum for a few hours

I run babysitting courses and we suggest follwoing the 6hr basic course they charge

13/14yr olds- £2.50-£3.50 an hr

15/16yr old - £3-£5 an hr

17/18yr old - £4-£6 an hr

this obv depends on any experience they may have of babysitting siblings, neighbours/friends children already under their belt.

Thanks, that is helpful.

£5 per hour and you have to get her home safely.

Thats what I pay.

Arg, it has got more complicated - she is bringing her sister. Do I still pay £5 and expect them to split it, or do I have to pay more (not double, that would be madness)?

No, just pay her - not her sister.

If you want to be extra nice - leave some nice choccie biscuits or a couple of cakes for them to eat during the evening.

Oh I'd have done that anyway! I didn't know that was extra nice ;) Can you tell I am used to unpaid favour-sitters, not the for-money kind?

£5 per hour, No extra for bringing a friend/sister. I leave a couple of cokes, some biscuits/ cake and crisps.

I used to get paid a fiver an our for babysitting.

Though, must admit, on one occasion, my old boss (who I babysat for) asked if I could take his friends kids too, but it'd be fine as they'd be in bed...

All hell broke loose. They had four kids and them I had my normal two on top of that, two of the 4 being toddlers and having never seen me before freaked. Managed to calm them down when my normal charge decided that she had to comfort them, they started screaming again. Come 12pm they're all on the trampolines outside soaking wet but refusing to come in. The parents all came in about 3/4am and all the kids were either wide awake or being kept up by the others as they were all really horrible children and then my boss was the only one that paid me, gave me £20. I turned to the other guy and he fobbed me off. Cheeky bastard. The new people asked me to go the next week and when I told them to get lost (literally, I said I'd never look after their children again, especially after being fobbed off by them!) they tried to get my little sister there. Needless to say she fell for it and ended up in tears within a couple of hours of arriving...

Moral of the story, I never babysat again

I just thought I'd share it, as my babysitting wage was always good up until that point and it just reminded me of it.

Sorry for the hijack

hides in corner now

LOL. I don't think my two will try anything like that!

Lol, you'll be amazed at how well kids can wind up babysitters :p I used to babysit for a few families when I was younger and I think the only reason I survived some of that was because I was as hyper as the kids

I was 'handcuffed' to a chair at one point by two boys (playing cops an robbers as I had them during the day). Those little toy handcuffs thankfully, because they threw the key and it got lost, but the toys have those little mechanisms that you can undo lol

I remember the same two boys climbing onto the roof of a six /seven foot shed as well (the had a toy shed next to it and a tree, good fun!)

If a friend comes with her thats up to her whether she splits it with her friend.

A few times a friend came with me when i babysat as a teenager and I split it 50/50 with them but that was my choice to have them there and not the parents so they shouldnt have to pay more.

just a few drinks, crisps, chocolate for them

mind you i am a fruit freak and love bananas so when I night nanny thats what people usually have in for me.