Having problems finding aupair. Is having 4 DC putting people off or is it something else?

[jb707]

I am using aupair world to try and find someone and not having much luck. Is there anyone else out there with 4 kids who has successfully found an aupair? I am in a small town.

Four children and a small town would put a lot of au pairs off I should think! Are you offering a really nice package to compensate? Good pay, big room, own bathroom, use of a car etc?

I worked in Belgium as au-pair in 2006, 4 children,in a village, 40mins by train to Brussels. I loved it! Don't be dissapointed and keep trying. I loved it there because of the fresh air, I had a bicycle so every evening I was going to a lake, it was quiet, the family was nice to me, I love outdoors so it was a great place for me , lots of trees, lakes, grass

i have 6 kids and i found au-pairs.

u will get someone just keep trying.

itfcbabe- did you use au pair world or another agency?

Willow -What sort of package should i offer- how -much should i pay fo 25hrs plus 2 evenings babysitting?

I think London au pairs tend to get £60-£70 a week, more outside London.

jb707 - on the plus side - the APs I've had since I've had 4 DSs were there for the job, not the free healthcare, money, to meet an English guy etc. They really wanted to look after kids. It's quality, not quantity you need, so don't give up hope. I pay £80 a week, like you I'm outside London and although things are cheaper, it costs APs more to get around.

cheapskatemum-how do you find your au-pairs?
I am email lots from au pair world but not many are getting back to me. Any hints?

jb. I have found that the way you present yourself on apw has a huge impact. I have found that providing shedloads of info in the 'letters' gets you lots more applicaitons and the more honest you are (average pay, place can be boring, chaotic household) the more genuine the applications become. I used to get loads of applications but no replies to my follow-up emails. Now I get less applications when I advertise, but they are all very genuine.

It may depend on how old your dcs are. I had problems finding an ap when my 3 were younger and I always had to use an agency. I think most of the aps from APW were looking for an easier life! Helping with 3 under 3s didn't appeal for some reason!

However, now that my twins are at school full time and youngest in nursery 4 days a week it hasn't been so difficult.

I also agree that location plays a big part. So many APs seem to want to live in London or by the sea. We're only 40 mins from central London but it is still hard.

Good luck.

4 kids would put me off if I were alone, I'm okay with 4 kids now but then I'll be working with my partner, so it's an extra pair of hands with me!

Honestly though, be blunt on your profile, and have a good offer going (maybe gym membership or something?) to compensate for the amount of kids! And do you really need two nights babysitting? Many girls would be put off by that, especially if it's in social times.

as a nanny i have had 4, though obv 2 is easier

but aps arent trained and often dont have a lot of exp in childcare and may find 4 off putting

guess depends on ages and how all 4 are together, and if there are lots of activitys to get to

I have 6 and am finding it very hard this time round even though I clearly state that they are only going to have to look after the youngest 2. I think it's the amount of children generally!

Have three and live in small village and have no trouble recruiting, I do offer a car so that AP can link up with other APs in nearby town.

Are you logging on to APW two or three times a day to keep your profil near the top of the list? It is amazing how quickly you can drift on to the fifth page and obscurity.

I generally let the APs approach me, I only email somebody who has recently added a profile, if you email somebody who has already got 20+ contacts you will get lost in the noise.

I worked as an AP for a family with 4 children. When I left they put an advert on AP world and received only 4 replies.

Like others have said, put lots of information on your profile and also add pictures.

Hi! Sorry- this thread also sank like a family's APW profile can! I second what others have said - give lots of details from the outset. We also offer a car, say how nice the room is, we are half an hour away from the coast, so that might help. I'm surprised Badpups feels 40 min.s away from London is too far. When we were in Barnet it was much easier to recruit. Kittywise - I said I had 2 kids once the older 2 were not going to be around for the AP to deal with. Obviously, in my letter I explained the whole family situation. We use aupairworld. Used to use greataupairs as well, but got far fewer enquiries from them.

i have used a few agencies.can't remember the names off hand
on nannyjob there is a link for au-pair agencies at the side.
it has been hit and miss with them all, i have had 8 au-pairs over 13 years 3 have been fab, 3 ok and 2 awful and both went within 3 days!!!

also put an ad on gumtree, i got a fab 17 yr old australian on gumtree, she lasted 1 year which is what she said at the beginning

good luck
xx