Rough cost of a nanny?

[Chestnut99]

I'll be going back to work in a couple of months but have had my head so deep in the sand about it that I have missed the boat re nurseries, so we're looking for a nanny. I have absolutely no idea what sort of cost we are looking at - we want a live-out nanny for three days a week for a one year old and we are in SW London.

Can anyone give me a broad idea of what sort of wages we should be expecting to pay?

Thank you

Example Costs of employing a Nanny - in that I worked out that a nanny would cost around £37,000 for a 55 hours week. So I expect 3 days (so lets say 33 hours) would be around the £22,000 mark.

Have you picked yourself up from the floor yet?

A nanny is often not financially viable if they only care for one child. It is much better once you have 3 children. This is due to the cost of a nanny not going up much (if at all) when the care involves more children. Whereas with a Childminder or Nursery the costs are on a per-child basis.

You need to factor in food for the child and the nanny, and the cost of outings to playgroups /swimming pools/ whatever. And you need to heat your house all day - this adds quite a lot to the cost in winter IME.

Have you looked for a nannyshare? That will cut the cost but brings other complications. Simply childcare is the place to start for south London.

A part-time nanny in London will cost you more than a full time nursery place. That's why it really only becomes cost effective when you have more than one child. We paid around £1300 (gross) a month for 3 days a week live-out nanny, and she was 'cheap' because she had her own child that she brought with her.

nannyshare or have you considered a childminder?

Thanks for all of these answers - money and ideas - all very much appreciated Will need to get the calculator out and the thinking cap on ...