Babysitting

[Callywalls]

Apologies if I have not posted in the correct place, but I am thinking of advertising myself as a Babysitter on the Facebook page of the large estate I live on. There are loads of families who live here and I am sure some of them must need a reliable Babysitter. However,
I have a teenager who I adopted aged 3 and half so I have no actual experience with babies, only with older children. I am female, 51 and, at the moment, a stay at home mum. I am quite flexible in my availability, does it sound strange that an older woman would offer herself as a babysitter when it is usually seen as job teenagers do? Also, I have no idea what to charge (I live in the North West) and how can I phrase it that I don't want to look after babies? I have no formal training in childcare, I looked into Childminding but realise I would have to get qualified for this. I am just looking for a way to help the family finances at the moment, for various reasons I cannot get a full time job and realise I will not get rich from babysitting but at the moment a few extra pounds a week would be a real help to us. Any advice gratefully received.

i think i would phrase it like this:

'Hello, my name is (name) and I am looking for babysitting jobs in and around (area). I have a child of my own, and I would be happy to babysit any child over (age). I am 51, a stay home mum and live locally. Please contact (number) for more details. I am happy to meet beforehand or provide references. Rate: £6.50 per hour'

hope this helped a little x

Do you have dbs check, first aid course, references? These are all things I would be looking for.

Thanks for taking the time and trouble to reply. I would have to have DBS check, First Aid Course, references, training etc if I was going to become a Child Minder but, I assumed (perhaps wrongly) that you did not need these to babysit - I thought perhaps because it was usually teenagers doing it as a way to earn a bit of extra cash that it was a way for me to earn money quickly (we have had a major change in finances over the last week due to a sudden serious illness in the family) and I am looking to do something quick to raise cash even if it only helps cover the food bill. I have been looking at jobs but I am under qualified for a lot of them and a lot online such as working from home turn out to be "non-jobs" or scams. £6.50 an hour gives me a good idea what to charge - thanks

No way I would want somebody I didn't know from a Facebook ad.

If you were already working in childcare so had DBS checks etc I might be a little more interested, but would still be unsure.

Sorry.

Maybe let friends and neighbours know you'd like to earn a bit of money this way instead.

Join a reputable site like Care.com. I have had a few babysitting jobs from there. No need for dbs you just tick the bits that apply to you - driving licence etc. Up to the dps to select you! You can apply for jobs for free though not all - people who have higher membership can't message back. Only fellow free ones.
I have had regular nights and one offs too. They can leave a review /rate you for further jobs.

Thanks for the replies. The Facebook site I am thinking of using is purely neighbours - I do know most of the people living on this estate and they will know who I am, which house I live in, my family etc. I wasn't thinking of advertising on any old Facebook site - just the one purely for my estate. I just really wanted to know how I should phrase my notice, mainly how much to charge and if it sounds stupid saying I can babysit but not actual babies!!

I've seen a few babysitting Facebook posts. They are all women in their early 20s with first aid certs, DBS checks and diploma or degree in early years education or similar.

If it's anything like where I am there's a lot of nursery workers or similarly employed who offer babysitting to boost the coffers at evenings and weekends.