Childcare Angels

Mother’s helps

As the name suggests, mother’s helps give mums (or dads) a helping hand to look after children and does basic household chores (usually in connection with the child, so things like tidying up their room, washing and ironing).

They are usually young adults so this could be their first time looking after children, so it’s not a good idea to leave them with your children for long periods of time, as they would not be experienced enough to deal with an emergency situation or children misbehaving, for example. Gradually, as they grow more confident – and more importantly, as you feel happy to leave them in sole charge – you may be able to do this for a few hours.

A mother’s help lives in your home, and works up to 45 hours a week, doing an additional two nights babysitting maximum per week. She will not have been police checked, and may not have childcare qualifications.

Au pairs

Au pairs are a bit like mother’s helps but, by law, they can only be aged between 17 and 27 years, not be married or have any children and come from certain countries:

• Andorra
• Bosnia-Herzegovina
• Croatia
• Faroe Islands
• Greenland
• Macedonia
• Monaco
• San Marino
• Turkey

Nationals of European Economic Community countries are not included in the official au pair scheme but are free to come to the United Kingdom as au pairs. Bulgarian and Romanian nationals will need to
apply for an accession worker card before you take work in the UK.

The difference is that to come to the UK, au pairs will need to be learning English for up to five hours a day – this is time you need to consider when calculating how many hours care you need. They therefore work between 15 to 40 hours a week and live in your home.

Au pairs can live in the UK for up to two years with and English-speaking family, and need to register with the police within seven days of entering the UK. If they live in the Metropolitan Police Area (this covers most of London) they will need to register at the Overseas Visitor Records Office (www.west-midlands.police.uk/overseas-visitors/index.asp).

There are three types of au pairs:

• demi au pairs – these work 15 hours a week and babysit for one or two nights a week;
• working au pairs – these work 25 hours a week and babysit for one or two nights a week; and
• au pair plus – they work 26-35 hours a week and babysit for one or two nights a week.

The au pair you get depends on the level of experience you need them to have – but be aware that there is no guarantee that they will have childcare experience beyond caring for younger siblings or the children of family friends and relatives. That said, if you just need an extra pair of hands around the house while you work and can spare a room, they may be a good option. Many parents now want their child to be bilingual and learn different languages from a young age, and au pairs from the European Economic Community can often be good with this.

Maternity nurses

Maternity nurses are usually experienced nannies, nursery nurses, or qualified nurses who help new parents with things like settling a newborn, breastfeeding (for mums), and basically providing care for the baby and supporting mum. They are specialists and will not be the ones to do your household chores, so it is worth clarifying any additional needs before employing a maternity nurse.