With holidays soon to be allowed and the summer, not far behind, many nannies might be preparing for a trip with their nanny family.
Whilst a sunny break away from everyday life might sound like a fantastic escape, it’s important to remember that you’ll still be working and that your job might become a bit more difficult when faced with new challenges and unfamiliar surroundings.
We’ve put together our top tips to help you make a success of any trip with your nanny family:
Almost every nanny at some point flirts with the idea of nannying overseas. British nannies are sought after from Paris to Monaco, Dubai to Washington and salaries can be far more competitive than staying in the UK. There are several ways to go about finding a job overseas.
Almost every nanny at some point flirts with the idea of nannying overseas. British nannies are sought after from Paris to Monaco, Dubai to Washington and salaries can be far more competitive than staying in the UK. There are several ways to go about finding a job overseas. One option is work as a ski or summer holiday nanny in a resort. The advantage of this is that you have a team of other nannies around you and everything is taken care of by the company. The disadvantage is that you often don’t get to experience local culture and you may find yourself also working in a creche or nursery setting as well as with a family. If you’ve never worked as a nanny before this can be a great transition. You could also work for programmes such as Camp America for a season which will enable you to work in the US.
Alternatively you can find yourself a job with a family either through an agency or responding to a private advert. As with all private adverts it’s very important to make security a top priority. Ask the family for references and be wary of scammers. Book flights yourself and be reimbursed rather than giving the family your personal details and look up the details for the consulate in your destination country. Hours can be long and expectations high, and if you find nannying in the UK isolating you may want to avoid cities which don’t have a large nanny, au pair or expat community. Most overseas jobs are live in and it can be easy to find yourself spending evenings and weekends in your bedroom skyping your friends or catching up on Facebook instead of getting out and making the most of a new country.
If you are young and single an ideal way to try out working abroad is as an au pair. Although au pairs are paid far less than professional nannies and do fewer hours it is much easier to find a job, and once you have a reference to prove that you coped working abroad once you will find it easier to get a nanny job overseas. One of the other big differences between nannies and au pairs is the type of visa required. If you are an EU national you can work anywhere in the EU without needing a specific visa, however some countries have rules about what an au pair can and cannot do and the maximum and minimum rates of pay. British nationals can also get working holiday visas to countries such as Australia which will allow you to work temporarily as a nanny. To go to the US, however, the easiest way is to go as an au pair on a J1 visa. Many nanny jobs in America wanting a British nanny are actually advertised as au pair jobs so talk through the job carefully and know what you are signing up for.
A contract is an absolute necessity, particularly if you don’t know the language of the country you are going to. It is much easier to get a translation of a contract in your language or your employer’s than relying on verbal communication. A contract also means you have legal protection for your hours, duties and pay. Most employers treat their nanny well and provide not only accommodation and food but also a local mobile phone, help with administrative formalities and introductions to other local nannies or au pairs.
Whether it’s action-packed adventure or chilling in the sun, more and more families are taking childcare with them on holiday. Travelling is increasingly part of a permanent nanny’s job or a temporary nanny can provide flexible, consistent, tailor-made childcare for families who just want a helping hand on holiday.*
3 things to talk about
– Money : For permanent nannies working normal hours means normal pay. Employers are responsible for paying all out-of-pocket expenses including flights, accommodation, food and travel insurance. If accommodation is limited then remember that nannies who have to share a room with the children usually expect to be paid a bit extra to compensate for the inconvenience, especially if a child still wakes in the night.
– Time off: Any time a nanny is expected to be present counts as work. Great bosses make it clear when nanny is welcome to relax by themselves or go out, and try to keep the children from barging in, just as a nanny would if asked to occupy the children while their bosses relax. Most nannies are happy to swap a morning for an evening babysitting or travel on a Sunday for a chance to shop or sightsee midweek but respect the hours agreed in the contract, even if they aren’t the usual 8am-6pm.
– Travelling time: In general travelling days, where the nanny travels with the family, are paid and as travelling can be lengthy (especially if it involves a 4am start) some overtime might be expected too. If employers happy to book a seat in a separate section of the plane then their nanny could have that time off during the day but chances their assistance will be wanted and they’re still prevented from spending the time as they choose.
2 Notes for nannies
– Check your nanny insurance. Most will cover you for travel with your permanent family for a certain number of days per year within the EU but there may be exclusions and this doesn’t replace travel or medical insurance for you!
– Don’t expect it to be a holiday for: it might be sunny, there might be a pool but you are still on duty!
1 top tip
– We hope travelling with your nanny or employers will be enjoyable, but if it doesn’t work out then don’t let it ruin a good relationship!
It’s a rare child who never has to go in the car, and an even rarer one who never fights going into the carseat or gets bored after 5 minutes making a journey less than pleasant for everyone involved. Today we’re going to look at some ideas which will hopefully make your life easier.
Earlier this year we came across a nifty little product on Twitter, called My Car Step, which attaches safely to the car seat. Invented by a mum fed up of battling her daughter, this award winning product allows children to climb into the carseat by themselves instead of being lifted, or manhandled, in. As we said in our post on tantrums, allowing children independence can defuse situations and, as a bonus this will save your back some strain, because you no longer need to perform contorted lifting manoeuvres. For nannies or childminders, who can lift multiple children into carseats on a daily basis for twenty years or more, good lifting technique and minimising strain is invaluable.
Once your little cherubs are safely attached it’s worth making the environment as comfortable as possible. Sunshades will reduce glare and making sure that the children are wearing the name number of layers as you will allow you to control the car’s temperature appropriately. Take their personal preferences into account regarding recline where possible – better that a child is happy but falls asleep upright than is reclined from the start and protests all the way. On long journeys you can stop briefly to adjust the recline to ensure they remain comfortable. Before setting off check that they have any toys within easy reach, and if necessary a drink of some kind.
Music can make journeys a lot more bearable for children, as singing along to their favourite nursery rhymes with sound effects and actions will keep them occupied. If it gets unbearable for you make a compilation of songs you all enjoy and listen to that instead. While you may appreciate the radio, young children may be bored by adverts and some songs won’t be age appropriate.
One perennial favourite is I-spy, a game with endless possibilities and several variations. Under-2s will join in looking for objects if you say ‘I spy with my little eye a bus/tractor/cow’. Preschoolers are able to identify objects associated with colours ‘I spy something red/green/yellow’ and once children are confidently recognising phonics or letters your can play the classic version.
Older children who don’t get car sick can play a version of I-spy bingo. Create some cars with pictures of different objects such as a bus, a set of traffic lights, a bicycle or a letterbox, and include some less common ones. When children see the object they can mark it on their card. The idea is to get a row, or if your feeling really adventurous, a full house. This also improves memory and recall as they will need to be able to tell you when and where they saw the objects.
Children who can recognise letters can help you make up funny sentences from the letters on car number plates. Y491 AMS makes You Are My Squishy or You Ate Many Satsumas. K920 LSC can become Katie Likes Scented Candles or Kicking Leaves Someone Crying.
Even young children can get involved in making up stories about other people on the road. This enhances social and emotional development, introduces children to situational humour, and exercises their imagination. This is especially good if you’re stuck in traffic and can see pedestrians walking by. You can pick someone who is walking by and ask the children where they think the person is going. Are they in a hurry? Why might that be?
Check our our ‘Travel with children‘ board on Pinterest for more ideas.
Finally, even if the traffic is frustrating, you’re late and it’s raining outside, keep your cool. Children will easily pick up on tension and frustration, and if you’re constantly enraged when on the road they’ll begin to associate going in the car with negative emotions. Ideally journeys should be fun and education, but most of all, happy!
We hope you find some of this helpful. What’s your fail safe technique for car journeys?
