Agency or Private - CareforKids.com.au®

Agency Or Private
For peace of mind

Child carers who are most likely to not have had police and background checks are of course those nannies, babysitters and au pairs employed directly from DIY websites and through private ads.

The hiring of babysitters and nannies always affords strong opinions and much discussion amongst most mums who need additional or more flexible care than is offered by traditional child care services. Cost, security and references are clearly key to hiring someone to look after young children, so whether it's a nanny or a casual or regular babysitter you're after, do you go agency or private?

Much of the time babysitters, nannies and au pairs are recommended by friends and family or friends of friends and are known to the parents requiring help.

However, in emergency situations, for peak periods such as Christmas and holidays or when parents move to a new place and don't have personal contacts, the need arises to hire an unknown carer and this is where the private vs agency dilemma comes to the fore.

There's no doubt that the main reason for going private versus agency is the perceived cost of fees over and above the nanny or babysitter's hourly or daily rate.

But for those with odd or long working hours, several children in pre-school care or spanning pre-school and primary school or indeed those families who have young children with special care requirements, options and choice are limited.

The cheapest way to hire someone is clearly direct – through a DIY online babysitter/nanny service that directs the parent straight to the provider, but this can be time-consuming and also fraught with worry given most of the time the person you connect with is not known to you and their credentials have to be taken at their word.

Some online services do provide the option to only choose carers with police checks and references, but it can still be worrying and seem a bit of a lottery and you will still pay up to around $60 membership fee with online babysitting and nanny websites.

By far the safest, least time-consuming and most reliable way to hire a nanny or babysitter is via an agency that has the expertise to both interview nannies and also to vet them regarding qualifications, police checks and general references.

Generally speaking babysitters will only be an extra $18-25 introduction fee on top of their hourly rates, which is well worth it when you're desperate and about to hire a total stranger.

Agency fees for placement of a nanny are of course more, but they're refundable if it doesn't work out (assuming then that most do or they wouldn't be in business!) and it's still not a huge amount of money taken over a year or so of your nanny's employment.

We'd all love to have the time to interview every candidate and check references, but the reality is that we neither have the time to interview and check references nor the experience to potentially spot a problem. And this is where the agencies earn their introduction fees. Not only do they take the pain out of the interview process, they also give us much needed peace of mind.

To find a reputable agency to provide you with a babysitter, nanny or au pair in your area click here.