Hi, I have a question concerning childcare. I have always worked with children, mostly full time as a nanny, and would like to continue doing so. However I am due with my first child in June and am hoping to take care of other children along with my own. My question is what do people think would be the most desirable option for parents looking for childcare? Just an FYI I live in Boston.1. Starting a small home daycare (3 other children). The daycare would be run much like I care for single families. I would get children involved in sing alongs, story times, meet with other caregivers for play dates, go to playgrounds and really just make sure we were involved in the community. I would also of course have both structured and unstructured playtime. Meals and snacks would be provided. I was thinking this would be at a rate of $6/hr full time and maybe a bit more for part time.
2. Working in a nanny share. This would be out of one of both of the families homes and would include pick up and drop off of whichever child's home we´re not in. Same outings and structure apply as in the daycare. Additionally this would involve me doing dishes, family laundry, local errands and keeping children's clothing/toys organized. This would be at a rate of $8 - $9/hr
3 Working for a private family, very similar to the nanny share however the housekeeping would be everyday and would include sweeping, vacuuming etc... Also the outings would be geared towards the child's specific interests more often and generally just the type of care that comes with a private nanny. I was thinking this option would be $12 - $13/hr.
What I´d really like feedback on is are the prices fair? Are there any other responsibilities you think should come along with any of the options? Does anybody have any specific concerns about a parent bringing their own child? Just really any input would be fantastic! I don´t know any other nannies with their own children so my resources for advice are quite limited.
Thanks in advanced!
10 comments:
I can not see this. When my children were newborns I did not want older children constantly around them, touching them, due to the germs they carry. So I am concerned that you would be bringing your newborn around children (some of whom go to school or are around siblings who bring germs from school) to work.
Also, as someone who has had nannies I would never hire one who has a newborn. If someone is working for me to watch my children, I want my children to be their priority.
Hi!
I agree with MamaLawyer in that it would probably be hard to find a private nanny position, while bringing your baby with you.. that being said, I think a home daycare situation could possibly work.. since I've known a lot of women who did this, and cared for their child at the same time..
I'm basing my answers on the NYC market and hope Boston is similar. I think your number for private nanny is accurate. People will want a slight discount for you bringing your own child. Yes, the options will be more limited but if you can find a family with one newborn also it could work well.
I think for family daycare, $6/hour seems a bit high. That would be $300/week for most families. Here in NYC many of the nice daycares charge about $350 a week (though it can go higher). I feel like you would need to undercut them a bit more, perhaps $5/hour. Though I am admittedly not that familiar with family daycare rates here. I don't think the presence of your own child would impact the rates in this situation as family daycares routinely include the caregivers kids.
For a nanny share, I also think you might be a bit high. My experience with shares is that people pay $9-10/hour per family currently (so nanny makes $18-20). Since you are asking people to include your child, I'm guessing they might want a slight discount, so perhaps $7.50/hour each ($15/hr for you). Also, you will be really limited here because you need to find TWO families with only one child each; both of whom are comfortable with you bringing your baby along. I think this is going to be the hardest situation to find.
Family daycare would be easiest to get clients, but the most work. Private nanny would be an ideal situation with the right family. I'm not opposed to having a nanny with kids. My current nanny does, but she has a great personal childcare situation. She does bring her youngest along sometimes and I'm fine with that. I did have a nanny with a newborn once and it went poorly. As someone above mentioned, she really was much more focused on her new baby than my toddlers. I don't fault her for that, but it wasn't a good fit. I think you might need someone with a newborn themselves. Good luck!
When you are doing home daycare, rates vary from full time (up to 50 hours per week) at 150 to 200 dollars weekly to part time (up to 25 hours per week) at about 30-35 dollars a day.
6 per hour per client is too high. You will have a hard time finding clients at that rate.
As far as having your own child with you, that is fine. I did it myself, and as a parent I would also enroll my child in a home daycare setting. Any parent that wants their child to be the only priority would not enroll them in a daycare setting, they would get a nanny without any children of their own. Many parents want their child to socialize and learn to play with other children. Many wonderful things happen in daycare. But you will find parents who want their child to be top priority and to those parents I say: dacare is not for you.
Good luck, I'm sure you can pull this off!
I think you should consider what Mamalawyer said about your newborn not being around toddlers. You may want to just care for infants the are of your child's age, and usually you can get more per hour for infants.
The most popular daycare in my town has one facility for 6 weeks to two years, and a second much larger facility for 2+ to 6 year olds.
I think you will have a tough time finding a position where you bring your baby to another family's home. Your best bet would be the daycare in your home but then you need to worry about getting a license....also what are you going to do (in any of the 3 scenarios) when your baby is sick? This is why you will find a hard time nannying for 1 or 2 families in their home...it's one more person (besides nanny) who will cause nanny to call in sick. And it'll be bad enough when someone can't bring their baby to daycare because their baby is sick, but you'll also have to shut down operations when your baby is sick
Hi,
Thanks everyone for your input! It is all great advice that I will certainly take into consideration.
nyc mom, i think you´re right about the nanny share, that will be difficult to find.
Also I will try and look for a job with one other newborn, I think you guys are right in that it will be easier for everyone, and a great situation.
Thanks again!
I have had nanny positions both with and without my child present. It works best if kids are either close to same age or very far apart in age. Do realize that it is hard. You must be fair and not favor your own child. I will certainly look into a nanny position where the employer was open to you bringing your child. A home daycare will be much more stressful on everyone. Make sure you and your employer have an honest conversation about expectation as it is different with your own child. I've personally had success with this in the past, but you MUST have a great employer relationship for it to work. Good luck and congratulations:)
Most families aren't keen in someone bringing their own child to work. I thought of that too, when my child was six months old. The person had a child in the same age range.
But they wanted care just for their child. They didn't care if it would be cheaper or not. I think it depends on the area you live in. I live in Bergen County, stepping stones to the GWB. In this area people have money. And they rather have a nanny just take care of their own kids. Or they put their children in really nice daycares.
And trust me I talked to five or six different families. And it was basically the same.
I am in San Francisco so I am not sure how different the market is but I have been a Nanny who brings my child with me to work for many years. I was a nanny for 10 years before I had my daughter and starting bringing my daughter to work when she was a few months old. In regards to germs, most children have siblings, are in childcare or out and about. I wouldn't worry about your baby being around a toddler, most children are around other kids.
I had many job offerings from families interested in someone who is a Mom to care for their child. There are many benefits to this situation, including:
-socialization for your child and theirs
-both children learning patience, cooperation and "its not about them (all the time)"
-great situation for single children
-parents like that I am a mom, I care for them the way I would like my child cared for
-cheaper rate for an in home nanny (I work for one family and am paid $13/hr, which is a bit high considering the average sharecare is $10/hr.
I come across many moms who think this is an ideal situation, obviously if you want your child to have a private nanny all to themselves this would not work. I am sure you could find families who would appreciate you being a mom and would value the benefits of having their child in a sharecare. Good luck!
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