Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!
Au Pair insight wanted
Hi Harringay,
We are thinking about getting an au pair to help look after our daughter.
This is obviously the most important job in the world so I'm keen to get as many views on this - both good and bad on:
- How to find a good au pair
- Experience of having a live in au pair
- What to expect from them
- Cost - both direct and indirect
- How long to employ them
- Tax / employment implications
Harringay - please educate me!
Stuart
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by 0v0i5qllyo84b on
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My partner is an Au Pair. Feel free to ask her anything you like about it:
jodycrisp@hotmail.com
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No probs!
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Not forgetting bullet point 4:
- Droit du Seigneur vis-a-vis l'au pair
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Permalink Reply by Dick Harris on
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It's many a long year since we had au pairs but when we did, we found that the service provided by the Danish church in London was excellent, see http://www.kfuk.co.uk/kfuk/in-english/. We continued in the same way after moving to Brussels as the church there did the same thing. We had both male and female au pairs at different times (not all Danes, also from Sweden and France) and all went well. I am still in touch with two of them 25 years later.
In our day, the church took good care of their young Danes and if the relationship was not working, they would help find another placement for the au pair and another au pair for the family (always supposing that there had not been any misbehaviour). I don't now recall where we found French and Swedish au pairs.
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Permalink Reply by John D on
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Dick
You must have been in Brussels at about the same time as me. 1975 -1984 ?
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In fact from 1990 to 2005.
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Thanks Dick - never thought to go via the church, so worht a look if / when the time comes.
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Permalink Reply by ant on
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I've tried three au pairs this year. One was a friend of a friend and the other two found on http://www.aupair-world.net, which IIRC was a website recommended by Tunbridge Wells. The first one we got just for a month to see what it was like, and she was great, then another short term one while we looked for a long term one, but then when we found her she ended up not really working out.
http://www.aupair-world.net is good site and has lots to choose from, especially ones looking for shorter stays, so many that its quite hard to know how to choose. The website suggests paying £65/week for 25 hours help, but the going rate in London seemed more like £70 - £80 /week.
The first one we got had been an au pair twice before and didn't need to be told much what to do and just got on and did things - dressing/feeding/playing/tidying etc. The other was good with the kids but didn't do so much unless told what to do.
I think there is a big element of luck in finding a good one. The first one who we thought was brilliant had not worked out in her previous places so didn't get great references from those families. The one that didn't work out for us we'd meet in person before choosing and she seemed great but then didn't really fit in. I'd probably try again but our children are going to a kindergarten now.
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