Babysitting rates - New Year's Eve

RoxieW

Well we are happy with the arrangement and so is she - she has babysat for us for 5 years and is always happy to do so. I looked into getting a different babysitter when our current one started her degree as I didn't think she'd want to do it but she told me that she'd rather be at ours the at home with her dad hogging the remote. We are normally out 8 - 11. If we are back after midnight she gets an extra £5. I don't see what peoples problem is with the arrangemnent as this is money saving expert after all. If we had to pay £50 a night then we simply wouldn't afford to go out and the she wouldn't be getting anything. And as an aside, perhaps I could view in a negative light and sit in judgement on those of you who get an agency babysitter - ie a complete stranger to you and your children. Maybe they have certificates, maybe not. Even if they do then we all know that they mean nothing from things in the news this year. My children have grown up across the road from my babysitter and I know her and her family well. Her mum is a teacher at my childrens school and is always on hand across the road just in case. Our babysitter is training to be a teacher also. There's no way I would leave my children with a stranger. Just because you have to pay them £10 an hour doesn't make them good or trustworthy you know.
And when the day comes that she decides not to babysit for us, then we have a back up babysitter also on the street who sometimes babysits when she is not available. Again I know this girl and her family well.
Yes we are lucky with our babysitting arrangment and the fact that we don't have to consider paying £15 an hour to let a complete stranger into our home to look after our children. Anyone who has a problem with it is probably just jealous unfortunately.

footballmanagerwidow

RoxieW wrote: »

And as an aside, perhaps I could view in a negative light and sit in judgement on those of you who get an agency babysitter - ie a complete stranger to you and your children. Maybe they have certificates, maybe not. Even if they do then we all know that they mean nothing from things in the news this year. My children have grown up across the road from my babysitter and I know her and her family well. Her mum is a teacher at my childrens school and is always on hand across the road just in case. Our babysitter is training to be a teacher also. There's no way I would leave my children with a stranger. Just because you have to pay them £10 an hour doesn't make them good or trustworthy you know.
.

No need for that, just because someone has questioned the amount you pay for a babysitter theres no need to pick on anyone else for their childcare choices. We have no other option but to use an agency, my husband is in the army and we have NO family closer than 200 miles away. Over the last few years we have got to know 2 girls who are now the only ones that ever come to us, one being a registered childminder and the other a qualified nanny, as well as both being mothers themselves. No, qualifications don't make them as good as family, but they're qualified and experienced enough to deal with an emergency should it ever arise.

Are you saying you've never put your child(ren) in a nursery, playschool, school or playscheme? Every carer you will ever leave them with - inside or outside your own home - will be a stranger until they've been there a while, but the fact that they're qualified and registered with professional bodies allows you to entrust your children in their care. Sitters (the agency) only employ registered, qualified childcarers (minders, nannies, teachers etc) and take several references before sending them on any job...and that's good enough for me. To be honest I couldn't recommend them any more highly.

Spendless

We all have to make the choices we do when it comes to our kids and no-one should be criticising anyone elses because they do not know peoples individuals circs.

Our friends/relatives all had children several years before we did, so we have never had to go thru the agency route. I pay a set fee not an hourly rate. I have paid a little more for past midnight and a little more again for NYE. We provide snacks, eg sausage rolls and crisps, always gone on our return and the babysitter has played with them, either a board game like monopoly or on the wii.

RoxieW

FMW - not saying that but I haven't invited a total stranger into my home and left them alone with my children. Certificates and the like mean diddly squat. I commented on what I thought was a friendly money saving thread and got jumped on and told I was exploiting a young person. I don't remember ever forcing anyone to babysit for me! Nothing was aimed at you personally though, we make our own choices with our children. And I know how you feel as I too have no family nearby. That's why I am grateful for our babysitter.

footballmanagerwidow

I wouldn't agree it means "diddly squat", it means a great deal that the 2 ladies we have through the agency are registered, qualified, first aid trained childcarers who are mothers themselves. Would I prefer to have my children's Grandparents look after them? Yes. Would it be great if I had a reliable babysitter living next door/over the road? Yes. However, unfortunately I don't.....so until you're in my position please don't insinuate that i'm doing something wrong by using an agency very occasionally to provide me with a qualified, registered, CRB checked carer to sit and keep an ear out for them. In our circumstances I don't think I could do any better, unless of course I was totally MSE and didn't go out at all....EVER!

steph25

Me and DD moved back in September but where we were from I babysat very regually for 2 women who both had 2 kids each.
I got £10 a NIGHT.
At first I thought "well i don't go out and drink so im getting paid a tenner to do what I would be doing at home ie sitting and watching tv"
I did this for about 3-4yrs and by the end I had been treated so bad by the one woman that I dont talk to her now. I was meant to babysit from about 8pm till 2am but that got earlier and later, ie 7pm till 4am but was never given any extra.
Near the end I had to put my foot down and say i will only babysit if she got home by 2:30am but she still took the p1ss and would roll in at 5am, but also remember I had a then 7,8,9 now 10 yr old to drag round at that time and I dont drive!
Last New Year she kept texting begging and passing messages though a mutual friend for me to babysit New Year.
I rang her and text to confirm that I would babysit for £25 i think it was, from 8pm till 2:30. She didnt get in till almost 6am and she never once appoligised to me.
I feel/felt like she treated me like !!!!!!.
She would not pay me over £10 but would gladly spent £50-£100 on a night out?!?!
I also would take my own food and fizzy drinks every time i babysat cause if I ate something of hers (toast) i was quizzed by text where that item of food had gone!:mad:

Anyway, just wanted to give my babysitting rant an airing
Shame now as we live in South Wales and I would still like to babysit but don't know anyone to babysit for

I would never let anyone take the pee out of me like that again. My New Years resolution is to be more assertive:cool:

I think the morale is treat your babysitter with respect. I would have gladly babysat for £10 and been happy if I were treated better, even a few snacks left to enjoy or some dvds to watch and the person to come in on time.

moomoomama27

I used to babysit for my Mums friends children when I was a teen for £5-£20 a night!

I would not under any circumstances pay £50 to go out, I'd stay home! Thankfully I do have family should I need a sitter, which is rare, but if not then we'd go places our children would be able to go too.

I think it's very unfair to suggest people exploit family friends! I was more than happy to babysit for free for friends! It's not all about the money, if it's fr friends!

duchy

I think there is a fine line between Moneysaving and exploiting-A lot depends on which side of the fence you are standing on.

Ms "Oh you're just jealous because I have a cheap sitter" Sorry to disappoint you but why would I be jealous-My days of needing a sitter are long gone !

I *do* consider it exploitative to pay anyone below minimum wage for a service -The fact they "don't mind" makes it worse as you are apparently taking advantage of someone who doesn't know any better/has poor self esteem and doesn't expect to be treated well.

And yes I've paid friends to look after my child when he was of that age-and I insisted on paying the going rate-even though it meant I went out less often. I'd be a bad friend if I exploited someone else's friendship by deliberately paying below the going rate. I've also babysat for nothing for friends where money is genuinely tight-and they needed a break. I've also done reciprical babysitting where I've sat for friends and they've repaid in kind -but I've never knowingly deliberately underpaid someone -and certainly never gloated to strangers on a forum about it !