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A NANNY
A nanny is aged from 18 years upwards and is usually female although there are a few male nannies around now. Nannies can be qualified, having done a two year college course and gained an N.N.E.B., N.A.M.C.W., BTEC, NVQ or similar certificates or they can be a former Mother's Help with several years' experience but no formal qualifications.
A nanny's responsibilities are termed 'Nursery Duties' (looking after the children and their belongings only). This usually includes washing, ironing and cooking for them (and for them only) as well as cleaning their nurseries and/or bedrooms. She will not do general household duties other than those to do with the children. If the nanny lives in she will have her own bedroom and usually a private bathroom. Some nannies have their own self-contained apartments and many are given a car or the use of the family's car.
A nanny's wage depends on qualifications, experience, age and whether she lives in or out. Nannies that live in are paid less than those living out but that's because they get a room and full board. Some employers offer traveling expenses for daily nannies - i.e. nannies that live out. Nannies in London are generally paid £200-£800 per week net.
Nanny Salaries
UK Nanny Salaries
Currently the average Nanny salary is £260.00 pw net in London and £230.00 pw net throughout the rest of the UK. However, as in most fields there are no hard and fast rules as to the level of pay for Nannies and a number of factors will help to determine the salary you might have to offer.
1. Live-In or Live-Out Positions
As a rule you will have to pay more for a Live-Out than a Live-In Nanny. However, bearing in mind that a Live-In Nannies benefits include free accommodation and food etc, then you will not have to pay a Live-Out Nanny a wage that directly compensates for such benefits. In practice Live-Out nannies earn £20 - 40 pw above the live-in wage.
2. The ages and number of your children.
If you are looking for a Nanny for a new-born baby then you will want to employ a qualified Nanny with previous experience with new-born or very young babies. Salary range for this kind of position could be from £220 - £350 pw net. If you have additional children then this care should also be factored into the salary. If you are looking for a Nanny for children from 9 months plus, then the salary range could begin at £200 pw net, if you were to consider taking a girl straight from college.
3. The amount of experience you require the Nanny to have
Obviously the more experience your Nanny has, the more peace of mind you can have in leaving your child in someone else's care. Experience is the biggest factor in a Nanny's salary whether she be qualified or non-qualified. Anyone with 4 years plus experience will be looking for salaries from £240 pw net upwards.
4. The age of the Nanny you are seeking to hire
People may start a career in childcare at various ages. Whilst most girls do their training from the ages of 16 or 17, then some may begin by changing careers in their twenties or thirties. Some older parents prefer more mature Nannies as they may be able to communicate with them more easily and do not feel responsible for them in the same way they might when employing younger girls. A newly qualified Nanny aged 30 would expect to earn from £250 net upwards.
5. Norland, Princess Christian and Chiltern Nannies
Of all the training establishments the Norland, Princess Christian and Chiltern Colleges specialize in training and preparing Nannies to work in Live-In situations. These Colleges are all fee paying and graduates are highly regarded. Expect to pay a premium if you wish to employ one - salaries would start at £280 pw net minimum.
6. Montesorri Nannies/Governess'
Nannies who are graduates of Montessori Teaching schools/nurseries. A Montessori Nanny is probably the closest thing to a Governess for tots and very young children. As with the above salaries carry a premium so expect to have to pay from £280 net upwards.
7. Whether special needs might be involved
Many Nannies come from Paediatric Nursing backgrounds and may hold RGN or SEN certification or they may have specialized in their careers by caring for children with special needs. Any such specialized care will carry a premium so expect to have to pay from £270 net upwards.
8. Amazing Nannies
There are no known methods for training the best Nannies, they may be qualified or non-qualified, hugely experienced or novices, however, you will know when you've got one. Nannies with references decked in unabashed superlatives can pretty much earn what they want.
Nanny Salaries Outside the UK
Salaries outside the UK tend to be higher than those within the UK, particularly when you wish to employ a qualified experienced nanny to look after a baby. However, employers in some countries may find that they can offer lower rates of pay if there are particular attractions to their location. Exotic locations, sun, sea and golden sands can prove to be a strong temptation for which a nanny might sacrifice a higher pay rate.
A daily nanny should not work for more than ten hours a day with one or two evenings per week babysitting paid on top of her wage (or as otherwise agreed). Most nannies have no objection whatsoever to the occasional Saturday morning or full day at the weekend (for extra money or time off in the week) if you have a special event to attend. However, if you insist on most weekends being worked you will find it hard to find a nanny who wants to do that.
A residential nanny should not work more than 12 hours per day (not taking into account evening babysitting). Residential nannies work up to two evenings babysitting per week (included in the wage). It is usual for both Daily and Residential nannies to receive two full days off per week (possibly working an occasional half or full day at the weekend by mutual arrangement, for extra money or time off in lieu).
If you find yourself requiring regular help at the weekend you should consider a weekend nanny. Everybody needs their time off from work - including nannies!
You could have a nanny share where you share a nanny with another family and meet the costs together. Under the 1989 Children Act nannies must be registered by the local authority if they look after children from more than two families in the same place at the same time. However, most nanny shares involve just two families, often where one family has the nanny to live in and therefore pays her less than the other one.
A MOTHER'S HELP
A mother's help is usually 18-years-old or more. She has no formal training but may have had experience of this work before and/or comes from a large family and is used to helping in the home. She might have done a childcare course at school which involved helping out at local playschools and some practical experience with small babies.
A mother's help works on a team basis with the mother or father sharing childcare and light house work with them. If she's experienced and confident enough she can take sole charge of the children at times. Unlike nannies, mother's helps will do some light housework (dusting, hoovering etc.).
The mother's help position is designed to give childcarers more experience. As the position progresses, and as the mother and helper feel more confident, there should be more and more opportunity for the mother's help to have sole charge of the children.
Pay for Mother's/Parent's Helpers start anywhere from minimum wage and are often close to sitter rates. Their rates depend on the job responsibilities (how much responsibility the person will have), the Helper's experience, number of children to be cared for, region of the country, etc.
Generally a mother's help earns a net weekly salary of between £150-£250 a week depending on her experience and whether the position is live in or out. Some employers also offer travelling expenses if the position is live-out. If living-in, the mother's help would expect her own room and to live as one of the family where possible.
A daily mother's help should not work for more than ten hours a day with one or two evenings per week babysitting paid on top of her wage (or as otherwise agreed). A residential mother's help should not work more than 12 hours per day (not taking into account evening babysitting). Residential mother's helps work up to two evenings babysitting per week (included in the wage). It is usual for both Daily and Residential mother's helps to receive two full days off per week (possibly working an occasional half or full day at the weekend by mutual arrangement, for extra money or time off in lieu) and holidays are negotiable although the nanny must, by law, have four weeks holiday each year.
INSURANCE
As professionals caring for children, nannies have the same legal responsibilities as teachers, nurses or daycare workers and therefore need insurance to protect them. Social Services departments will not register a child minder until she has public liability insurance, but because nannies work in an unregulated field, many of them do not realise that they need it.
A few insurance companies offer public liability policies and a handful, including Morton Michel offer a specific policy for nannies. These policies are not usually expensive. For example, Morton Michel Insurance in London will cover individuals for up to £2 million in costs but the annual fee is just £55.
If your nanny is not insured, suggest that she takes out a policy. If, during the interview, she says she is insured ask to see the certificate to be certain.
It could also be useful for you to have employer's liability insurance. When it comes to driving your car you will also have to add her name to your motor insurance policy - public liability doesn't cover that.
TAX AND NATIONAL INSURANCE
Tax...National Insurance..! You have to pay for her tax and National Insurance as well as an employer’s NI contribution. Your nanny is an employee like anyone else and has a right to having her tax and her national insurance contributions paid by her employer.
There are certainly people who try to avoid paying. Some say that their nanny earns less than £64 a week - below the current tax and National Insurance threshold - and then they top her salary up with cash. But there are problems with this practice:
It is illegal under tax legislation.
The nanny will not earn any rights to a pension or employment benefits, or be able to take out a loan or mortgage which require proof of earnings.
When the Revenue catches up with you will be liable to pay all the tax and NI including interest and penalties. You have no legal right to make the nanny pay it as it is your liability as an employer.
Some people try is to say that their nanny is self-employed. But in fact, even if she is part-time or in a nanny-share scheme the tax office still regards her as an employee because:
You can decide what hours she will work and for what rates of pay |
She does not provide her own equipment and materials |
The nanny is not able to hire other people to do the work instead of her |
Some people choose antipodean nannies on the assumption that they won't have to pay tax and NI for them. This again is not true. No foreign worker is exempted from paying tax and National Insurance. However, a lot of people get away with not paying foreign girls' tax and contributions because they are often not in the country long enough for the taxman to realise they are earning anything. |
Do make sure you and the nanny are clear from the start whether the salary you are offering is gross or net. Nannies tend to think in terms of net pay so you may have to tell her the salary in those terms too. But do let her know what the gross pay is and what the gross annual salary will be too so that she is assured that you will pay her tax and National Insurance.
You may find that the easiest solution to the tax and NI nightmare is to get a specialist agency to do it for you. There are several available, please do not hesitate to ask if you need assistance with this.
DIY TAX
Once you have found your nanny you must inform your local Inland Revenue tax office and they will send you an information pack. The information from the Revenue office will show you how to calculate the tax and NI which is to be deducted from the nanny's gross pay. Of course, most nannies negotiate their net pay so you may need to ask your tax office to calculate the necessary gross pay for you. You are also required to provide your nanny with weekly/monthly pay slips showing clearly that deductions have been made.
You should keep a record of the gross and net pay, tax and NI on a form sent to you by the Revenue. Then at the end of each tax year, you will be sent and be required to complete a form summarising the amounts for the year. It helps if you can send the tax office your nanny's P45 which her last employer should have given her on leaving.
Just to add to your joys, you may need to pay tax on any perk the nanny has such as a car for her own use outside of work, and petrol. The Revenue will send you a form P11D at the end of each year on which you should itemize these extras. Technically the tax on these items is the nanny's liability but if you have agreed a net pay with her she will expect you to pay the tax.
N.B. As an agency we believe that parents who are conscientious about paying tax and National Insurance for their nannies are likely to be good employers who will pay properly and will keep their nannies for a long time. We find the same thing with our agency fee. Parents who try to get out of paying that are usually the ones who try to pay their nanny less than they originally stated or try to make her work longer hours than she should. It is all about fair play and consideration for the work and lives of others. Paying your nanny's contributions ensures that she is helped in sickness and old age which is what she deserves.
SICK PAY
Both full-time and part-time nannies are eligible for Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) some of which can be offset against her NI liability. This can go a long way to making up a nanny's salary while she's ill so long as she isn't earning very much. Your nanny can only become eligible for SSP after three consecutive days of absence from work. If your nanny is well-paid you may find that the SSP is relatively small so her illness will still cost you quite a lot - particularly if you have to bring in temporary help.
SSP is a flat rate so, when you take on a nanny, contact your local DSS office to find out the current rate.
The DSS or your local tax office will send you information on how to work out if you can claim back some SSP on the money you have paid your sick nanny and if so how to do it. It is rather complicated but basically you have to work out the total gross Class 1 national Insurance liability for that tax month in which she was ill. Multiply that figure by 13 per cent (round up to fractions of a penny) and then work out the total SSP payments in that month. If the amount of SSP paid is more than 13 per cent of the NIC's due then you can claim back the difference. There, told you it was complicated!
Please don't avoid the issue of sick pay. Nannies are human and can fall sick or be involved in accidents. It is important to be clear at the start what pay you will give her, how long you will pay for, and what you will do if the illness lasts a long time.
In all cases, as in the treatment of nannies and mother's helps generally, it is best to be generous with sick pay. It reaps dividends in the long run; in some cases it means there is a long run!
MATERNITY RIGHTS
If you need to know about your nanny's maternity rights it is best to contact your local DSS (Contributions Agency) Office for a free, informative booklet produced by the Department of Employment, or contact the REC at 36-38 Mortimer Street, London W1N 7RB (020 7323 4300).
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