How do I get a job?

There are two main routes to employment, either through nanny/childcare agencies or through private adverts.

Childcare / Nanny Agencies

Registering with an agency is a safer and more reliable way of finding employement than using personal ads as good agencies will properly investigate your potential employers and look after you should anything go wrong.

It is really important to choose a good agency. All the agencies listed on the bestbear site have been personally tested by registering with one of our agencies you will have a better chnace of finding a good, respectable agency that suits you. Ideally you should have a good, relaxed relationship with the staff at the agency. They are there to help and support you and be able to give you sound practical advice. Watch out for the following:

• Agencies should try and find out about families that they are sending you to but it is still sensible to be very sure that they know where you are going and at what time you will be finished so that you can check in with them to say how it went.
  
  
• Agencies should not charge you any money, they should earn their fee through your placement.
  
  
• Agencies should check your references properly - if they don't chances are they are not checking out your prospective employers either.
  
  
• Agencies should offer aftercare - a good agency should provide you with a list of girls who are also working locally so you can build up a network.
  
  
• Agencies should not risk your privacy / security by sending out your home numbers etc to would be employers. This is lazy - it is their job to act as a
  go-between.
  
  
• Agencies should not be willing to send you abroad without proper back up and information.
  
  
• Agencies should not pressurise you into taking job you really don't feel happy about.
  
  
• Agencies should not try to 'sell' you a job which turns out to be totally different from the one described.
  
  
• Agencies should not be happy for you to go out on interviews without ever meeting you in person. In theory this may sound like much less hassle - but in the practise if you come unstuck, it's unlikely that an agency who can't be bothered to meet you in person is going to be bothered if you have problems further down the line.
  
  

Take your time choosing an agency. A good agency will ask for the following:

• To meet with you in person
• At least two references
• They'll want to know about gaps in your CV
• They will call your referees
• A self -declaration about your health - usually a letter from your GP stating that you are in good health.
• To fill in a form regarding any prosecutions. The agency will ask you to agree to having information passed to them and prospective employers about any convictions.
• The agency should inform employers about their legal obligations towards you in terms of tax and National Insurance deductions, sickness pay, maternity rights, minimum wage requirements, holidays, trial periods, salary reviews, contracts of employment and review of work within the first three months.

This may sound like a lot of hoops to jump through - but remember if an agency is thorough about finding out about you and your personality, then they are bound to be more careful about where they place their nannies/childcarers.



Private Ads

If you want to advertise privately in a childcare magazine or on local bulletin boards, it is vital that you take certain security precautions. When placing an advert never include your home address. You will probably have to leave a telephone number but a mobile number or an Email address would be preferable. This may sound over cautious, but by putting yourself 'out there' there is a chance - albeit - minuscule that you could put yourself in harm's way. Make sure that your advert is brief and to the point; if you are looking for full-time work or part-time work say so. It is also sensible not to put your name down - again crank callers are not much fun.

Below is an example of how an advert can be safely worded. It gives no clues to your home address or your identity - but is clear you have qualifications and experience.

Experienced nanny looking for full-time work in (specify area if you have a preference)
References and Certificates available.
Pls contact : 0830-393949 (no calls after 9pm)

When you get responses to your adverts it's a good idea to prepare a list of questions for the would-be employer. It is much better to get certain things out of way so that both of you are not wasting your time. For example if the employer has specific house rules that would drive you round the bend than neither of you will be happy. Use the telephone as a kind of screening device: Ask them about house rules, ask them about boyfriends, ask them about their daily routine. Give yourself the chance to get an outline of what kind of employer this would be before you agree to an interview. However, this should all be done openly and politely - no employer wants someone whose stroppy or aggressive on the phone.

If you then decide to go on interviews we would always advise that you take someone with you. Again - the chances of you getting into a dangerous situation are tiny - however any woman going into a stranger's house should be cautious. Tell the employer that a friend will be bringing you to the interview (and waiting outside if needs be). Don't go alone. If you really must go alone - make absolutely sure that your mother or someone close to you knows exactly where you will be and at what time, and be sure that you check in with them before and after the interview. However, once again, please go accompanied if at all possible.

If you are responding to a private advert placed by a prospective employer, the same rules apply. Screen out people on the phone - save yourself - and them - time, and again always try to take someone with you to interviews.

If an employer seems put out by the fact that someone will accompany you explain to them that you always take a friend to an interview and they can
usually wait in another room. Any good employer will understand why you wish to be accompanied - if they are unhappy about it then don't bother with them.
They are not being considerate about your security - so what else will they be considerate about? Placing and responding to private adverts can be a
straightforward route to finding a good job - however don't take short cuts and compromise your own personal safety.