Essentials to check before hiring your childminder
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Finding the one in a million, the childminder in whom you have complete faith is not an easy task, so what are the points you should check before hiring your childminder?
Employing a childminder in your home requires following a number of steps that will allow you to find the ideal candidate. During the interview, there are a certain number of points you should check before hiring your childminder.
Define your needs to determine what points you need to check before you hire a childminder
Depending on your needs, you will need to check a certain number of essential points:
- You need to be sure that your childminder is available at the right times during the week and come to an agreement about the schedule
- You also need to check whether your future childminder agrees to look after the children, but also to look after the house, if you want her to carry out some household chores
- You need to define your exact needs in terms of taking your children out and about
All of these questions will need to be taken into account when choosing your selection criteria. For example, you are not going to choose a young childminder who doesn’t have a driver’s licence if you need someone to drive your children to sport. In the same logic, you are not going to accept someone with no experience of minding small children if your children are under the age of 3. These questions may seem trivial, but it essential to ask them.
Background, references and motivation – 3 key points to check
There are always 3 point that you need to check before employing a childminder: his or her background, references and motivation.
- Knowing about his or her background will give you an idea of the childminder’s life experience and approach to children. Take a particular interest in the length of time spent in previous positions rather than their number. It is better to have a childminder who has worked for long periods with two or three families than a candidate who has had several positions, each lasting a few weeks or months.
- Remember to ask your future childminder for references, and don’t hesitate to ask if you can contact the families with whom he or she has worked. Clearly, he or she does not have to accept, but if the experience was globally positive, then this will not generally be a problem.
- Finally, it will be important to know what motivates your future childminder by asking why they have chosen this profession.
Settle all the administrative questions before hiring your childminder
Administrative questions are the last point to check before you take on a childminder. It is important to define the terms of the contract which will bind you by asking the following questions:
- Working hours and conditions,
- Salary and overtime,
- Time off for holidays.
Here are some useful resources for further information
http://www.babycentre.co.uk/a541472/how-to-find-a-good-childminder
https://www.familiesonline.co.uk/child/childcare-and-nurseries/how-to-choose-a-childminder
