Choosing a Babysitter For Your Kids

Babysitters are slightly different from professional child minders, in that they just watch over your kids for you for a short time, maybe just for the evening so you can enjoy a night out with your partner once in a while, and they are most likely to be a close friend or relative, or a younger person who wants to earn a bit more money. Because babysitters are not usually professionals they will most likely not have had any specialist training in childcare, but they will normally have had a lot of experience looking after children, and should be fine to watch your kids now and again. Babysitters are a lot cheaper than professional child minders, but you should check their backgrounds to ensure they will be suitable to look after you kids, and here are a few key questions to ask:

1. ‘What is your experience with children?’ – Check the babysitter has looked after children in the age group of your kids, and if they have worked for other families in the area you could ask them if you could contact these previous employers for a reference.

2. ‘Can you drive?’ – You may need the babysitter to pick your kids up after school or from an evening club in the future, so it is important that you check they have a full drivers license and transport.

3. ‘Do you have any health issues?’ – Check whether the babysitter has any health issues that may affect their ability to look after your kids, for example if you have any pets check if they have any pet allergies that would make them uncomfortable in your home or if they have any mobility problems that may make it difficult to get up and down the stairs.

4. ‘What are your rates?’ – check how much the sitter is charging for their services, which may be on a per hour, or per evening basis.

You should meet your babysitter before you hire them in person, and see how they interact with your children. This will help to give you some idea of whether they are going to be suitable or not.