This article has been written for the Koru Kids Nanny Service for nannies who are already working with a family.
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The 3 most important things
Make sure you discuss your responsibilities with the family and the boundaries for the kids
Be proactive and set up a Whatsapp group to communicate with the family and share updates throughout your shifts
Ask for feedback and tell the families how things went at the end of every shift
Communication
Communication, communication, communication; it’s the number 1 thing that makes things go smoothly. Creating a relationship with the family where you can speak openly, honestly and regularly will make a massive difference.
Create a WhatsApp group with the all the adults to agree things and share pictures and updates
Agree how you’ll update them, check-in and give feedback
Would families rather only have essential questions or know about emergencies while they’re at work, or would they love to see updates through your shift?
Will you have a handover at the end of every shift and what would they like to know? Our suggestion is here.
Be responsive
During working hours we expect our nannies to have a charged phone so that the family can contact them (this is actually in your contract!) at any time. Be responsive and reply asap so they don’t worry unnecessarily.
What a family might be thinking and feeling:
“I really miss my children during the day and I’d really love to see pictures of all the fun they get up to with the nanny but I’m worried the nanny will think I don’t trust them if I check in too much. So much happens in my children’s days and because I don’t pick them up from school I don’t get to chat to their teacher very often, I’d love for my nanny to talk to me about what’s happened during the day when I come home but they always seem like they’re rushing out the door.”
Responsibilities
Be There, Be On Time, Be Safe and Be In Touch
We expect every nanny to uphold the Koru Kids standards (Be There, Be On Time, Be Safe and Be In Touch) but we selected you because we know you will!
You should also find out what responsibilities the family want you to take on. As a Koru Kids nanny you’re expected to:
Do school pickups
Supervise homework
Make simple meals for the children
Engage the children in fun activities
Tidy up after themselves and the kids
It’s helpful to understand what the parents want you to focus on – do they want you to spend more time reading with them or doing outdoor activities. Do they want you to tidy up or get the children to help?
If you’re happy to take on any additional responsibilities like simple chores (emptying dishwasher, putting a wash on) let them know.
We suggest that you check-in on responsibilities after the first month, and at least every 2 months after that.
What a family might be thinking and feeling:
“I was happy to keep doing some of the things I was really hoping the nanny could do at some point while my nanny was settling in but now I don’t know how to ask them to take some of these bits on. I can’t keep doing everything so it’s really important that my nanny takes on a few extra responsibilities but I’m not certain what it’s okay to ask for.”
A consistent approach for the children
Children need as much consistency as possible with clear boundaries and you need to know how the parents want you to deal with different situations. We created the Family Guide in your app to help you with this.
Before you start:
Use the family guide in your app to sit down together with the parents and children and discuss the boundaries so everyone is on the same page
Talk about some common situations where their children might try to push the boundaries and how the parents would like you to deal with them
Prepare for the children to test the boundaries with a new adult, sometimes this won’t be for a couple of weeks after meeting you but it’s perfectly normal behaviour
On the job:
Discuss any difficult situations with the parents, tell them how you dealt with it and ask them how they’d like you to manage it in future.
All behaviour is a form of communication so ask: What are they trying to tell me by acting like this?
Remember that your first responsibility is to keep the children safe, not whether they like you. If you’re consistent with boundaries, they will trust you, and when they trust you, you’ll develop a great relationship.
What a family might be thinking and feeling
“I don’t always know the full story of what’s happened that day, and so may inadvertently undermine the nanny if I just hear one side from my children. I worry that the nanny isn’t consistent with the boundaries that I put in place and that might mean that homework doesn’t get done.”
We’re always here to support you
If you need any additional support whilst working with your family, our support team are available to talk things through.
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