TIPS FOR REGISTRATION AND HOW THE EXCLUSIVE AU PAIRS WEBSITE WORKS

We have clear online registration forms and we give a detailed personal consultation prior to starting your search.  This enables us to be confident that we fully understand your requirements and have answered all your questions.

We provide you with regular communication, either by telephone or e-mail messages every step of the way, at key times.  This is further supported by text to your mobile, making sure you have all the right information at the right time.

We introduce you to relevant Au Pairs only.

A summary of the process:

You complete our simple on line register which enables our experienced recruiters to provide you with a telephone consultation.  Your registration is further supported by providing us with pictures.
We match Au Pairs that suit your family requirements to enable you to interview our shortlisted candidates, with the use of our questions if you wish.                    You confirm your Au Pair and pay our fee.                                                                            We provide both you and your Au Pair with all preparation material.                     Au Pair travels and joins your family!

REGISTER NOW

Registration process explained in more detail:

Please register online, follow the instructions on each page and don’t worry, if you are unsure about some things, we can look at them together.

As soon as your online registration is complete, we contact you to arrange a telephone consultation to discuss your requirements and answer any questions.  We can activate your search after consultation.

Your shortlisted candidates can be viewed online or emailed to you.  You contact your preferred Au Pair for an interview; we send you suggested interview questions to make it easy.

All candidates have informative and complete profiles containing;

Letter from the Au Pair
Notes from the interview with our agent
Pictures
References, medical certificate and police check.
We recommend that you contact either one or more Au Pairs for a telephone interview. TIP: why not use a webcam for the interview, it makes it even more personal.

You can invite your preferred candidate to be your Au Pair and if s/he accepts, we follow up with a contract for you to confirm the placement.  Only at this point does our fee becomes payable.

We continue our service with relevant information at key points in the process, such as just before and just after the arrival of the Au Pair. We give you and your Au Pair smart information and preparation material exactly when you need it.

Your Au Pair travels and joins your family.  Your Au Pair will pay for the flight and you collect him/her from the airport.  Give your Au Pair time to settle and explain all about your family.

SMART TIPS for the best profile

Step 1 Facts about your family

Where we ask the basic information about you, what you require and when

In this area, we need you to answer each question about your family’s wants and needs. Consider where you may be in a position to compromise and where you can’t.  There are enough Au Pairs looking to be placed and we want them to feel at home where they are going, this form will help us to help you and them!

The dates can make a big difference, if you can be flexible about the start date and duration of stay, this will really increase your chances of finding the right Au Pair quickly!

We will go through this section on the telephone also.  Together we can identify your priorities and use them for our sophisticated search.

Step 2 More about your family

Where we get to know you better, so that we can shortlist the right candidates on your behalf.

Write as much as possible, about yourself, your family, your friends, your job, your pets, your hobbies and interests, likes/dislikes, your home, your town, your region, what sort of work/study you do, how much childcare experience you are looking for.

Describe your expectations of the role that the Au Pair will play in your family and also the accommodation for the Au Pair.

Is there a special skill, passion or talent that your children have, if so, you may be looking for the Au Pair to have an interest or a skill in this area too as this gives an instant bond through shared interests, especially with older children.

Be clear.  This information is first and foremost to help our team to shortlist the right candidates for you. However, selected candidates will then be able to read your profile so please try to keep it simple, as most Au Pairs will not be proficient in English yet.

As a guide, write between 200 and 500 words.

Be friendly, honest and sincere, Au Pairs will prefer someone where they will be part of the family, this may be the first time they have lived in a foreign country.   You need to show them they can trust you and that you will make them feel welcome as a member of the family.

Show advantages! Make sure you clearly state all the positive selling points of joining your family.  This can include the distance to the nearest station, language school or the centre of town, use of the car in their spare time, learning to play tennis/ride a horse/sail a yacht, or simply the fact that there is a lot to do and there are many other Au Pairs in your area.  Ask your friends and family, they may be able to contribute.

Be realistic.  An Au Pair is unlikely to be a fully qualified nanny, cook or housekeeper.  Work out what is most important for your family.

Some requirements may be restricting your options or requiring you to pay your Au Pair more.  We can guide you when we speak on the telephone, but for example, a candidate with ample childcare experience, strong language and cooking skills and a driving licence will count on being paid more than the minimum.

Consider if your family has specific needs.  A family where sole care is required, especially with more than 2 children, very young children or a child with special needs will benefit from a person with experience.  A family with teenage boys may consider a male Au Pair to connect with the boys through sports and hobbies and a very young mum may wish to consider a mature Au Pair to help her.

We never expect you to compromise on what really matters!

Salary guide, you can give a salary range in step 1 with use of the salary guide.  This will help us to qualify boundaries.  Step 2 allows you to be more specific if there is a particular preference that you are willing to pay more for.

Provide references.  Make it easy for a new candidate to contact your current Au Pair for example.  Alternatively, references could be from baby sitters.  Although we do not ask families to supply references, Au Pairs will really appreciate it if you offer.

Step 3 Pictures of your family

Our Au Pairs always tell us that this is the first thing they look at!  We encourage the use of pictures, ideally showing all members of the family and maybe ‘action shots’ of your family in their favourite place or performing their favourite sport.   A picture of your home is very re-assuring for an Au Pair.

Step 4 Telephone consultation

As soon as the above is complete a team member from our Au Pair agency will contact you by telephone at a time that is convenient to you.  This way we can ensure we fully understand your requirements and objectives.

When we call, we will:

· explain the interview and selection process,

· give details about being a host family

· discuss your profile

· make sure you are happy for us to start your search and know how to contact us if you have any queries

Expect the telephone consultation to take approximately 15-25 minutes.

Naturally, if you prefer, you may contact our Au-Pair agency at any time!

Au Pairs are usually students aged between 18 and 27 who come to the UK to perfect their English and enjoy the culture.  They may only have babysitting experience and will need supervision with very young children.

An Au Pair is ideal for school aged children whom can be dropped off and collected from school as part of their working day.  They will live as part of your family and must have their own private bedroom.  They work from 25 to 40 hours per week and must be given two full days off each week, normally at weekends.

Pocket money varies from £75 to £140 per week and they attend college to improve their English; help with any college fees would be appreciated.

The agency receives full documentation of the Au Pairs including 2 references, medical and police certificates, Identity and right to work and photographs and a letter of introduction describing herself and her interests.

Once an Au Pair is selected we will arrange a contact telephone call, please do not call the au pairs until we have given your details to the agent as: 1) they may not be in, 2) they won’t be prepared and 3) you may be wasting your time calling as a member of the family answering may not speak English.

Ensure that all relevant questions are asked and that the duties required are fully outlined to avoid any misunderstandings after the Au Pair arrives.

If you decide to go ahead, you must contact us immediately so that we can arrange the necessary paperwork involved.  Some Au Pairs need a letter of invitation and if you can send on some photographs of your family, children and home that would be nice for the Au Pair.  Please send any e mails to us first as we send them to the Au Pair or an overseas agent who translates them for the Au Pairs to ensure there are no misunderstandings.

Make sure that you are aware of your Au Pair’s travel details and that she/he can be met at the airport/station on arrival.

Please enquire about language classes in your area.

If you expect your Au Pair to drive whilst s/he is here, do not forget to insure the car for her.  It is advisable to give her lessons with a qualified driving instructor before s/he takes your children in the car.

We do supply Au Pairs for summer stays also and can also come for 3 months, 9 months and 12 months. We can get them for 2 years but these are mainly Au Pairs who need visas and this can take some time.

We source our Au Pairs from our website and from our overseas agents who interview them and complete all our required checks to ensure that our Au Pairs are fully vetted.

Some Au Pairs do not speak fluent English, they are not nannies nor are they housekeepers.  A list of duties will be sent to you regarding what the Au Pair will do as part of her/his role.

Payment is required once you have chosen an Au Pair, and this can be done by bank transfer as we do not accept cheques.  Fees for au pairs are as follows: