Finding the right baby sitter or nanny is difficult- you want a person who fits in with your family routine, values, and energy level, and you want to know you can trust them with your children. It’s especially challenging if you’ve just moved to a new city. To help the thousands of families moving to the Collin County area, College Nannies + Sitters + Tutors has developed a list of tips to help find summer or more permanent child care that parents can count on. The company is opening an Allen location on February 25.
Hiring a Babysitter or Nanny
- Determine what type of nanny or sitter is best for your family: are you looking for a high- energy individual who will participate in games and sports or a quiet confidante who will read aloud to your book- loving daughter? Do you seek a loving grandmotherly type who will hold your baby for hours at a time, or do you want someone who drive to the park to play? Each family and their children have their own unique needs and you want a caregiver who will be a good match and a role model to your children.
- Determine when you need nannies or sitters- on a consistent schedule, like after school every day or daytime in the summer? Or occasionally, for a Saturday night or school holidays?
- Have a Plan B in case your regular sitter or nanny falls sick or cannot make it at the last minute. Do you have back up?
- Be clear about the duties you expect your nanny or sitter to do. Transport children in their car to practices, games and activities? Cook and/or feed them meals? Help with homework?
- Whether you have a lot of experience with nannies/sitters or this is the first time you are looking to hire someone, you want to know that the person you are trusting to take care of your children is reliable. In-person interviews, national background checks, child care training and certifications (such as CPR/First Aid) and professional reference checks all are all recommended.
- If you hire a nanny directly, make sure you are aware of employment laws, including tax payroll implications requiring withholding from your employee’s pay, and employer taxes you will have to file as a household employer.
- To make your job easier, consider using a professional service, like College Nannies + Sitters +Tutors, that has already thoroughly vetted the sitters and nannies they hire. They will also work to find the best role model match for each family and provide back- up care in case of an emergency. The company also has an app that allows parents to book their favorite sitter in minutes. Since the caregivers are employed by College Nannies directly, all of the tax and insurance details, including liability and worker’s comp, are already taken care of.
College Nannies +Sitters + Tutors is opening a location in Allen to serve Collin County families, at 950 W. Stacy Road, Suite 170. All are invited to an open house on Saturday, February 25 from 2:00 - 5:00 p.m., to learn more about their services and to meet some of the nannies and tutors, and to have the chance to win free babysitting and tutoring. All babysitting takes place in individual family’s homes - the site will be used only for tutoring. Owners Amisha and Sanjiv Sinha, who live in Allen, opened their first location in Frisco, at 4350 W. Main Street, last year.
The couple got involved with College Nannies +Sitters + Tutors after seeing first- hand the challenges of finding high - quality after- school and summer nannies, for their two daughters. “We feel for the families because we have been there ourselves. We know how important it is to find childcare you can trust and be assured the caregiver is the right fit for your own family’s lifestyle and children’s personalities,” she says. “We interview and vet our nannies and baby sitters, as well as the families, to insure it’s a good match.” She adds that her daughters, now teenagers, take advantage of the one-on- one tutoring options to supplement their classes. For more information, go to Collegenanniesandtutors.com/allentx, call 469- 312- 5225 or email allentx@collegenannies.com.