Ofsted Registered Nannies Must Have Insurance

I was reading on Mumsnet a post by a mum who is currently in the late stages of recruiting a nanny.  Their to-be-nanny has Ofsted Registration yet when asked to provide evidence of having insurance the nanny didn't know what the parent meant.   So the mum posted on Mumsnet to ask for advice.

Nanny Insurance

Having nanny insurance is part of the criteria of Ofsted Registration for a nanny in England.   It is also known as Public Liability Insurance but it is provided by specialist brokers in the childcare industry so that the insurance covers a nanny against things that could occur during their work.

Morton Michel are the most well known specialist childcare insurance broker which provides Nanny Insurance. They have been providing insurance for nannies for many years, I've certainly had my nanny insurance though them for more years than I care to remember.   They also provide specialist Car Insurance for nannies, so that nannies are more confident that they are covered for transporting children in their car, for whom they are paid to transport.

Other nanny insurance providers of which I am aware are: NannyInsure and NCMA (who provide insurance as part of their Nanny Membership).

If you are an Ofsted Registered Nanny and you don't have nanny insurance, it is a condition of your registration to have insurance so you must arrange it as soon as possible.    Nannies who are not Ofsted Registered are recommended to have insurance, as it protects you in the event of something going wrong whilst you are at work.

Can Wordpress be used to create a website advertising Babysitting?

Have you ever wondered if you can use a blog to advertise evening babysitting?

I wondered if it was possible to create a free website using Wordpress and if the blog style could be used like a more traditional website.    Ascot Babysitter (Experienced babysitter provides evening babysitting in Ascot) is my test Wordpress babysitting website/blog to see if the concept will work.

As yet visitor numbers to the site are very low, though I have noticed that it has been indexed by Google, so may start showing up on search results.

What do you think - can a blog be used in place of a more traditional website?

When can a nanny be self employed - when they work for a temp agency?

I saw an advert on Mumsnet for a company called My Travelling Nanny which supplies temp nannies to families going on holiday.  This interested me as I wondered who would be the employer of the nanny in that situation... would it be the parents like it is when they hire a nanny directly, or would it be the agency, or perhaps would the nanny be a self employed contractor.   Hmm...

Looking at the website I found their terms and conditions (pdf) and took a closer look. In their terms they say:

The Nanny shall be an independent contractor, and the relationship of the Client and the Nanny shall in no event be construed to be that of principal and agent or employer and employee or master and servant, unless otherwise agreed in writing.

It also goes on to say about how payment is made... the parents pay the agency and the agency then pays the nanny a fee.

I thought about this and then looked at HMRC: CWG2 (pdf) the guide for Employers about PAYE and NICs.  On page 72 of that guide it says:

The agency is responsible for the payment of NICs where:•    the worker is expected to carry out work personally, and•    someone has the right, even if not exercised, to supervise, direct or control the way the work isdone and any of the following apply:–  the worker is paid by or through the agency–  the worker is paid based on accounts sent by the agency to the client–  the worker is paid by arrangements made with the agency–  there are payments other than worker’s pay (for example, fees or commission between the agency and the client).

So given the situation at hand, the parents are paying the agency and the agency are paying the nanny.  The nanny is expected to carry out the work personally, and someone (the parents most likely) have the right to supervise, direct or control the way the work is done, plus the nanny is paid by the agency, plus the worker is paid by arrangement made with the agency (as the agency seem to be deciding how much is paid).

So does that therefore mean that the nanny is not self employed but is instead an employee of the agency?

I contacted the agency to ask them.  Michaela replied promptly and seemed to be interested in my line of thought, that the nanny may be an employee of the agency, not self employed.   So we are not trying to find out what the situation actually is with regard to nannies being placed in a temp job by an agency, whereby the parents are paying the agency, rather than directly paying the nanny.

Keep following my blog for more on this subject as and when I am able to find out anything useful.

Currently I am now trying to read The Employment Status Manual published by HMRC, which is intended to provide guidance on issues relating to the employment status of individuals.  The area of particular interest is ESM2000 which deals with Agencies.

Pay As You Go Childcare

A friend of mine has decided to offer Pay As You Go childcare.  

Most childcare is provided under a contract.  Nannies are contracted to a family.  Childminders contract parents for a set number of hours a week.

Sunninghill Play Centre will be different in that parents can leave their child for as short a period of time as 1 hour, to as long as 11 hours.   No long term contract, just book the time they need.  

I suppose it is a bit like a crèche except that parents don't have to remain on site.  

My friend will also be providing before school and after school care.  I imagine that care for school aged children will probably be what turns out to be most popular, given the location - it is a very short walk from a St Michaels Primary School, Sunninghill.

Would you use a PAYG childcare service... or would you prefer it to be under a contract?