Au Pair Services
Au pair services are explained herein to help you understand what au pair services are as well as what distinguishes a junior level au pair from a professional au pair, what au pair qualifications and experience one can expect from an au pair and what general au pair salaries are. Little Sunshines Au Pair Agency is also able to assist you with finding an au pair that suits your requirements, based on the below informative guideline.
Au Pair Services – Junior Level Au Pair:
A JUNIOR LEVEL au pair who is someone who generally has between 6 months to 1 year au pair experience and someone who does not have formal experience LOOKING AFTER BABIES AND TODDLERS as an au pair. She generally only has experience with children who are aged 4 and over. A junior level au pair does not have any child care qualifications, nor first aid experience and she is generally between the ages of 18 and 22. She would have a car and a valid drivers license. She would be capable of looking after children aged 4 or over, however in a role simply as someone who drives the children around, supervises them in the afternoon and who does basic homework supervision. A junior level au pair could realistically be expected to stay with a family for about 1 year at most.
Au Pair Services – Senior Level Au Pair:
A SENIOR LEVEL au pair is someone who has 2 years or more of au pair experience, who is generally over the age of 25, who has formal experience with children of ALL ages i.e. babies, toddlers and children aged 4 and older. She would generally have completed a first aid course and a child care course OR teaching diploma / degree and / or have teaching experience. She would be capable of looking after children of any ages as well, she would run errands, drive the children around, take them to Dr’s appointments, supervise homework as well as assist with revision and test preparation, stimulate the children on a mental and physical level as well as tend to the overall emotional, developmental and psychological well-being of the children in her care. She is well-versed in managing routine and structure as well as maintaining boundaries and she knows how to act within a home environment as an employee, without overstepping but maintaining a professional relationship with the employer whilst having a nurturing and loving relationship with the children in her care. She is able to communicate with teachers with regards to the children and to report back to the parents in terms of the children. A professional / senior level au pair is generally seeking a long term commitment with the family of at least 1 year or more.
Au Pair Services – Live-In Au Pair:
Generally only SENIOR LEVEL au pairs are able to LIVE-IN as they have “dedicated” their career to childcare and are thus geared to having a lifestyle that accommodates them being a live-in au pair i.e they are not mothers or wives themselves etc. Live-In au pairs are generally available as and when the family requires and are therefore considered to be ‘full time” au pairs, generally working full day Monday to Friday and a few hours on the weekend. They would have their own bedroom and bathroom either within the house, or as a separate flatlet / cottage. Live-in au pairs are not night nurses and therefore do not generally do “midnight duties” however sometimes families come to agreements whereby the live-in au pair would assist with “midnight duties” 2 to 3 times per week. A live-in au pair is ideally suited to parents who are on-call doctors, parents who travel frequently with or without their children, senior level corporate working moms who have long corporate hours, diplomats, ministers of state etc. A family can expect to pay anything between R15 000 to R20 000 for a live-in au pair. The more hours the au pair is required to work on weekends and in the evenings, as well as the more qualifications and experience she has, the higher the salary. The fact that she is a live-in au pair does not mean that she earns less, as a true-live-in au pair works a lot more hours than a live-out au pair. She is generally available to the family 24/7. Imagine “Mary Poppins” and you will have a good idea as to what a live-in au pair in this industry truly is.
Further Recommended Au Pair Information
What is an Au Pair?
Au Pair Services
Au Pair Job Functions
Au Pair Salaries
Au Pair Petrol
AA Rates Calculator
Permanent Au Pairs
Temporary Au Pairs
Au Pair Training
Au Pair Agencies
Au Pair FAQs
Au Pair Jobs
I want to BE an Au Pair – Candidate Applications
We NEED an Au Pair – Register as a Family
