As it stands, mass closure of schools and nurseries has not gone ahead throughout the UK in order to prevent the spread of Covid-19. However, this could change at any point, which is why as the virus spreads and concerns grow, it is important to consider what effect this will have on your childcare options. It is also important to remember that while people of all ages can test positive for coronavirus, older people, and people with pre-existing medical conditions (such as asthma, diabetes, heart disease, lung disease) are more likely to become severely ill with the virus and are most at risk. The symptoms of Covid-19 are similar to those of the common cold and the flu. The three main symptoms of coronavirus are a cough, a high temperature and shortness of breath.
It is widely believed that if this is the case, parents will be granted the ability to work flexibly from home. If working from home is not a solution that is currently available to you and your family, what are your options?
The potential closure of school and nurseries leaves few childcare alternatives, especially considering it is uncertain how long the closures could last. While the saying “it takes a village” could be appropriate for handling childcare in this situation, we understand that you may not feel comfortable or even able to pull on family and friends to assist you. This is why we believe that the best childcare option for you, if you are unable to work from home, would be either a temporary nanny or a nanny share. If schools were to close throughout the UK, it could be assumed that the rest of the UK would follow Ireland’s suit. This means that the schools and nurseries would be closed for two weeks, which is in line with other self isolation guidelines due to the incubation period that has been observed within the virus. A temporary or emergency nanny will be able to step in and care for your children if you are unable to work from home for two weeks straight.
Little Ones has been helping families for over 15 years to find emergency care, this means we have a vast database of professional nannies that have been vetted and interviewed personally by our Emergency Nanny consultants to pull from at a moments notice.
Our specialist consultants have spent a lot of time building the relationships they have with our temporary nannies, this is because we know that by having an open, positive and continuous relationship with each and every nanny we work with, we are able to rely on our nannies to be there for you when you need it most.
Our temporary nannies are utter professionals who are either career nannies who have decided to do temporary placements while they work out their next permanent nanny position or nannies who work full time as a temporary nanny.
All of our Temporary Nannies are brought into the office for a face to face interview, where experience is discussed at great length, copies of documents are taken and references we are able to contact are obtained.
All of our Temporary Nannies are required to have two references that our consultants are able to verify verbally and all candidates must have a clear enhanced DBS certificate before we place them.
Knowing how to react in an emergency situation is paramount to all our Temporary Nannies which is why they will all have an Ofsted compliant paediatric first aid certificate that is renewed regularly.
Our vetting procedure includes:
Alternatively, if you believe that a longer term solution may benefit your family, a nanny share is a way you are able to receive childcare and share the costs with another family. Parents share nannies to give their children someone to play with, to give their nanny a pay rise, and to save on childcare costs. There isn’t a legal limit on the number of children a nanny can care for in a nanny share, but a nanny can only look after two families’ children at once. In practical terms, the key question is how many children the nanny feels they can look after. This will likely depend on the ages of the children, their temperament or needs, and the nanny’s experience. Nanny shares with two or three children in total are most common in this type of arrangement.
A nanny share has a higher hourly rate than nannies that are working with single families. The hourly rate for a full time live out Nanny will depend on the amount of experience they have, qualifications they hold and any languages that they are able to speak. The typical hourly rate for a live out Nanny in London is currently between £11 and £13 net per hour. A nanny working in a nanny share will earn between £14 and £17 net per hour, however, this will be split by the two families. This would make the nanny’s salary between £7 and £8.50 net per hour for each family, which is considerably less than a nanny working for a single family.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding what childcare will be available and suitable for your family, our team of consultants are always on hand to provide advice and guide you in the right direction.
Coronaviruses are a common type of virus. They typically cause fever and a cough, which may progress to more severe pneumonia, shortness of breath and breathing difficulties in some people. Covid-19 is a new strain of coronavirus first identified in Wuhan City, China. The current evidence is that most cases appear to be mild similar to that of a cold or flu and most of those who have died in Wuhan appear to have had pre-existing health conditions.
Because little is known about this new strain of the virus, it is not clear how it is spread, however, similar viruses tend to be spread by coughs and sneezes – so the way the infection gains entry to the body is the same as the way it exits and spreads to others.
It is also possible that the virus may be spread by touching a surface or object that has been coughed or sneezed on by someone with the virus – such as by touching a doorknob or shaking hands with someone and then touching your face. There is currently no specific cure for the new coronavirus so treatment is aimed at relieving the symptoms.
Although the Department for Health has described the virus as a "serious and imminent threat" and raised the public risk level from "low" to "moderate", the risk to individuals remains low.
Good personal hygiene is the most effective way to limit the spread of Covid-19. Below are a few tips on how you can best avoid the contraction and spread of the disease.
If you think you might have coronavirus or you've been in close contact with someone who has it, stay at home and avoid close contact with other people, do not go to a GP surgery, pharmacy or hospital at the risk of spreading the disease and use the NHS 111 online coronavirus service to find out what to do next. The 111 coronavirus service will tell you if you need to continue to stay at home or if you need medical help. It is important that you and your family take all the necessary precautions you can to ensure the safety of your loved ones and well as preventing the spead of Covid-19.
