From the moment that you have decided to employ a Nanny or to start the process of doing this, there are certain responsibilities that come along with this action. Most families don’t have a clear idea of what these responsibilities entail; you will find below a resume of each of the responsibilities that you will take on when you hire a nanny. It’s important to highlight that they not only apply to nanny’s employment – they apply when hiring all forms of domestic staff.
In the following lines, you will find the legal responsibilities that you have as the employer of domestic staff:
Why should I have a contract with my nanny? Many families leave this responsibility aside, believing that because this person is coming to their houses, the job that they are doing is more informal than someone who commutes to their workplace in an office, a nursery or cleaning a shop for example. This is one of the most common mistakes.
Nothing is better than having a full and precise description of the job that the nanny, nanny-housekeeper or housekeeper will be doing every day. Employer & employee need to agree on the description before starting the job. You will need to discuss how many days and hours the nanny will come to your house, what the responsibilities of the nanny are, if they will be doing extra hours and how they will be paid, if the job is temporary or permanent, if the nanny needs to drive, and many other specifications.
It’s here that the contract comes into play. We need to be clear that this is a legal requirement that each family and nanny should have between them. This contract will be easier to make if you have already talked with your Nanny about the description of the job. You will need to put in writing when the employment will start and finish, the responsibilities of the employee, the work hours/days, holidays, sick-days, reasons why the employment may finish, and how many weeks of notice the nanny needs to give if she decides to resign.
We advise families and nannies to create a written contract of employment where both parties agree on the terms. The most important action of this is the signature, where this is the proof that both parties are happy with everything that is in the contract. This contract should be signed within 2 month of the starting day of the employment.
Little Ones provide our clients access to 7 sample employment contracts tailored to various Nanny, Housekeeper, Au pair and other domestic roles. Our team has made editing the contract simple and easy by highlighting the areas you need to complete with the specific employment details. If you’re ever stuck, our friendly payroll team will be happy to help you out with any queries that you may have. Would you like to have access to our contract templates? Click here
For those who have never written a contract before, the idea of creating a legal document can be daunting. What if I forget important points? How many holidays should they have? Do they get sick pay? Having all of these items covered is crucial for any contact. Little Ones London wants to take the stress out of the entire nanny employment process by providing you with a ‘Contract Preparation Service’ for a one off fee of £270 (including VAT).
As an employer, you will need to deduct tax and National Insurance, but you may also deduct student loan repayments and pension contributions. Every employee (it doesn’t matter if they are working in a temporary capacity, permanent capacity, full-time or part-time capacity) needs to have PAYE and NI deducted from their Gross salary before receiving their salary (Net salary), since every person living and working in the United Kingdom is obligated to make financial contributions through Pay as You Earn (PAYE) on any earnings above their personal allowance.
If you are the employer, you are obliged to give your nanny, nanny-housekeeper or housekeeper a payslip; this is an employee’s right according to the Government official website- Gov.uk. What is a payslip? It’s a note that details the amount the employee has been paid for a specific period, as well as listing any deductions, like PAYE, NI, student loans and pension contributions. The payslip can be sent on paper by post or given directly to the employee or via email in digital format.
When Do I not need to provide a payslip? When the employee is in the police service, is a merchant seaman, they work in share fishing, or they work as a contractor or freelancer. Since Nannies don’t fit into any of these categories, you are obliged to give a payslip to them.
Pension contributions may include the employer’s pension scheme, as any voluntary contributions or those contributions that are passed to a personal pension provider. This deduction is taken out of your nanny’s pay at ‘source’ and doesn’t have tax on top of it. Little Ones always recommends that the families ask their nannies if they are interested in any pension scheme or that the nanny should ask their employer to deduct this from their payment.
Due to an update of the Pensions Act, it is now a legal requirement for every UK employer to provide a workplace pension for their employees, automatically enrol their workers into that qualifying pension scheme, and contribute to that pension. Whilst you may not consider yourself to be an ‘employer’, this Act does include those that hire nannies for their families. Little Ones London is here to support you through this update and ensure that the process of enrolling your nanny is simple and straightforward. Auto-enrolment into a pension scheme is a compulsory requirement if:
If your nanny is under the age of 22 or earns less than £10,000 per year, contribution to a pension is not compulsory. However, your nanny has the right to request that you set up and contribute to a pension and, if they do, you are required to arrange it.
The employer is legally obliged to pay for Holidays, sick days and maternity leave. Your nanny qualifies for Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) if they have been off work sick for four or more days in a row (including non-working days). The employee has the right to enjoy their statutory holiday.
We advise families and nannies to have an honest conversation about the expectations that both parties have of the job. The best moment to have this conversation is during the interview or at least a few days before starting the job. Talk about the home dynamic, how things work, explain where everything is in the house and how to act and who to contact in case of any emergency. These are some of the few things that the conversation should go through.
Both the employer and employee should feel comfortable to go through the list of each responsibility, so that you can avoid any misunderstanding in the future about topics that you were supposed to discuss at the beginning of the employment, for example, when the nanny can take holidays, for how many day, is the Nanny allowed to go out of the house without the consent of the parents, should she ask permission every time that she goes out with the children, like going to the park or next door? Are there any allergies at home?
As with any other employment, you will go through ups and downs with your nanny during the employment relationship. There will be good days and bad days, and moments where both of you won’t agree about a situation, but the best is always to talk about it and find the best way to understand each other. It’s important that every 6 months or every year, you go through a review process with your nanny to talk about her performance and the children’s development; having a chat about it will help to improve anything that needs to be improved.
If you have recently hired or are considering hiring a nanny, housekeeper or au pair through Little Ones, your monthly payroll service is completely free for 3 months from the start date of your nanny. Please note that our weekly and fortnightly payroll service has an £80 surcharge. Please call Little Ones Nanny Payroll team for more information.
Little Ones is an internationally established London nanny agency with two offices, located in Fitzrovia and Kings Cross.
Our years of experience, dedication and integrity with Payroll services have resulted in the development of a large and constantly expanding network of satisfied clients, whose needs and requirements we understand and accommodate to the highest standard.
Little Ones’ team of professional and committed consultants understand the importance of making the best possible match between families and nannies. We understand that every family has individual needs and requirements, just as every nanny has unique qualities to offer, and we won’t stop until we are confident the perfect match has been made.
If you are just starting the process, or are still finding the right Nanny, Housekeeper or Au Pair for your family and would like to know more about our Payroll service, please call Little Ones Nanny Payroll team to talk with our expert consultants on 0207 183 6795.
