This is a great opportunity for people who have an interest in the care of children with special needs and want to bust their CV. The job can give you exposure to various techniques such as speech and language therapy, occupational therapy and specialist play performed for our 9 years old son who has Down syndrome.
The applicant is expected to be able to look predominately after our youngest child, although some care is also needed for our 12 years old daughter and 15 years old son who, nevertheless, are mostly independent.
The kids get along well with each other and the two older ones absolutely love their younger brother. They support him and are incredibly helpful with his care and learning. They are all very sporty and active and they appreciate someone who is also happy to engage and become a friend to them. Francesca, our 12 years old, loves gymnastic and is training in a squad; she also loves dancing and it’s hard to stop her when music is on. Gabriele, our 15 yo, is into football and jujitsu; he is very mature and responsible. Emanuele our 9 years old with Down's syndrome is an explosion of vitality and love. He is a very happy and charming little boy and people just get in love and attached to him. He is very sensitive and reads people souls, so only who is genuinely enjoying his/her time with him can really work with him. He attends a mainstream school and has a good bunch of friends there that likes to have him form play dates.
We are an easy-going family and like to welcome the new person as a member of the family; previous nannies/aupair we had are still in touch with us and come visit (even from Brazil!).
The care includes basic everyday duties such as school runs, cooking healthy meals for all the children, general tidying (including vacuuming once a week) and some ironing. We do have a cleaner who is in charge of the deep cleaning of the house.
The youngest child needs to be taken to gymnastic and other after school activities. He will need help with reading and home works.
Occasionally there will also be some hospital appointments that our little one will need to go to. It would be entirely fine for the applicant to go to by her/himself (ENT, ophthalmology) whereas we take charge of the most important ones. All extra hours would be paid and the appointments schedule will be known in advance.
Here below an example of the typical school term timetable and duties:
Mornings (Tue to Fri): 7.10 am to 8.50 am
- Helping in getting Emanuele ready for school and taking him to school
(preparing breakfast, tidying up their rooms, empty the dishwasher/washing machine if needed, etc)
Afternoons (Tue to Fri): from 2 pm till 7 pm and Mon from 2.30 pm to 6.30 pm
- Collecting Emanuele from school and taking him to various activities (gymnastic, swimming, etc)
- Helping Emanuele with home-work and his learning
- Cooking dinner
- Organizing play dates and/or activities when on holiday (visiting museums/parks etc)
Saturdays 9.0 am to 1.00 pm
Due to the nature of our demanding jobs we will need some flexibility in this timetable.
During holiday time the day may start later at around 8 am till about 7 pm. We will try to arrange some extra help during this time if possible (either by us or by a second person) but this might not always be possible.
Two days of evening babysitting are included (or one is the day is Saturday)
There will be two full free days per week.
There are 4 paid weeks of holiday during the year plus all bank holidays. Holidays will be agreed on so that a mutually convenient time can be established.
There is also the possibility to travel with the family, which is always a very nice and enriching experience where work is shared with parents so that everybody can have a pleasant time.
The applicant will be offered a great accommodation, which includes a spacious double bedroom inclusive of a living area with sofa and table located on the house top floor and provided with own bathroom. Wi-Fi is also included.
We leave in a nice residential area with lots of local shops and activities, just over 10’ by train from the core of London.
In order to apply to this job these are mandatory requirements:
-Good level of English
-Previous childcare experience
-Positive attitude, capacity to adapting to various situations and able to be flexible when needed
-Good energy and vibe
-Honesty and transparency
-Good organizational skills
-You must be available for an Interview including a paid trial should we think you could be a suitable candidate.
-Driving license (preferable)
-Clear CRB and checkable references (at least two recent)
-Available for a minimum of 12 months
Payment is in agreement with current rates for central London for live in au pair or mother’s help based on your level of experience.
If you think this is a job you would enjoy, please send us your CV with a picture. Only suitable candidates will be offered an interview.