nannytax/professional Nanny Annual Survey of UK Nanny Wages - 2007
With thanks to Nursery World and nannytax.co.uk
Pay is only one of the changes seen in the nanny market over the past year
The word 'professional' has never been more relevant than in the current nanny market. Issues including CRB checks, insurance policies, approval schemes, maternity leave and pay increases all feature in this year's survey of nanny's earnings. The signs are that nannying is becoming a profession much like any other and that the image of the jet-setting nanny with an outrageous salary and spectacular perks may be gone for good. A nanny appears to be an affordable option for an ever-growing portion of families.
ON THE RISE
After several years of dramatic fluctuations, the results from this year's survey, coupled with last year's figures, indicate that pay is stabilising. The most substantial increase this year has been reported for live-in nannies in central London, where the average take-home pay has gone up comfortably ahead of inflation by 4.5 per cent, and now stands at 328 per week. Other regions have reported more modest salary increases, but what happens with pay in London tends, like house prices, eventually to spread to other parts of the country.
When taking a closer look at recent pay levels, it is interesting to note that 2005 and 2006 are the first two years of consistent growth, reversing the preceding trend which saw the cyclical pattern of a rise in one year followed by a fall the subsequent year. For example, there was the high of 2001, when salaries for a live-in nanny in central London rose by an impressive 14 per cent, only to be followed by a dramatic slump in 2002. The cycle then repeated itself; when in 2003 salaries shot up by 15 per cent, then fell by a record 5 per cent in 2004.
CHANGING TIMES
As we suspected a couple of years ago, the unsettled period between 2001 and 2004 can probably be attributed not only to the unrest in the global economy following the September 11 'tragedy, but also to shifts that were starting to take place in nannying. As a new type of nanny employer carne on the scene, a shake-up was inevitable. With families from a much wider socio-economic range starting to employ nannies, it not only affected earnings, but it also meant that more nannies than ever entered the market - a trend that is continuing. Attitudes about both nannies and their employers have also started to change. Nannies are no longer associated just with the wealthy. Now the shift-working NHS staffer is almost as likely to have a nanny as the high-flying city banker. And after years of stubbornly ignoring the double whammy in tax that nanny employers have to pay, the Government finally relented by giving some a tax break if they sign up to the childcare approval scheme, introduced in 2005.
We must also consider the effect of the ten new countries that joined the EU in May 2004 and their influence on salaries. When asked about this, nanny agencies are split almost equally. Half of them welcome the new Europeans for being more flexible about work and having more realistic expectations about money. The other half worry about their lack of qualifications, limited English and their willingness to work without having their pay properly declared. There is a general consensus among agencies that while it is possible that the 'new Europeans' may provide a more cost-effective alternative for employers, their skill base and their ability to provide quality one-to-one care for a child does not match that of the traditional nanny which most parents would prefer to employ. Only once the new Europeans attain the relevant skill sets will they begin to pose a real threat to the British nanny.
WHY SO POPULAR?
With the average annual gross salary for a daily nanny in central London nearing £29,000, and one in the country over £20,000, a nanny still doesn't come cheap. So why are so many families employing them?
When you take into account that a full-time nursery place in central London can cost in excess of £15,000 per child per year, a nanny is not such a bad deal, especially for families with two or more children. Additionally, as flexible working and working from home become more of a norm than an exception, the number of nannies willing to take on shared and part-time positions also continues to rise - our survey found that 15 per cent of positions are now nannyshares and 54 per cent are part-time - a nanny can provide a very affordable childcare solution.
IN OR OUT?
This year's survey highlights that, while over 80 per cent of nannies work on a daily (live-out) basis, it is the live-in nannies who can expect the higher salary increases, showing why families are willing to pay that bit extra. According to the agencies, the reason live-in posts are less common today has more to do with the nannies' own desire to have independent lives away from work, than with the families employing them. 'It's very difficult to find a qualified and experienced nanny who is willing to live in,' says one agency. 'If a family finds one and they have the space, they tend to hold on to her; she is worth her weight in gold. For instance, if there is an emergency she's right there, plus it's much more cost-effective for the family.'
Nanny insurance is an interesting topic. We can't escape the fact that we now live in a society where private lawsuits are becoming common. Yet when agencies in the survey were asked is nanny insurance becoming more common?, the answers were split three ways: 32 per cent said yes, 36 per cent said no, and 32 per cent were unsure. Despite this, the average proportion of insured nannies has dropped from 20 per cent in 2005 to 16.5 per cent in 2006.
The survey found 90 per cent of nannies already hold a current Criminal Records Bureau check when they sign up with an agency. While 24 per cent of agencies say that they would consider placing a nanny without one, most would only agree to do so if the process had already been initiated. Since it can take anywhere from ten days to 12 weeks to be cleared by the CRB, this is perhaps not so surprising.
APPROVAL SCHEME
According to Sure Start reports, there are now over 3,000 approved nannies under the childcare approval scheme, a rise of more than 130 per cent since its first full year of operation in April 2006. All of the agencies surveyed are aware of the scheme, and they report that 42 per cent of their parent clients have made enquiries about it, but that only 25 per cent of nannies have actually been approved. The relatively low take-up is most likely to do with cost - already, after its first year, the fee for joining the scheme has been raised to 99, and there is confusion as to who should be expected to pay for it. The parents are the ones who benefit financially. But agencies report that as the scheme gains momentum, some of their clients are expecting a nanny to be approved before recruitment - something we will most likely see more of in the future.
Agencies also fear that because the bottom line for approval is not childcare experience but absence of a criminal record, it can lull parents into a false sense of security. With a growing number of parents using internet recruitment sites to find a nanny, they may assume that as long as they employ an approved nanny they will be in good hands. Another issue is that some of the older nannies' qualifications are not officially recognised. It is ironic that those with the most experience who are also fully qualified must take the one-day beginner's childcare induction course recommended by Sure Start to gain approval - a mismatch in professional recognition that is echoed elsewhere in the childcare sector.
MATERNITY RIGHTS
Another hot topic in this year's survey, for both nannies and employers, is maternity pay and leave. Nannies feel discriminated against and a number of agencies report that families often hesitate before hiring, or even interviewing, a nanny of childbearing age out of fear that she might soon start her own family. Their concerns are, of course, not unfounded - finding a replacement nanny for one who becomes pregnant does present problems. But what surprises many agencies is that while the parents themselves expect to get maternity and paternity pay and leave from their own employers, they resent having to give it to their nanny, even though the direct cost of statutory maternity pay is reimbursed by the government.
Because a pregnant woman is heavily protected by law against any form of discrimination, an employer must carefully toe the line with this and similar issues. And as of April this year, statutory maternity pay and leave will be increased from 26 to 39 weeks - a long time of uncertainty for employers, because a nanny may decide not to return to work at the end of her leave.
LOOKING AHEAD
The past six years have seen a sea change in the composition of the nanny market. There is no longer a one-size-fits-all specification for either a typical nanny employer or a typical nanny position. Will pay levels ever be typical again?
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