Nanny/Babysitting Contracts: Sample Template
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Looking for more information regarding babysitting and nanny contracts? Start reading below! Prefer to get straight to the point and see a sample contract? Simply scroll to the bottom of this article, or click here!
Do you need to have a babysitting or nanny contract?
The first question many parents (and childcarers) may have is, “Do I need to have a contract?”
The answer to this question.. Well, it depends! For example, when hiring a family member to provide babysitting or childcare services, it’s often not very common to create a contract.
However, whatever the case, having a contract can be an important way to protect both the parent and the childcare provider, and provide clarity regarding the specific expectations and agreements.
What information should be included in a babysitting or nanny contract?
As mentioned, a babysitting or nanny contract should provide clarity regarding specific expectations and agreements about the job.
These expectations and agreements can include the following (and more):
- Duties/responsibilities
- Salary agreements
- Ground rules (House rules)
- Term of employment (or ongoing)
- What to do in emergencies
- Ending the agreement
Below learn more about what specific information you can include in the above sections.
Duties and responsibilities in a babysitting/nanny contract
In this section of the contract, you can clearly lay out the following:
What the babysitter’s/nanny’s core responsibilities will be.
This can be for example, the tasks that they need to do, for example, taking care of the child, feeding them, cleaning up their toys, helping with homework, etc.
If the babysitter/nanny will work on a very set schedule, you can also include the expectations for this here. For example, if they are picking up the kids at a set time from school and caring for them until the parent gets home from work. Include, to the best of your ability, the expectations regarding hours per week and time frames where they will be needed.
Salary agreements
Here, you should include the pay that you have agreed upon with the babysitter or nanny. You should also make it clear when they will receive payment. Will it be after every booking or appointment, every week, two weeks, etc.
Here you can also discuss expectations in the case that they are asked to work extra hours or hours outside of the main responsibilities.
It is also important to discuss and include the cases in which you may pay a higher wage, such as last minute appointments or holidays.
Ground rules
Here you can lay out the ground rules that you would like the babysitter to follow. For example, can they let the kids watch tv, what type of snacks they are allowed to have, where they are allowed to go in the house and what they can use. This can include anything you think is important, which you’d like to have clearly on paper for the babysitter or nanny to agree to.
Emergency planning
If you would like the babysitter to react in specific ways in different situations, you can include this here. This may involve what to do in case of an emergency, illness, or more.
Term of employment
Here, you should include when the contract goes into effect. So, you can include the start date, when they are expected to start working. If you have an idea of how long you’ll be needing the nanny or babysitter’s services, you can also include this here. For example, if you need the babysitter/nanny for the whole year, you can include this as an end date. Or, you can write in terms regarding extension of the contract.
Ending or changing the agreement
In a babysitting/nanny contract, you should include a section on what happens regarding changes to our ending the contract. This involves, in what circumstances you may end the contract, and how much notice you or the babysitter/nanny needs to give in order to change or end the contract.
Template Babysitting/Nanny Contract
Here is our template for a babysitting/nanny contract! Feel free to download and/or adapt it in whatever way you please.
Do keep in mind that this is simply provided as a guideline and isn’t meant as specific legal advice. If you are uncertain about a contract, you can always consult legal counsel.
We hope this article and template give you more certainty and security when setting up your babysitting/nanny contract!
Be sure to check out our other community resources articles for more helpful tips for parents!