How to structure the employment of a shared nanny.

Managing a nanny, it's not always simple, but organizing a shared nanny can prove to be even more complicated still. Indeed, you will not be the only family who get to makes the decisions and to impose their will.

It's quite possible that you are flexible about some things, and unwilling to compromise on others. And you will be at least two parties in this case, hence the importance of selecting the right family from the start, even if that means discussing many times before you even choose the nanny.

The art of organizing a nanny share.

Once you've found the family who seems like the best fit in terms of location and daily schedules and routines, you will have to agree on the organization of the childcare. 
It will be determined based on the agreement of the following:

• the alternation of homes, most often families are alternate homes every week,
• the days and hours of the care, 
• the salary and sharing certain expenses (ex. additional nursery equipment),
• the respect  of the children's routines according nap times, outings, meal times and so on,
• the duties required of the nanny (household chores, shopping ...) . They must be balanced between the two families,
• how to manage absences of the nanny: emergency solutions if the nanny is late or absent,
• the organization of meals; there may be several options depending on the age of the children, ranging providing the nanny with preprepared meals or asking her to prepare all meals herself,
• what procedure to follow when a child is sick, be sure to include these details in the contract.

Blogger Daisy Just Daisy gives her two cents on what other details need to be hammered out when starting a nanny share with another family, read her advice here.

Making arrangements for the holidays with a shared nanny

Of course, the ideal would be that you take vacation at the same time, you, the other family and the nanny, but in practice this is rarely the case. You may have more or fewer weeks vacation, or wish to take them at different times of year than the second family.
The nanny's vacation time may differ from yours. The first year of the contract your nanny will not have acquired her vacation time. This is due after the first year of employment, unless you wish to make an exception.