Nanny Job Description: Top Duties and Qualifications

A Nanny, or Childcare Provider, takes care of one or multiple children in their parents’ home. Their main duties include completing household chores, transporting kids to and from school or other activities and preparing meals.

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Nanny Duties and Responsibilities

Nannies typically have duties and responsibilities that are closely connected to all aspects of a child’s well-being. Make sure your Nanny job description is an accurate portrayal of the exact role they have to play in your household and explicitly state what they should and should not do.

Their most often required duties and responsibilities are:

  • Cleaning the children’s living spaces, such as their bedrooms, bathrooms and playrooms
  • Preparing meals for the children according to their specific needs and taste
  • Taking children to all their scheduled activities and appointments, including school, various classes and play dates
  • Providing an overall environment that enables the children to safely learn and play

What Does a Nanny Do?

Nannies are childcare providers who either live in or out of the household of the children they care for. They’re responsible for keeping these children safe, entertained and fed. In addition to watching and caring for the children, Nannies may also be responsible for cleaning the house, watering plants and feeding pets. Nannies may take care of babies, performing tasks like bottle-feeding and changing their diapers. They may also be in charge of toddlers or older children. 

Some Nannies are expected to have a driver’s license or a car to transport children to and from play dates, school classes or appointments. They may also be asked to run errands for the parents.

Nanny Skills and Qualifications

While there is no predetermined set of skills and qualifications that are required for a Nanny position, most required attributes are related to the willingness and ability to successfully educate and take care of children. Your Nanny job description should mention the skills that are required to keep a child safe, entertained and well-educated. The most important skills are:

  • Passion for working with children
  • Patience and communication skills to successfully interact with the children, understand their needs and make them be receptive to your requests
  • Organization skills to create a daily schedule that encompasses all the activities the parents want their children to attend
  • Problem-solving skills to be able to successfully deal with everyday issues that inevitably occur
  • Cooking and cleaning skills for nanny roles that also imply additional duties, such as making meals for the children and cleaning their living spaces

Nanny Salary Expectations

The average hourly wage for a Nanny is $15.97 per hour. Salaries can drastically vary according to the Nanny’s range of work responsibilities, experience and reputation, number of children in care, geographical location as well as other factors.

Nanny Education and Training Requirements

While there are no official requirements for people who wish to work as Nannies, there are certain requirements that you should include in your job description that increase the odds of finding qualified applicants. From an educational standpoint, a Nanny should have at least a high school diploma or an equivalent. Ideally, they would also have a degree in child development, teaching or psychology.

Nanny Experience Requirements

When it comes to experience in dealing with children’s livelihood and education, typically the more a potential Nanny has, the greater the odds that they will do a proper job. You can reflect that on your Nanny job description by mentioning the need of at least three years of experience in being a Nanny or any other form of professional child care services.

Job Description Samples for Similar Positions

There are other professional caregiving roles aside from that of a Nanny that involve similar duties and required qualifications. If this is not quite what you’re looking for, here are other related job description samples:

Frequently asked questions about Nannies

 

Who does a Nanny report to?

Nannies typically work independently and find available positions through listings on job boards. The children’s parents will usually hire the Nanny and assign them their daily responsibilities. Nannies will get their schedule from the parents and will ask them any questions they have about the children to help them more effectively care for them. 

Some Nannies are employed by an agency that assigns Nannies to certain homes according to their strengths and experience levels. If the parents have any concerns about the Nanny or if the Nanny has any comments about the parents, they’ll report this to the managers at the agency, who will work to resolve the issue. 

 

What's the difference between a Nanny and a Babysitter?

There are a few key similarities between a Nanny and a Babysitter, but also many differences when it comes to their responsibilities. A Babysitter is typically someone who occasionally comes to the parent’s house to watch their children, while the parents head to work, go on dates or engage in any other activities. Babysitters are often high school or college students who can come watch children for a few hours when they’re not in school, typically during weekends or evenings. 

A Nanny is usually an ongoing and permanent role that consists of them caring for the children typically every day while the parents are working. Nannys are also usually responsible for additional tasks like household chores, pet care or errands. Babysitters are typically only in charge of caring for the children. 

 

What settings does a Nanny typically work in?

Nannies will usually work and sometimes live in the parents’ household. When they live in the household, they’re often expected to join the parents and children when they go to any events or activities, like the grocery store, zoo or the children’s sporting events and will take care of the children during these activities. 

They may also be expected to take the children to school and attend parent-teacher conferences on the parents’ behalf if they’re unable to attend. Some Nannies even go on trips and vacations with the parents to take care of the children when needed.

 

What makes a good Nanny?

A great Nanny should have patience and compassion when working with children. They should also be organized and tidy in order to maintain a clean home for the family. Many Nannies are responsible for handling several tasks or caring for many children at once, so they should have great time management  and multitasking skills to ensure they’re completing everything on time. Nannies must also be certified and trained in CPR and have great problem solving skills to respond to high-pressure emergency situations that could occur.

Job Description Examples

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