How to Find and Vet a Babysitter

A regular babysitter — someone you trust to be in your home while you are not — is one of the most useful relationships parents of young children can build. The first one is the hardest. Recommendations help, but the people who recommend a sitter are usually only telling you about their experience; you still need to do the work of meeting them, checking them, and watching how they are with your child. Healthbooq keeps the basics — allergies, medications, contacts — in one place a sitter can use.

Where Sitters Come From

In rough order of how UK families actually find their regular sitters:

1. Word of mouth — friends, neighbours, parents at the same nursery or school, antenatal group friends, NCT groups
2. Local nursery or childminder recommendations — staff sometimes babysit on the side; ask the manager whether this is allowed and how it is handled
3. Older students — A-level students, university students at home, especially those studying education, nursing, or social work; teaching unions and student unions sometimes have sitter rosters
4. Childminders and nannies looking for additional evening work — registered with Ofsted or the equivalent, already vetted
5. Online platforms — Childcare.co.uk, Bubble, Yoopies, Koru Kids in some cities; profiles, ratings, paid background checks

Word of mouth has built-in vetting because someone you trust has used the person and is willing to put their name to the recommendation. Online platforms widen the search but require you to do all the vetting yourself.

The DBS Check Question

In the UK, you can request an Enhanced DBS check on any individual you employ to look after your children at home. The basic check is £18 and the Enhanced check is more thorough at £38. Either:

• The sitter shows you their existing DBS certificate (employed nannies, registered childminders, teachers, and social workers usually have one)
• They sign up to the DBS Update Service so you can verify it is current online
• They obtain a new one for you

For a one-off evening sitter who is a trusted recommendation, families often skip this step. For anyone who will be in your home regularly, especially with younger children, requiring a DBS is reasonable and most professional sitters expect it. The fee is typically paid by you. It does not show absolutely everything; it does show convictions and certain other relevant information. It is a useful screen, not a guarantee.

What "Vetting" Actually Looks Like

Reasonable steps for a regular sitter:

Phone or video call (15 minutes). Cuts the list. Get a sense of how they speak about previous families, why they want this job, what their availability is, what their experience is.

• "Tell me about a child you have cared for and what they were like."
• "What would you do if my two-year-old hit my four-year-old?"
• "What would you do if a child needed bedtime and was refusing?"
• "Are you trained in paediatric first aid?"
• "What would you do in a fire?"
• "What's your phone usage like during sitting?"

• "How long did they sit for you and how often?"
• "Was your child happy with them?"
• "Were there any concerns or moments you had to address?"
• "Were they reliable?"
• "Would you have them again?"
• "Anything I should know?"

Listen for hesitation. A polite reference reluctant to be specific is sometimes more telling than the words.

A trial sit. Two hours, daytime, while you go for a walk locally. You return when expected. Ask the sitter how it went. Ask the child how it went. Repeat with another short sit before leaving them for an evening.

DBS check for anyone regular.

Paediatric first aid certificate — desirable for under-fives. The Red Cross and St John Ambulance run two-hour courses. Ask whether they have one; if they don't, suggest the sitter does it.

Green Flags

• Comfortable, warm interaction with your child within minutes of meeting
• Asks specific questions about your child rather than waiting for you to brief
• Listens carefully and writes things down
• Has a paediatric first aid certificate or is willing to do one
• Phones their referees themselves and lets you know they have asked them to expect your call
• Punctual to the meeting
• Comfortable with you saying "we don't allow that" — not defensive

Red Flags

• Late or no-show to the meeting without good reason
• Vague about previous families or unwilling to provide references
• Resistant to a DBS check
• Doesn't engage with your child while you are there
• On their phone during the meeting
• Talks over you
• Cannot describe a single specific scenario from previous experience
• Strong opinions about how you should parent that they offer unprompted
• Anything that just feels wrong

Trust the gut response. The cost of a no is two hours and a polite text; the cost of a wrong yes is much higher.

Setting It Up Properly Before You Leave

A short written sheet on the kitchen counter for any sitter, every time. The version for an evening sit:

• Your mobile, partner's mobile, where you'll be, expected time home
• Two named back-up contacts (grandparent, neighbour) with phone numbers
• GP name and number; the local A&E and minor injuries unit
• NHS number and date of birth
• Allergies, medications, doses
• Any current condition (cold, ear infection)
• Bedtime routine in the order you do it
• Snacks and drinks allowed
• Any rules — no screens after dinner, no opening the front door, no posting on social media
• The Wi-Fi password
• Where things live — nappies, pyjamas, spare blanket

Walk the sitter through the house briefly: bathroom, fire alarm, exits, where the children sleep. Show them the boiler if relevant. Show them how the door locks.

What to Pay

UK rates as of 2026, roughly:

• Older student / casual sitter, occasional evenings: £8–12/hour outside London, £10–15 in London
• Vetted sitter with paediatric first aid: £12–18/hour
• Registered childminder or off-duty nanny: £15–22/hour
• Live-out nanny doing evening work: standard nanny rate, £14–20/hour

Some sitters quote a higher rate after midnight. Some have a minimum booking. Pay in cash or by bank transfer at the end of the sit, not "next time" — sitters who get paid promptly are sitters who come back.

If you use someone regularly — say, a fortnightly evening — book a fixed slot in advance, pay reliably, and add a small bonus at Christmas or after a particularly demanding sit. The relationship economy of regular sitters is significant.

Introducing the Sitter to the Child

For young children, two short overlap sessions before the first solo sit help enormously. The sitter joins for half an hour at bath time on a day when you are home. The child gets to meet them, see them with you, see them in the house. Then a 90-minute sit while you do something local. Then a full evening.

For older toddlers and preschoolers, talk about the sitter beforehand: their name, when they are coming, what they will do. "Megan is coming to play with you and put you to bed. I'll be home before morning. I'll come and kiss you when I get back."

When the Sit Is Over

Always:

• Say goodbye to the child briefly when you leave (no slipping out)
• Pay promptly
• Ask "how did it go?" and listen
• Look at the child the next morning and ask "did you have fun with Megan?"

If the child says something concerning, take it seriously without panicking. Most odd remarks ("Megan was cross with me") have benign explanations; some have a story behind them worth investigating gently.

When To Stop Using Someone

The clear-cut cases:

• The child has unexplained injuries or marks after a sit
• The child is consistently distressed at the sitter's arrival after the first few sessions
• You return to find the sitter on their phone, asleep, on a video call, or with the child unattended
• The sitter has not followed clear instructions (gave food the child is allergic to, ignored bedtime entirely, brought a friend round)
• The sitter has been drinking or appears under the influence
• The child says something that concerns you about the sitter's behaviour and the sitter's account does not address it

In any of these, do not use the person again. Where there is reason to believe a child has been hurt or abused, contact the police or social services, and consider whether the sitter is in a position to harm other children.

Building a Bench

Most families who run smoothly with sitters have two or three vetted people in rotation:

• A primary sitter for routine evenings
• A second for when the primary is unavailable
• A grandparent or family member for genuine emergencies

Vetting all of them at the start is a one-off chunk of work that pays back over years. Once you have a working bench, sit-down meals out, occasional weekends away, and the breathing room they provide are genuinely available rather than theoretical.

Most babysitters are found through personal recommendation rather than online platforms. The minimum vetting before leaving them with your child: a face-to-face meeting, two reference calls (not just emails), an enhanced DBS check for anyone you'd use regularly, and a short trial sit while you stay nearby.