I very much hope that practitioners will warn parents about the dangers of using the internet to find babysitters, following an incident on Gumtree where a convicted paedophile advertised himself as a babysitter, so that he could film himself abusing young girls.
The current economic climate has made things tougher for families and, because of this, some opt for 'quick fix' solutions and use the internet to find their childcare. This means they only have to pay a nominal advertising fee, or something similar. These sites provide no formal checks or guarantees as to the identity or credibility of the person.
The Association of Nanny Agencies (ANA) has a professional code of conduct in place to ensure all agencies meet with the legal obligations and duty of care for both the nanny and the parent. Although using an ANA-approved agency is a more expensive way of finding childcare, there is a methodical process in place to ensure candidates are credited for the professional carers they are and that parents benefit from knowing their childcarers are vetted and approved by agencies.
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