Start with your family, not the nanny
Before you look at a single profile, take ten minutes to write down what your family needs. It makes every profile quicker to read, and it stops a lovely photo from making the decision for you.
- Your children's ages. Caring for a newborn and keeping up with a busy eight-year-old are very different jobs.
- Your hours. Full days, mornings only, a few days a week, or now and then. Do you need evenings or nights?
- Live-in or live-out. Most nannies in Hermanus live out. If you need live-in, say so early.
- Getting around. Will they need to do school runs or drive to activities? Or is it all at home?
- Your home. A pool, pets, a child with allergies or special needs. Anything that needs extra care.
- Extras. Meals, homework help, light housekeeping around the children. Be honest about what you'll ask for, so you're fair from day one.
- Languages. Which language you speak at home, and any you'd love your children to hear more of.
Then circle the two or three that you can't do without. Everything else is a nice-to-have.
How to read a profile card
When you search on Hermanus Helpers, each nanny shows as a card like this one. Everyone you see is recommended by a past employer who'd hire them again. The card is a quick first look to help you decide whose full profile to open.
Nomsa K.
Nanny · Babysitting · Zwelihle
1Available now
3"Our girls adore her, and we trust her completely."A household in Voëlklip
4R400 a day
Made-up example. Not a real helper.
- Availability. Whether they're looking for work right now. Their full profile has a calendar of the days they're free.
- Rating, reviews and years confirmed. The rating comes from how past employers and households rated them. The years are only the ones past employers have confirmed, so they may be fewer than the nanny's full experience.
- In a past employer's words. One line from a household or crèche that paid them for work and would hire them again.
- Their usual day rate. A guide to compare nannies at a glance. You agree the final rate directly with them.
Once you're logged in, the heart in the corner lets you save a nanny, and the number shows how many households have saved them. It's a nice sign, but it isn't a review. Some of the best nannies are new to the platform and haven't been saved yet.
The full profile, part by part
Open a profile and you'll find much more. Here's what each part tells you, and what to look for.
In their own words
A few lines the nanny wrote about themselves. Read it for warmth and for what they enjoy. Don't judge it on spelling or polish. Plenty of wonderful nannies are more at home talking than writing, and many are writing in their second or third language.
When they're free
A live calendar of the days they can work. You can book from 48 hours to 2 months ahead. For ongoing work, look for a steady pattern that fits your week.
Work and getting there
The hours they prefer, live-in or live-out, how they get around, which areas they can get to, and whether they have a driver's licence. If they'll need a lift home after dark, it says so here too.
Local tip: public transport in Hermanus is mostly taxis on the main road. If you live out in Hemel-en-Aarde, Fisherhaven or Stanford, check how they'll get to you, and that it works on a rainy winter morning too.
Experience and skills
The kinds of work they've done (private nanny, crèche, preschool, au pair, babysitting), the ages they know, and what else they help with, like meals, homework, swimming supervision or caring for pets.
You'll also see any qualifications: first aid, infant and child CPR, Early Childhood Development (ECD), swimming or lifesaving, and special needs training.
Local tip: lots of Hermanus homes have a pool, and the sea is never far. If yours does, put infant and child CPR near the top of your list, or offer to pay for a course. It's a day well spent.
What past employers say
This is the heart of the profile. Past employers rate the basics (on time, honest, speaks up, safe with children), pick their stand-out strengths and describe their working style. You'll also see whether each one would hire them again.
When you read it, look for patterns. If three different families all say "calm", you can believe it.
Reviews
Star ratings and comments from households who booked through Hermanus Helpers. Each household counts once, so one family can't tip the average.
Training
If a nanny has done a course, the organisation that trained them can confirm the course, the dates and whether they'd recommend them.
What the ticks mean
Every part of the profile says where its information came from, so you always know what's been checked.
- Employer confirmed means a past employer told us the dates and the role, and whether they'd hire them again. We check every reference personally.
- Seen by us means we've seen the certificate for that qualification.
- Trainer confirmed means the organisation that ran the course confirmed it.
- "From Nomsa" (or whatever their name is) means the nanny told us this themselves. That's normal, not a warning sign. It just hasn't been checked yet. Ask about it in the interview if it matters to you.
Each list of checks only shows what's been done. Nothing is ever shown as "missing", so a nanny who is new to the platform isn't made to look worse than they are.
What matters most, and what matters less
Once you've read a few profiles, they can start to blur. This order helps.
- 1. What past families say. Nothing predicts how someone will care for your children better than how they cared for someone else's. Confirmed references, and whether those families would hire them again, come first.
- 2. A fit with your must-haves. The right ages, your hours, getting to you. A brilliant nanny who can't get to your house by 7:30 isn't the right nanny for you.
- 3. Safety skills that fit your home. First aid and CPR matter more with a baby, a pool or a child with allergies.
- 4. The extras. Driving, homework help, a language you'd love your children to hear. Lovely, but rarely worth giving up one of the above for.
A note on education
Finishing high school (Matric, in South Africa) is nice to have, but it tells you less than what past families say. Many excellent, experienced nannies didn't get the chance to finish school, often for reasons that had nothing to do with ability. That's why we don't show education on profiles.
If it matters for your family, say for homework help with older children, ask about it in the interview. Ask what you really want to know, like "Are you comfortable helping with Grade 5 maths?", rather than asking for a certificate.
Last of all, trust what you feel when you meet them. A nanny can tick every box and still not be right for your family. Another can surprise you.
From short-list to yes
- Short-list two or three profiles. Reading a few side by side makes it easier to see a strong fit.
- Book the one who fits best. You get their number straight away, so you can say hello on WhatsApp.
- Meet before day one. A relaxed chat of 30 to 45 minutes, ideally at your home. Ask about the families in their references, and about anything on their profile that hasn't been checked yet. If it doesn't feel right, it's free to cancel up to 24 hours before the booking starts, and your fee comes back as credit. Our guide Before day one helps you plan the chat.
- Agree fair pay. Not sure what's fair? See What's fair to pay a nanny in Hermanus?
- Give the first two weeks your attention. Time with your children tells you more than any profile. Our guide The first two weeks covers the first day, good signs and a two-week check-in.
Remember it goes both ways. A good nanny is choosing a family too.
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Every nanny on Hermanus Helpers is recommended by past employers who'd hire them again. See who's free, read what other families say and book in minutes.
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