Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link

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Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
Share your home.
Gain the world.

                   v. Feb2020
Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
Quality, in-home childcare
from only $180 net per week.

                               2
Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
Our whānau
                      always there
                        for yours.
         If there’s one thing we’re passionate about, it’s creating
    life-changing experiences for Kiwi whānau and their little ones.
  We know how precious your little treasures are, so we’ve tailored a
programme that focuses on what they need, gently guided by someone
                who loves them as much as you do.
It’s our job to find you an experienced au pair who fits with your whānau
       day-to-day life, and shares your aspirations for your tamariki
                  to grow up happy, healthy and confident.

                              Let’s share the
                           journey together.
                                                                            3
Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
All about au pairs.

An au pair is a young person from abroad, employed by a whānau to care for their
tamariki. As a live-in form of early childhood care and education, au pairs provide a
unique cultural and learning experience.

Our au pairs are between the ages of 18-30, and mostly female. They speak English
at a conversational level, and have at least 200 hours of childcare experience, be it
through babysitting, coaching a sports team, working as a tutor or in a local daycare
centre. While 200 hours is the minimum requirement for a candidate to apply for
our programme, the average amount of experience for our au pairs is around 1300
hours, reflecting our applicant’s genuine interest in caring for tamariki.

All of our au pair candidates undergo a comprehensive screening process, including
police and medical checks, childcare and character references and a personal
interview to assess their English speaking ability, and suitability in caring for the most
important people in your whānau.

Because they’re too precious to leave with just anyone.

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Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
Share your home.

 Help & support
 Not only can your au pair provide a
 world-class learning experience for your
 tamariki, they are also there to help with
 preparing tamariki meals and to take
 care of laundry duties and other tasks
 related to your tamariki. Our au pairs also
 offer help and support for whānau where
 homebased early childhood care and
 education is an ideal fit for their tamariki.
 Whether your whānau lives in a rural
 community, your tamariki have additional
 learning needs or you prefer the one-to-
 one care that we can offer, we are here
 to help.
                                                    Convenience & flexibility
                                                    As a live-in caregiver and educator, your
                                                    au pair is there to make life easier. No
                                                    more waking your tamariki up at 6am
                                                    so you can drop them at kindergarten
                                                    or fretting about finding a last minute

 Cultural experience                                babysitter - your au pair is there when
                                                    you need.

 Having someone from a different culture
 caring for your tamariki is a fun and
 educational experience. An au pair becomes a
 much-loved member of your whānau, sharing
 their culture, language and values, allowing
                                                    Affordability
 tamariki to develop a well-rounded world view      Get quality in-home care and education
 early in life.                                     for your tamariki from only $274 net
                                                    per week. Because your au pair is paid
 We know it’s an important step to open your        a weekly wage (supplemented by board
 door to somebody new. Our experience has           and lodgings), whānau actually find
 shown us that the quality of relationships         that it is a more cost-effective form
 that develops between tamariki and their au        of childcare than the pay-per-tamaiti
 pair often surpasses whānau expectations. In       (child)-per-hour model. With Au Pair
 addition, the advantages of early exposure         Link you also have access to the 20
 to a second language and culture makes             Hours ECE government subsidy for
 choosing an au pair the logical choice for         tamariki between 3-5 years, as well as
 whānau who want their tamariki to have a           WINZ childcare subsidies (including
 head start in their life-long learning journey.    OSCAR if you’re on our Au Pair Mate
                                                    programme).

                                                   Gain the world.                              5
Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
Au Pair 123.                                                           • 7-12 month placements

                                                                       • 20-45 hours childcare per
                                                                         week for between $290-$441
For whānau with at least one tamaiti under                             • 200+ hours childcare exp.
five years.
                                                                       • We organise your au pair’s
Invest in a richer experience for your little ones with an
                                                                         flights, visa and insurance
Au Pair 123. Watch your little ones’ interests spring to life as
their learning journey begins under the loving eye of their au pair.   • Your au pair attends a 3 day
Working with the New Zealand early childhood curriculum, Te              Orientation in Auckland
Whāriki, our au pairs empower tamariki to express themselves
and discover the world around them through inspiring learning          • Qualified ECE teacher
experiences. Our team of Programme Managers (all New                     support on our home early
Zealand qualified and registered early childhood teachers)               learning programme
organise regular playgroups, outings and events, as a way for
tamariki and au pairs to socialise and explore together. Au pairs      • Regular playgroups, activities
also weave a sense of whānau and culture into the learning               and events
experience by writing learning stories for each tamaiti under
five, as a way to reflect on progress and share aspirations for the
future.                                                                • Access 20 Hours ECE and
                                                                         WINZ childcare subsidies

                                                                       • 3 month placement guarantee.

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Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
• 7-12 month placements

Au Pair Whiz.
                                                                    • 30-45 hours childcare per week
                                                                      for between $432-$548

                                                                    • Have a degree/qualification
                                                                      or be studying for one (in the
Specialist care for whānau with at                                    social or educational field) and
least one tamaiti under five years.                                   have 400 hours experience with
                                                                      children under five. OR been a
                                                                      full-time au pair or nanny for a
Whether they are a qualified kindergarten teacher, tamariki           minimum of 12 months, within
nurse or have previously worked as an au pair - our Au Pair Whiz      the last three years
candidates bring world-class childcare experience into the heart
of your home, making things that little bit easier to manage. An
Au Pair Whiz is also the perfect option to support your tamariki
                                                                    • We organise your au pair’s
through the everyday challenges brought on by multiple births,        flights, visa and insurance
health requirements and other learning needs. We know your
tamariki are too precious to leave with just anyone - that’s why    • Your au pair attends a 3 day
our team of Programme Managers (all New Zealand qualified and         Orientation in Auckland
registered early childhood teachers) are there to support you,
your au pair and tamariki - making sure together, you receive the   • Qualified ECE teacher support
care and affection your tamariki need to grow into happy, healthy     on our home early learning
and confident learners.                                               programme

                                                                    • Regular playgroups, activities
                                                                      and events

                                                                    • Access 20 Hours ECE and
                                                                      WINZ childcare subsidies.
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Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
Au Pair Assist.                                                        • Short term placements

                                                                       • 20-45 hours childcare per
                                                                         week for between $290-441
A short-term childcare solution for whānau                             • 200+ hours childcare exp.
with at least one tamaiti under five.
                                                                       • Your au pair attends a 3 day
Need quality, short-term childcare tout de suite? Our Au Pair            Orientation in Auckland
Assist programme is designed for whānau looking to fill an au
pair position quickly and save you from pulling your hair out          • Candidates are often already in
while you try to find last-minute childcare options. Au Pair             Aotearoa
Assist candidates are often already in Aotearoa, giving you
the opportunity to meet them in person and talk about how              • Qualified ECE teacher support
they can fit into your whānau life. With support from your               on our home early learning
Programme Manager (all qualified and registered early childhood
teachers), an Au Pair Assist is there to make sure your little one’s     programme
personality and interests flourish, as they discover their world on
our home early learning programme.                                     • Regular playgroups,
                                                                         au pair and child activities and
                                                                         events

                                                                       • Access 20 Hours ECE, WINZ
                                                                         childcare subsidies.

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Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
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Share your home. Gain the world - v. Feb2020 - Au Pair Link
Culture and language.

Our au pairs travel from all over the world to experience life in a Kiwi whānau. Every
day we hear stories from around the country of how enriching it is for tamariki and
whānau alike to be exposed to different languages and cultural influences. Whether
the tamariki are learning to make German apple strudel or discovering their au pair’s
hometown through photos, their awareness of the world around them is amplified
through the intrinsically multicultural experience of having an au pair.

The benefits are not just anecdotal. Research shows that second language
learning in early childhood gives tamariki the best possible chance to develop their
understanding of a language. Rather than become confused, they are at an ideal
stage of development to soak up and understand multiple languages. Down the
track, this means your tamaiti has a real advantage when it comes to grasping tricky
concepts and ideas. Quite simply, the areas of their brain, which are related to
memory, attention and language are stronger than monolingual learners.

Au pair education is unique in that it really focusses on the tamaiti as an individual.
Quality one-on-one learning means a tamaiti can often surpass expectations,
because of the level of interest and support afforded to them. Through enriching
learning experiences and exposure to new ways of thinking at an early age, tamariki
on our programmes are assured to grow up to be happy and confident learners.

Because caring is a universal language.

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Your learning journey.

Our Ministry of Education licensed
programmes are designed for whānau with
at least one tamaiti under five.

Weaving the principles and strands of Te
Whāriki, we work closely with your au pair
to create a meaningful learning journey
for each tamaiti, one that develops their
curiosity about the world around them.

We do this by organising regular playgroups,
as well as outings and events for au pairs,
tamariki and whānau, and best of all -
we create an interactive online learning
Timeline for each whānau, so you can see
what your little ones are up to anytime,
anywhere!

                                                          Monthly visits
  Playgroups                                      Our team of Programme Managers are
                                                  committed to ensuring each whānau is
  We run regular playgroups across Aotearoa
  for tamariki to attend with their au pair.      happy and enjoying their au pair experience.
  In some areas we run multiple playgroups        We organise monthly meetings with your
  each week (including Groovelink), giving        au pair and Progress Catchups with you
  your au pair the chance to bring your little    to ensure your tamariki have a supportive
  ones along to several different sessions        learning environment, guidance and
  every week. We often arrange for a              resources or resource kete. We think it’s
  specific activity or theme for the day, and     important that whānau are involved in their
  all our playgroups are run by our qualified     tamariki learning experience wherever
  ECE kaiako and are well equipped with           possible, and these meetings are a great
  educational resources. It is an excellent way   opportunity for you to share your aspirations
  for tamariki, au pairs and our Programme        with us.
  Managers to interact with each other, build
  friendships and share ideas.

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Au pair & tamaiti outings
                                                 We encourage tamariki and au pairs to
                                                 explore their local communities through
                                                 our regular outings. At least once a month
                                                 we send out an invite to a local event such
                                                 as going to the zoo, a farm, the fire station
                                                 or a beach where children can discover the
                                                 world around them. With our close-knit
                                                 network of au pairs in tow, it’s not unusual
                                                 to hear tamariki naming their favourite
                                                 animals in German or asking their local
                                                 baker about pain au chocolat!

                                                 Professional learning
Learning Timeline                                We offer our au pairs on-going childcare
                                                 training and support, right from the
At Au Pair Link, we recognise that as parents    moment they arrive at our orientation
of little ones, you will be wondering how your   course. In addition, we organise bi-
tamariki are getting on during the day. As       monthly professional development sessions
part of your online learning journey, we put     for our au pairs and families, conducted by
together a Timeline for whānau, where you,
                                                 our Family & Programme Managers. These
                                                 are a fantastic opportunity for you both
your au pair or your Progrogramme Manager        to learn more about childcare, nutrition,
can post photos, learning stories and other      positive behaviour techniques and so much
memorable moments. You can also leave            more! Our professional learning workshops
comments or even share your favourite photos     mean that your au pair is leading the way in
with anyone else you choose online!              the care they provide to your little ones.

Communication Books
& Tamaiti Learning Journey                       Educational resources
                                                 We have a great range of educational
We provide each tamaiti under five with an       resource kete, which we lend out each month
individual Tamaiti Learning Journey (Child       (that include items such as, books, music,
Portfolio), which records their learning         toys) for your au pair to explore with your
journey through a series of learning stories,    tamariki. Whether your tamaiti is interested
written by your au pair and Programme            in art, music, dinosaurs or fairy tales, our kete
Manager Voices. These often become a             are designed to fill your tamaiti mind with
treasured possession for both the tamaiti and    curiosity about the world around them. We
whānau. Similarly, our Communication Book        even provide an online resource portal and
helps you to establish a dialogue with your      tailored support specific to your tamariki.
au pair around your tamariki needs to ensure
their day-to-day care requirements are being
met.

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Our achievements.
ERO Reports
“The service values the importance of children learning
through play. Children are introduced to a wide range
of learning experiences within and outside the home.
Well considered, high quality resources and regular
excursions further enhance these opportunities. ”
Au Pair Link, Wellington 2, August 2016

   “The placement of educators is well
   considered and responsive to the
   needs of individual children and
   their families.”                         “A focus on high quality care and
   Au Pair Link, Taranaki 1, September 2016
                                            education in children’s own homes and
                                            positive learning outcomes is highly
                                            evident.”
                                                  Au Pair Link, Auckland 4, February 2017

                                             “The programme managers provide
                                             comprehensive support for educators in
                                             homes and at regular service playgroups.
                                             This includes coaching and guidance to
                                             effectively model ways to plan for and extend
                                             children’s learning. Parents’ contribution to
                                             the programme is highly valued”
                                              Au Pair Link, Auckland 3, February 2017

                                          We undertake regular evaluation by the ERO to ensure we’re providing the best
                                          possible learning outcomes for your little ones. For more information or to
                                          download our full ERO reports, simply visit ero.govt.nz and search
                                          Au Pair Link.

Healthy Heart Award.
 We are extremely proud and excited to announce that we have received
 the Pā-Harakeke Healthy Heart Award from the Heart Foundation for
 all six of our regions. This award recognises the amazing things we do to
 promote healthy food, nutrition and physical activity. We are helping our
 tamariki to have healthy habits and healthy hearts for life.
 Our policies around food and play contribute to the reason why we have
 achieved this award from the Heart Foundation.
 Au Pair Link was the first company in Aotearoa to be awarded the
 Healthy Heart Award at a national level.
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Getting started.

1      Visit aupairlink.co.nz and apply to be a whānau.

2      Browse through candidates or create a custom search based on your
       preferences. You can also create a list of your favourite candidates.

3      One of our friendly Placement Managers contact you within 24 hours for a
       quick Phone Assessment and to arrange a time to visit your home for a health
       and safety check.

4      Complete your whānau profile by adding details about your tamariki, creating a
       Host Family Letter* and uploading any photos that you’d like candidates to be
       able to view.

5      Fill out a police background check form for each adult (over the age of 17)
       living in your home and upload to the Supporting Documents section of your
       profile.

6      Once you’ve been approved for matching, you can start requesting
       Skype interview times with your favourite candidates!*

7      If you feel like you’ve found the perfect au pair for your whānau, you
       can create a job offer at the click of a button!

8      It’s a match! We arrange your au pair’s flights and insurance, book them into
       our Orientation, and make sure all the paperwork’s been sorted, so all you need
       to think about is getting your au pair’s bedroom ready for their arrival.

* Refer to the back section of this booklet for guidelines on how to write
your Host Family Letter, and our tips on getting the most out of your
candidate interview.

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Orientation.                                                           • 2 nights’ accommodation in
                                                                         central Auckland (incl. all
                                                                         meals) .
Once your au pair arrives in Aotearoa, we whisk them away on
a three day Orientation in Auckland. This gives your au pair a         • Introduction to being an au pair
chance to acclimatise after a long-haul flight, meet other au            incl. ways to deal with culture
pairs and receive valuable childcare training (including child first     shock .
aid) before joining your whānau.

Orientation is an opportunity for us to ensure your new au pair        • Child First Aid Course run
has arrived feeling positive and well-supported from the moment          by St John’s and theoretical
they land in Aotearoa. It also allows time for us to highlight           driving lessons
their key responsibilities as your au pair and provide them with
knowledge, advice and strategies before joining your whānau.           • Information around
                                                                         programme expectations and
All au pairs who arrive from overseas attend the full three-day          responsibilities as an employee
Orientation. If your whānau is enrolled in the Au Pair Assist
programme, chances are that your au pair is already in Aotearoa.
We only require these au pairs to attend our St John child first       • Comprehensive online training
aid course (held on Thursday) and complete our online training           modules before they arrive in
modules.                                                                 New Zealand.

Similarly, if you live outside of Auckland and match with an au
pair who is already in Aotearoa, we’re able to arrange for them to
attend a child first aid course in your area.

You can find a list of our Orientation dates at the back of this
booklet!
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What does it cost?
See the table for below for an overview of the approximate gross weekly cost payable on each of our
programmes.

          Weekly hours              Au Pair 123             Au Pair Whiz            Au Pair Assist
              20                      $290                      N/A                    $290
              25                       $318                     N/A                     $318
              30                      $345                     $432                    $345
              35                      $373                     $470                     $373
              40                      $401                     $508                     $401
              45                      $439                     $546                    $439

The figures in the table above are subject to change, inclusive of au pair’s net wage, PAYE tax, completion
bonus and administration fee. Your au pair’s weekly wage is supplemented by a board and lodgings
component, part of the total taxable package provided to your au pair and on which PAYE is calculated. Of

                                                             Board & lodgings
                                                            The au pair wage is exclusive of tax, room and
                                                            board. These factors will need to be included
                                                            as part of the total taxable package provided
                                                            by you to your au pair. As a whānau, you’ll
                                                            need to provide your au pair with board and
                                                            lodgings, consisting of a private and separate
                                                            bedroom and all meals.

                                                            Completion bonus
                                                            As whānau you’re also required to pay a
                                                            completion bonus to your au pair. The
                                                            completion bonus is paid by the whānau to
                                                            the au pair in recognition of successfully

  Vehicles & insurance                                      completing their fixed term employment
                                                            with you and as a contribution toward your
                                                            au pair’s flight home.
  A big question for whānau is around whether
  you’ll need to provide a car for your au pair.            The completion bonus amounts to $20 net
  We require whānau living in areas with limited            per week, prorated across the length of the
  or no access to public transport to provide a             placement term.
  vehicle for their au pair to get around during
  work and non-work hours. To make sure                     For example, for a 12 month placement term
  your au pair is confident behind the wheel,               the net completion bonus is $1,040 ($20 x
  we have a mandatory one week stand down                   52 weeks, excluding tax). Our payroll service
  period before they begin driving. Feel free to            can take care of this for you as well, helping
  contact us with any questions around this!                to spread the payments weekly.
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Employee rights
 &     responsibilities
When an au pair joins your whānau you become
their employer for the length of their placement
term (or fixed term employment). Au pairs
enjoy the same rights and benefits as any other
employee under New Zealand Employment
Law. Luckily, you don’t need to become an
employment expert to get an au pair, we’re here
to make the process easy for you and ensure you
feel well-supported. Your au pair will be entitled
to annual leave, public holidays and sick leave
while they are employed by you. We provide all
our whānau with an industry-leading Individual
Fixed Term Employment Agreement and can
supply you with information sheets regarding
wage calculations, taxation and employment
legislation.

20 Hours ECE                                              WINZ subsidies
                                                          Work and Income New Zealand (WINZ) offer
                                                          a number of subsidies to make quality childcare
When you join the Au Pair Link whānau, we can             more accessible and affordable for eligible whānau.
provide you with access to the 20 Hours ECE               While we can’t apply for a subsidy on your behalf,
government subsidy, designed to give whānau               we can help manage the payments as an approved
like yours increased options when choosing early          WINZ childcare provider while the tamariki are in
childhood care and education. The 20 Hours ECE            your au pair’s care.
subsidy means choosing an au pair as your preferred
form of childcare is more cost-effective than you         The Childcare Subsidy (CCS) is another option
may have previously thought!                              for whānau. Parents and caregivers can choose
                                                          between receiving the Childcare Subsidy or 20
To be eligible for the subsidy, your tamaiti must be      Hours ECE, or in some cases, a combination of
enrolled in one of our Ministry of Education licensed     both. Please note, if you do receive 20 Hours
programmes (Au Pair 123, Au Pair Whiz, Au Pair            ECE, you are unable to claim the CCS for the
Assist or Private Support). You will have to decide       same hours your tamariki are enrolled in 20 Hours
which enrolled hours are covered, but you can’t           ECE.
claim more than 6 hours per day or 20 hours per
week. Tamariki become eligible for this subsidy once      The OSCAR subsidy (Out of School Care and
they turn three and are able to receive this until they   Recreation) is a payment that helps whānau with
turn six (or begin attending school). The 20 Hours        the costs of before/after-school care and school
ECE subsidy is not means tested.                          holiday programmes. You can receive the before/
                                                          after-school subsidy for up to 20 hours a week
If your tamaiti attends more than one ECE service,        and an increased number of hours may be available
you can split the hours claimed, as long as these         for the school holidays. Please note there are
hours don’t overlap or exceed 20 hours per week in        some additional requirements and restrictions for
total. You’ll need to fill in an Au Pair Link Enrolment   whānau wanting to access this subsidy. To receive
Form and confirm the days and hours you are               this subsidy, your au pair must be at least 20 years
claiming the subsidy.                                     old. For information regarding current thresholds
                                                          and rates visit www.workandincome.govt.nz or call
If you have any questions regarding the 20 Hours          Work and Income on 0800 559 009.
ECE subsidy, please contact us. Alternatively, you
can visit the Ministry of Education website
                                                                                                           18
Making it easy.
Our payroll service, Paylink, takes the hassle out of being an employer. We pay your
au pair, calculate and pay the correct PAYE tax, and take care of all their holiday, sick
and annual leave payments.

It’s easy - simply register as an employer with the Inland Revenue Department and
pay your au pair’s gross wage into our Client Fund Service a week in advance. We’ll
calculate the correct net wage, sort the tax and pay your au pair directly. We can
even help you manage your au pair’s Completion Bonus by spreading the cost over
the placement term.

Save yourself a world of worry for only $14.00 per week (or $12.00 if we become
your PAYE Intermediary). As a PAYE intermediary, we’ll be responsible for fulfilling
your tax obligations as an employer. It also means we can liaise with the IRD on your
behalf. Whānau who register for our intermediary service are subsidised $2.00 per
payday, per employee.

We know becoming an employer can be daunting, but you can rest assured knowing
we’ve got everything sorted, so you’ve got more time to spend with the people who
really matter.

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Worth making
room for.
                                                      • Our whānau terms and conditions
If you’d like more information on how an au pair
could fit into your whānau life, we’re always happy   • Programme comparison matrix
to talk about what’s happening in your world, and
how we can make life that little bit easier for you
and your little ones.                                 • Our Introduction & Assessment Meeting
                                                        Checklist which covers our health and
In the meantime, we invite you to take a moment         safety requirements
to glance over a few of the resources provided
in the appendix to help you get started on your       • Application infosheets including tips on
application.
                                                        writing your whānau letter and interview
We look forward to welcoming you into our               guidelines
Au Pair Link whānau!
                                                      • Our 2020 Orientation dates

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Join the
Au Pair Link whānau.
 0800 AU PAIR (287 247)
     +64 9 309 4444
  family@aupairlink.co.nz

   www.aupairlink.co.nz

                         aupairlink

        © 2019 Au Pair Link

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