Why Nannies Aren’t Housekeepers: How to Set Clear Expectations With Families

As a full-time nanny, your focus is on the care, development, and well-being of the children in your charge. However, one common challenge many nannies face is the blurred line between nanny duties and housekeeping responsibilities. It's crucial to communicate with the family and ensure that your role as a nanny doesn’t become a housekeeper role.

The Role of a Full-Time Nanny

A nanny's primary responsibility is to provide dedicated care to the children, whether that means planning activities, ensuring the children's safety, or supporting their emotional and educational growth. While light tidying related to the children (cleaning up after meals, organizing toys, or doing the children’s laundry) often falls within this scope, deep cleaning and household management tasks usually do not. 

Full-Time Nanny vs. Family Assistant

It’s important to distinguish between being a nanny and a family assistant. A family assistant typically combines nanny duties with broader household management tasks, which can include errands, meal preparation for the family, and more extensive housekeeping. If you’re hired specifically as a nanny, these additional responsibilities should not be assumed or expected.

Open Communication Is Key

If you’ve noticed that more and more household tasks are creeping onto your to-do list, it’s time to have a conversation with the family. Politely and clearly explain to the family that while you're happy to help out in ways that directly involve the children, tasks like deep cleaning, organizing the household, or running non-child-related errands are not within the scope of your job as a full-time nanny. Setting these boundaries can prevent misunderstandings and burnout.

How to Keep Things From Piling Up

Setting clear expectations and communicating openly ensures that both you and the family maintain a healthy balance in your roles. Although light household chores related to the children are expected, you do not want the responsibility of trying to keep the house spotless when your primary focus should be on caring for the children.