Background Check - Dallas,TX

I also used Mom's Best Fried when I was in the Houston area. They were great, the lady I used on a regular basis had a master's degree in child psychology!

Hi L.!

I LOVE your question! I was a nanny for almost 7 years and a mommy for three. I absolutely recommend doing some kind of a background check on anyone who will be watching your babies! There are many sites that do them but they are rip offs. I have included a web address for you to look at a comparison of some good services. Net Detective is the best I think, and only $30 for a 3 year membership. I would just suggest that even if there is a blemish on someone's background, ask them about it, because it could have been a stupid phase in their life or something. Another important thing to check is their references. Make sure that other people have trusted them with their kids and would recommend them.

Also, if you are looking for a way to work from home, I would LOVE to tell you about what I do! I am a Beauty Consultant with Mary Kay and make full-time pay at a part-time schedule, just by hanging out with fun girls! It has truly changed our family for the better. If you are interested in just talking about it let me know, I'll buy you a coffee at Starbucks and we can chat for 20-30 minutes.

Here is the website for the background checks:

http://consumer-guide.to/Background.Checks/

Hope it helps!

C. Odom
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www. marykay.com/candaceodom

Hi L. -

I signed on with Mom's Best Friend, it's a temp/perm nanny service. I have been with them for over 1 year and have had nothing but superior service. What sold me on them is that they run the background check for you. They hire responsible adults that have a true interest in children. Most of the girls that have watched my kids are in the process of getting a degree or are degreed in childhood development/education or a related field.

I'm attaching the web address in case you are interested.

Good Luck!
M.
http://www.momsbestfriend.com/

A good source for background checks is a company called Protect Youth Sports. They specialize in coaches and volunteers and cost between $10-$20. They do a thorough check and the SSN verification and address history is part of their basic package that costs $10. The more expensive search is only needed if you're in a state that doesn't report complete information. Some states don't even report sex offender information the same way, but these guys do a 50 state sex offender search. You also might want to consider making the perspective nanny pay for the check and offer to reimburse them if nothing turns up. Just a thought. www.protectyouthsports.com

Yes, I would strongly recommend a background check. Keep in mind that a background check is always done by county. So if you just check in one county, a person may have felonies/crimes in ANY other. Texas is a very lenient state when it comes to this. In California EVERYONE who works around children has to be fingerprinted and it is done through a special dept of FBI. See that way people cant hide anything. Whenever there is an arrest made, people get fingerprinted. You always take a chance when you leave your chidren with someone else, I would look into getting your nanny fingerprinted if I were you, that said there are plenty of kind and child loving people. Good luck.

Hi,
I use Cultural Care as well because I know that they do a background check, personality profile test and personally check all of the references. They provide all of the comments that were given during the reference checks too, so if I want to call one or two of references myself, I can do that. I've hosted 15 au pairs myself and have never had anyone I felt I couldn't trust.
K.

We used Hirecheck. I would absolutely background screen your nannies. The cost is typically pretty minimal - $30-$50 depending on the types of screenings that you would be doing. The one thing that I would caution you on is to be certain that you do a social search first to determine what states they have lived in prior to be certain that you get results from everywhere. It is so worth it to have peace of mind. Good luck!

I did a long search online, and found that on ehow.com that usssearch.com was a good place to do one. I'll be using this website once I get the written consent from our potential nanny. I think it's like $20. I also saw that just googling their name and going on social network sites like wink.com (searches all the social network sites) will also give you a good feel for what type of person they are. The key is to get the nanny to fill out a application with as much information about them as possible so that you can use it to look into them. good luckQ

HECK YEAH I'd do a background check for someone who is in charge of my child at my house! I don't know the best companies - maybe you could call your local police department and see if they have any suggestions, or call surrounding daycare facilities and see who they use. I think it's a requirement for daycare facilities to runthem, so I don't see why having a nanny would be any different. However, if you go through an agency, check with them to see if that's one of the placement services they provide.

Not only do a check but do it yourself. Agencies may do them but how do you know the criteria that they use for employment. NetDetective is a high ranked and affordable source for running background checks and other information on people. I say this because when we ran our bussiness out of our home we ran the standard bg checks on all employees. We hired a guy that when he quit decided to tell us he was quitting because we had children. He was actually a Registered Sex Offender who raped a 15 yo girl. 10 years ago. It was a violation for him to be in the company of a child. My kids are not allowed to be alone with any employee just because I am paranoid, but the thought that he was here and his bg check did not pull anything up is scary.

If you hire an au pair, the agency is required to do the background check for you, in whatever country the au pair is from.
The interviewing process with the agency I work with is very thorough:

- application detailing all stats,driving experience, education, childcare experience, interests & hobbies, pictures...
- at least 2 references, confirming the documented 200 hours of childcare experience
- level of English tested at interview, need 4 out of 7 minimum. The result of the test is on the interview
- background check, health check, all as part of the US Dept. of State regulations
- in-person interview with trained employee in their home-country, not a third-party or agent

The au pairs also go through a 4-day au pair training at the au pair school in New York.
More info on the program at http://nprice.aupairnews.com.

If you are looking at a nanny, I would definitely follow the advice from moms below but also ask for several personal and professional references. If things did not work out with her last family, see if you can still get in contact with them to find out why.

Good luck!

I have used both care.com and sittercity.com and had great experiences.

I now serve as a parent team for a new online upcoming company, CareNovate.com that will offer not only child care services but pet, office, home, educational and more. I like it because they have a diverse parent team (includes social workers, direct care workers, retired nurses, etc) that will approve all applicants and most care givers will have background check services via the site. They are to be cost effective, in other words cheaper than the rest while maintaining quality.
The site will be launching later this year and i think it will be awesome
check out it http://www.carenovate.com or http:www.carenovate.com/blog
http://www.facebook.com/cnovate

N. Ogum

Have you considered an au pair? All au pairs have a background check in addition to medical checks, which isn't an extra cost. If you or someone you know have any questions about au pair childcare, please check out my website jlenk.aupairnews.com

Background screening is a must. I have seen some of the things that come back on these checks when a parent is hiring a childcare provider and they would shock you !

In the USA you need to know the full address history of a candidate to run a proper background check. There are federal, county, and state reports. I also suggest driving reports and credit checks.

Try http://www.greataupair.com you don't have to have a paid membership on their site to order reports.

Be sure to also check the sex offender registry which is free http://www.familywatchdog.us/

HI L.,
I think it's very important to run a background check on any sitter you have watching your kids. I own a company called SeekingSitters and we do all the work for you. I find sitters, interview/background screen them and then send them out to jobs with member families. There are approx 40 SeekingSitters locations all around the country. If you are looking for a sitter I suggest you contact your local office for more information. www.seekingsitters.com
Good luck!
L.

I'm not sure on this...so check into it. I think you have to get permission from the person before conducting a background check. I am a recruiter and before we are going to hire someone, we have to have them sign something saying that they are aware of us performing a background check on them.

Not sure how it works with Nannys...just thought I would share. Good luck!

Using an au pair agency takes the guess work out of screening your self and you have the confidence that skilled professionals exercise high standards.

Cultural Care's screening process begins at the time of inquiry. Candidates are contacted by Cultural Care staff and a telephone discussion takes place to determine if the candidate meets the criteria outlined above. At this time program requirements and expectations are outlined with the candidate. If, after this discussion, the candidate is interested in applying and Cultural Care staff determines that s/he is a suitable candidate, application materials are sent to the candidate and s/he is invited to a Screening and Orientation Meeting.

Step One: Au pair application
Cultural Care au pairs complete an extensive application. The application packet includes a four page application form, as well as reference forms from childcare experiences such as babysitting jobs, daycare centers, teachers, and parents of their friends to name a few. The au pair must also complete a personal letter from the au pair to the host family and a photo collage that may include pictures of her/his family and friends as well as photos of the au pair with children. All au pairs must also participate in a Screening and Orientation Meeting (S&O Meeting) before they are accepted.

Step Two: The Screening and Orientation Meeting
While each step of the screening cycle contributes to the decision to accept or reject an au pair candidate, the Screening and Orientation Meeting is critical to the process. During this meeting, Recruitment Leaders spend several hours reviewing the Cultural Care program requirements and expectations with the candidates attending. Also during this meeting, Cultural Care continues its evaluation of au pair applicants through discussions and personal interviews. Cultural Care pays particular attention to characteristics of each candidate that may not be apparent in her/his written application. Motivation to spend a year as an au pair, maturity, interest in cultural exchange and flexibility are some of the characteristics on which Cultural Care focuses throughout the meeting.

Below is a synopsis of what is covered at the S&O Meeting. You will notice that many topics are similar to those discussed with prospective host families:

1. General information about being an au pair in the U.S.
2. Discussion of the U.S. in general
3. Description of typical host families
4. Au Pair requirements and duties (hours per week, types of duties, etc.)
5. Au Pair and Host Family Expectations
6. The Matching Process - what should the au pair expect
7. Role of the LCC in the au pair year
8. Preparation for challenges (transitions, homesickness, etc)
9. The Au Pair Training School in New York
10. Practical information for the year
a. Educational component
b. Insurance for au pair year and Additional Month Insurance
c. Driving in the U.S. and car insurance
d. Phone and internet use
e. Money
f. Smoking, piercings and tattoos

After the information portion is complete, Cultural Care staff schedules time for personal interviews. In many countries, these interviews happen on the same day as the Screening and Orientation meeting but in some cases, au pairs may need to schedule the in-person interview for a later date.

Please let me know if I can share more about the au pair program at Cultural Care.

____@____.com
www.groberts.aupairnews.com