Working as a nanny usually means collecting children from förskola (municipal preschool, from age one) or school and taking the afternoon until the parents come home: a snack, the playground, homework, dinner, sometimes bedtime. With us you need experience with children, two or three references, a criminal record extract and paediatric CPR. What makes the job good is the same family every week, so the children know you and you know them.
It is twenty to four at a preschool in Hägerstensåsen. The nanny is standing in the hallway, and a three-year-old who five weeks ago cried when mum left comes running with a drawing. That is the moment the job is about. The rest, the snack, the nappies, finding the mittens, getting a five-year-old off the tablet, is what you do to get there.
An ordinary afternoon
| Time | What happens |
|---|---|
| 15.30 | Pick-up at preschool. A short handover with the teacher: did he nap, did she eat? |
| 15.45 | Home, or to the playground if the weather allows. Snack straight away, most children are hungry at four. |
| 16.30 | Play, building, drawing, a book. For school children: homework if the parents have asked for it. |
| 17.15 | Start dinner if that is part of the job. Lay the table with the child, it is usually the most fun part for a four-year-old. |
| 17.45 | The parent comes home. Handover: what the child has eaten, what the mood has been like, whether anything happened. A note on the table. |
| 18.00 | End of the shift. Some families want help with bath and bedtime, in which case it ends at seven or eight. |
What it takes
- Experience with children that you can back up. Preschool, school, fritids (after-school care), nanny, au pair, summer camp, swimming school. Your own children or younger siblings are a good foundation but rarely enough on their own, because families want someone who has been responsible for other people's children.
- Two or three references from real employers, not friends. We call them and ask whether you turned up on time, how the children took to you and whether they would hire you again.
- An extract from the belastningsregistret (the Swedish criminal record) for work with children. You order it yourself from the Police, it is free and takes a couple of weeks. Order it when you apply, not once you have the job. More in Criminal record checks for nannies in Sweden.
- Paediatric CPR. A certificate from a course, otherwise check questions at the interview and a refresher video before each new family. Read Paediatric CPR.
- Swedish and English. Everyone with us speaks both. A third language is a plus, several families want Spanish, Arabic or another home language.
- That you enjoy coming back. It sounds obvious, but someone who wants new children every evening is better suited to an app. With us it is the same family every week.
The hard part of the job, which no advert mentions
It is lonely. You are the only adult in the flat, and there is no colleague to ask when the two-year-old screams for twenty minutes because the sandwich was cut the wrong way. You have to make decisions: can he have another banana, can she watch a film because it is raining and everyone is tired? Sometimes you are on the receiving end of a child's anger that mum is not home, even though you have done nothing wrong. And sometimes shifts are cancelled late, because the child fell ill or the meeting was called off. It is a job that requires you to genuinely like children, even at five o'clock on a Thursday in November when it is raining and nobody wants to put their boots on.
The good part, and what we hear most often
- The children. A baby who screamed in the first week reaching out their arms to you in the tenth. You do not get that in many other jobs.
- The same family. You get to know the children, the routines, where everything is. After a month you are not a babysitter but a person the children wait for.
- Hours that fit. Afternoons from three, usually finishing at six. Works alongside studies or another part-time job. Read more in Babysitting as a student job.
- Everything above board. Declared work, with pay and insurance. We are registered for F-skatt (Swedish business tax) and carry liability insurance with Trygg-Hansa during working hours. Pay and conditions are described in What does a nanny earn? Pay and conditions in 2026.
- Someone to call. Aleksandra has 13 years of experience with children and answers when you need to talk something through. You are alone in the flat, but not alone in the job.
How recruitment works
You apply via our job application page. Aleksandra calls or sets up a video call, and if it feels right for both of you, you meet in person. Bring your criminal record extract and your CPR certificate, if you have one, to the interview. We call your references. Then we match you with a family based on hours, area and what the children need, and you come along to a first meeting at their home. The first shift takes place with a parent at home, so the children can get to know you in peace. From application to first shift normally takes one to two weeks.
Who suits the job
Our nannies come from different backgrounds. Denise joined us in February 2024 and speaks Spanish. Sanna started in June 2024. Nike in January 2025, Doaa in February 2025 with Arabic as her home language, Esther in October 2025. What they have in common is not a qualification but a way of being with children: calm, consistent, present without a phone in hand. And the fact that they come back Tuesday after Tuesday.
How we do it with our families
Since January, Nike has had a family in Hammarby sjöstad with two children, aged four and seven. On Tuesdays and Thursdays she collects the four-year-old at half past three and meets the seven-year-old at school ten minutes later. Snack at home, then homework for the older one while the younger one builds. She writes the same kind of note every time: eaten, done, mood, something to know for tomorrow. When the seven-year-old had a rough week at school, it was Nike who noticed first, because she saw the difference from the previous Tuesday. She told the mother at handover. That is the part of the job you cannot put in an advert, and the part that makes her stay.
Would you like to work as a nanny with us? We are always looking for people who want the same families week after week. Read more and apply.
Read more: What does a nanny earn? Pay and conditions in 2026 · Babysitting as a student job · Criminal record checks for nannies in Sweden · Work with us
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a qualification to work as a nanny?
No, not formally. What we require is experience with children that you can back up, two or three references from real employers, an extract from the belastningsregistret (the Swedish criminal record) and paediatric CPR skills. If you have worked at a preschool, as a nanny, as a supply teacher or as an au pair, that is good. Your own children count too, but on their own it is rarely enough.
How many hours do you work?
It varies. Some of our nannies have one family two afternoons a week, others have several families and work almost full time. The most common shift is pick-up at preschool and the afternoon until the parents come home, so roughly three to six o'clock. Evenings and weekends exist too, but less often.
How does your recruitment work?
You apply, Aleksandra calls or sets up a video call, and then you meet in person. Bring your extract from the belastningsregistret (the Swedish criminal record) and your paediatric CPR certificate if you have one to the interview. We call your references. Then you are matched with a family and come along to a first meeting at their home.
Do I get the same family every time?
Yes. That is the foundation of how we work. You get one or more families that you go to on the same days every week. You get to know the children, they get to know you, and you do not have to start from scratch with new children every shift. Several of our nannies have had the same families for over a year.
What happens if I fall ill?
You let us and the family know as soon as you can. The shift is usually cancelled, and we offer another nanny when possible. Families with many shifts a week often have two nannies who both know the children, precisely so that someone is available when one is ill. Nobody expects you to work with a fever around a baby.