If you are looking for a multilingual babysitter in the Netherlands, you are in the right place! I have a background in linguistics as part of my degree, and I know how important it is for a child’s caregivers to be able to communicate with them in a language they are comfortable in. The Netherlands is such an amazing place to raise children, and finding a babysitter that speaks your native language is great resource in a new country.
I got to talk to Loviisa and Melanie during their branding photoshoot, and I found out about Näpp and the work they do in the Netherlands connecting families with multilingual babysitters. They have babysitters that speak Dutch, Swedish, Hindi, Punjabi, Hebrew, German, French, Spanish, Arabic, Italian, Catalan, Sesotho, Afrikaans, Russian, and more!
Näpp’s babysitters, or Näppsitters, are also comfortable caring for neurodivergent children, and they have male babysitters in their registry as well.
1. How long have you been in business in the Netherlands and why did you decide to open Näpp?
I got an idea for Näpp the first time around 2018, when I was a student and working as a babysitter in an international, multilingual family myself. I noticed quite quickly what a key player I was for a family without a support system in the Netherlands. And I loved the fact that I could have a positive impact on someone’s life.
I went around playgrounds in Utrecht and met many other families who were keen on “having someone like you” like they said to me. I first connected some of those families with my international student friends, and quite soon I realized that there should be a better way to help these people than me going around playgrounds. Näpp was born and we have been connecting families with multilingual babysitters in the Netherlands ever since.
Due to me first being a student, then the pandemic, then getting pregnant (twice!), in my mind, I separate my business journey into Näpp 1.0 and Näpp 2.0. The second version of Näpp started around the time I met my business mentor in 2021 and was released in the summer of 2023 when Melanie joined us as a co-founder.
2. What makes Näpp different from other babysitters in the Netherlands?
We really believe in a personal approach, being hands-on and transparent. You can start off by creating a free profile on our website, which gives you access to explore all existing profiles. From that moment on we’ll be there to support your search. You can either opt in to the “self-service” route and connect with Näppsitters directly by becoming a member, or you can request our most supportive service the “Personalized Matching,” where we do all the work for you and personally look for the best match based on every family’s unique needs. Our goal is to help international families by creating a support system with reliable babysitters. I believe that personalized matching is something that we do uniquely. You can find a consistent babysitter to help your family weekly, for anything between 1-5 days, or whatever you need.
3. How important is it for children to have caregivers that speak their parent language?
Well, it actually depends. Every family has their own wishes. We always say that we want to be sure the children are understood by their caregivers, and that often means that they need to speak the parents’ language. We do have cases though, where a family wants to support their children’s Dutch, and then the caregivers will speak Dutch with the kids and English with the parents.
4. What kind of background tests do the babysitters have to pass to work with Näpp?
Every Näppsitter goes through an interview with one of the Näpp founders. During the interview, we validate their experience and find out their motives for babysitting. They all need to be over 18. We check their references and connect with a family they have worked before with. Their attitude is the most important. They need to be trustworthy, motivated, and truly want to be active and engaging with the children they care for. Most of our Näppsitters are also dreaming of the same thing as the families: to be able to find a real connection and build a long term relationship with each other.
5. Do certain nannies specialize in specific ages?
Yes, for sure. Everyone has their own skills. Some of our Näppsitters are extremely experienced, they have been au pairs, early childhood educators, or summer camp leaders before.
6. Do some of your nannies have experience with neurodivergent children and are parents able to filter their search by this qualification?
Yes, many of them actually, and parents are able to search by this qualification.
7. Do you employ any male babysitters? Maybe a single mom has a son and would like her son to have a male role model in his babysitter?
Yes for this as well! And this is exactly it! Sometimes we hear that young boys are extremely happy with their male caregivers, they see them as cool older brothers.
8. Do your babysitters provide any other help for families like cooking or cleaning or picking kids up from school?
Most of them are happy to do child-related light household tasks, like cooking for the kids and cleaning after them. School pick-ups are quite a regular task for our Näppsitters.
9. How far in advance should parents start looking for a babysitter?
The earlier the better, but through Personalized Matching it takes around 4-6 weeks to find the match, so at the latest 6 weeks before if you’re looking for consistent weekly help. We have been able to find matches even in 24 hours if needed, and especially for ad hoc babysitting it can be quick if there is a suitable Näppsitter in our community already.
10. What areas of the Netherlands are your babysitters located in?
The biggest Näppsitter communities are in Amsterdam, Utrecht, the Hague, and Rotterdam, but we are also growing in Maastricht, Groningen, and Eindhoven.
11. Do your babysitters offer overnight care, in the case of newborns, for example?
Yes! All the wishes can be arranged, we just need to know in advance what to communicate to the Näppsitters during the matching process.
12. Is there a difference between a nanny and a babysitter?
There is! A nanny is often employed by the family for a full work week, and it can be a complete replacement for daycare. Nannies most of the time do childcare as their career. Babysitters are often working less hours, most commonly 3 days or less for a family. They might be students who babysit to support their studies. This doesn’t necessarily mean that babysitters wouldn’t be experienced and qualified.
Hi, I’m Simran and I’m a maternity, newborn, and family photographer living in the Netherlands with my husband and two little boys. If you’d like to book a photography session, you can use the inquiry form on my website or email me directly at simsawyersphotography.com.
Family Session on the Amsterdam Canals
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