Before you get on the call

Look through the family's profile properly first, not just the photos. City or region, the kids' ages, and anything they've written about the household give you a starting point, so the call itself can go straight to the questions that actually matter instead of covering ground you already had.

Book it in the app, at a time that works for both your time zones (it's handled automatically), and go in with questions written down. It's easy to spend the whole call being asked things and forget you're also deciding whether this family is right for you. You're allowed to ask as many questions as they do.

The 10 questions

1. What does a normal day actually look like?

Not the tidy version, the real one: wake-up times, school runs, who's usually home when. You're trying to picture yourself inside it, not just hear a summary.

2. What hours and days are we actually talking about?

Get specific: how many hours a week, which days, whether it's the same schedule every week or something that changes week to week. This is exactly what goes into your written agreement, so it's worth nailing down now rather than assuming.

3. What would my actual duties be, day to day?

Child care is usually the core of it, but ask directly about housework: is it just tidying up after the kids, or more general household tasks too? Better to know the real scope before you agree to it.

4. What's the pocket money, and what does it cover?

Ask for the number, not a range. Confirm what's included on top of it, room, meals, anything else, so you know exactly what you're comparing between families.

5. What's my own room actually like?

A private room, an ensuite or a shared bathroom, whether it's part of the main house or separate. Ask them to show you on the call if they can. It's your space for months, it's fair to see it properly.

6. How many kids, and what ages?

The profile should already say, but ask about personalities and any specific needs, allergies, routines, anything that would genuinely change how you'd approach the role.

7. What's the household like beyond the kids?

Who else lives there, pets, general house rules around things like visitors or curfews. You're moving into their home, it's fair to understand the shape of it before you do.

8. What would time off actually look like?

Ask how weekends and evenings off usually work in practice, not just in theory. Some families are very hands-off outside your set hours, others expect more flexibility. Neither is wrong, but you want to know which one you're getting.

9. Why is the last au pair, or the position, open right now?

A completely normal question. Maybe it's their first au pair, maybe the last one's placement simply ended on schedule. Either answer is fine, you're just listening for how they talk about it.

10. What happens if something isn't working?

Ask how they'd want to handle a problem if one came up. A family that's thought about this already, rather than assuming it'll never happen, is usually the more prepared one.

Watch for these on the call, not just the answers

The specific words matter less than whether the answers feel considered. A family that answers your questions clearly and asks some of their own back is usually a good sign, the same way you'd read any first real conversation with someone you might live with. Vague answers to direct questions, like "we'll sort out hours once you're here," are worth following up on rather than letting slide, because vague now tends to stay vague later.

Bonus: two questions worth asking yourself, not them

Could you actually picture a normal Tuesday in this house? And did the conversation feel easy, or did you find yourself working to fill silences? Both are worth sitting with after the call ends, away from the pressure of the conversation itself. A placement is months of daily life, not a single good half hour on a screen, and the calmer, after-the-fact read is often the more honest one.

It's fine to get on more than one call

You don't have to decide from a single conversation, and a family that's put together their profile properly won't expect you to. Talking to two or three families before you commit gives you something to compare against, and it usually makes the right fit more obvious, not less. There's no cost or limit to how many calls you book while you're deciding.

After the call

If it feels right on both sides, the next step is putting everything you just discussed, hours, duties, pocket money, into a written agreement signed by both of you before day one. Nothing from the call should need to be taken on trust once you've said yes.