Profile: Searching for Sitters Simplified

By Susan Regier

Searching for the perfect childcare provider has been simplified with the recent launch of the London Caregivers Referral Network’s online database. Within days, more than 100 homecare providers in and around London registered at www.londoncaregivers.com. Now parents can easily find an ideal match to meet their family’s needs through this unique Web site catering to the London community.

London Caregivers connect parents and providers through an extensive interactive database. Parents can streamline their search to focus only on caregivers matching their personal criteria, with consideration to location, age, language preference, full time or part time, shift work or weekend care, and environmental concerns regarding smoking and pets. Police checks and First Aid/CPR training are also specified.

“We’re here to help busy working families who do not have the time or experience to find a home daycare provider or nanny on their own,” said Sabina Manji, owner of the London Caregivers Referral Network and publisher of The Mom & Caregiver Magazine. “The perfect caregiver may be just around the corner, but parents usually don’t realize it."

Home daycare providers register online for free and are categorized by location and services provided. A dynamic mapping process divides the city by postal codes while outlining street boundaries to expedite the process. A trial search gives parents the number of available matches within those boundaries. They can then opt to pay a minimal fee of $40.00, which gives them full details of the providers plus unlimited searches for ninety days. It is then up to the parents to follow through with their due diligence – they must meet the homecare providers and check references.

On average, childcare needs change every six to nine months as people move or their situations change. “The demand for an up-to-date resource is huge,” said Manji. “Parents have been thrilled with how easy it is to narrow their search and find the perfect connection.”

Since 1997, London Caregivers Referral Network has been helping local parents in their quest to find the perfect caregiver for their children, whether it’s home daycare providers, interviewing and hiring nannies, or locating temporary or last minute childcare. The innovative childcare registry has been profiled in Canadian Living and on CBC Marketplace.


Susan Regier is the publisher of www.NetworkingToday.ca, London’s online business resource, and head writer of Vantage One Writing, a professional writing service for businesses. 519.471.8726 Email: susan@vantageone.ca Web site: www.vantageone.ca

Published March 2008 Networking Today