About Us

My name is Lisa and I'm a Chiswick mum with three happy, energetic children of 13, 11 and 7. As a journalist by trade, I've used my experience as a mum to write for parenting titles such as Supernanny, Prima Baby and various parenting websites. I'm also a trained childcarer, at the moment undergoing CRB checks and first aid training.

The Idea

I got the idea for Mums on Call after chatting to my friends, and noticing that one particular bugbear kept cropping up time and time again - the lack of flexible childcare during the day. Like me, we didn't feel we needed the services (or could justify the expense) of a full-time nanny or a nursery place, as many of us only worked part-time and we just needed help now and again - you know - when family life seemed even more hectic than usual: school holidays, kids birthdays approaching, a jam packed diary of appointments. It seemed that it wasn't only flexible childcare that we could do with, but also help with everyday tasks too so that you are left free to cope with the more pressing stuff. I thought about those little jobs that have to be done, which throw the rest of your day's schedule off kilter, like waiting in for the tradesman or a delivery, wrapping pressies, queuing at the post-office, picking up dry-cleaning or the ingredients for your dinner party. The to-do list of a busy mum is endless!

But who, I wondered, would be best to help us out when times got tough? Well, whoever it was would have to understand children really well, not just through a paper childcare qualification, but with plenty of real-life, hands-on experience, plus they'd have to be honest, trustworthy and capable. And if they could cope with my lively kids and make a dent in my hectic To-Do list, then they'd also have to be calm, friendly and patient. It was then that I realised who I was describing - many of the mums I already knew! And I thought that helping out families with a few hours of daytime childcare and helping them tick off the chores on their to-do lists would also be the perfect part-time, family friendly job for some mums. And so, once I'd come up with this concept of mums helping mums and a 'does what it says on the tin' name for the business, I realised I'd just had myself another baby, as Mums on Call was born.

The Team

All of our Mums are sunny-natured, local women who have their own children - and some have grandchildren. Many have experience either as nannies, teachers and childminders or they are regular helpers in the creche or classroom. Most of our Mums have an enhanced CRB check through their past or current jobs, and all of our Mums have impeccable references which we check thoroughly. Although we greatly value qualifications, we also know that experience is very valuable too and a good childcarer must enjoy being with children and have the right personality to work as a Mum on Call. That means we also check for qualities like honesty, reliability, maturity, conscientiousness, and capability. So, while we like it that our Mums skills are diverse - from trained teachers, swimming instructors and artists - we are particularly interested in the one thing they have in common - fabulous characters!

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