The Regional Government published Friday new rules in the Official Journal for the exercise of nanny activities in family daycare. Moreover, nannies will be also authorised to work outside this institutional framework.
 
The Government of the Azores has established new rules for the exercise of this activity, seeking to ensure, among other aspects, that all have access to the best conditions of space, hygiene and safety, which is essential to the provision of this service to Azorean Families.
 
As also established by Administrative Ordinance no.45/2017 of June 23, it is now possible to carry out this activity independently and properly regulated.
The legislation now published also determines that all applicants and nannies should participate in training courses on a regular and continuous basis and at each renewal of license. It has also defined programme contents that may be taught by public and private entities, associations and cooperatives, namely vocational training schools, certified for this purpose.
 
In the case of professionals working at a family daycare centre, it determines the monthly amount paid to the nanny per child at 183.96 Euros. The stipulated amount is higher in the case of children with special needs, being set at 367.92 Euros.
 
The allowance amounts to 15 Euros per child on a monthly basis in case of food reinforcement and 60 Euros per month in situations where families cannot guarantee the supply of a main meal.
 
The ordinance also stipulates the payment of supplementary care will be made when three or four children are admitted. This also applies when the number of children enrolled in the institution located in the geographical area where the nanny is working does not allow the accommodation of another two children. The nannies will be entitled to a supplement of 20 Euros for each of these children, which corresponds to a maximum supplement of 40 Euros.
 
It should be recalled that the monthly family allowance is calculated according to the available income of the family and reduced in the monthly payments for the second and third children at the care of nannies belonging to the network of social responses, similarly to what happens in the case of children integrated in the regional network of social responses, similar to what happens to children attending daycare, kindergartens and free time activity centres.
 
This reduction is applied even if the children are benefiting from different responses. It covers the different social responses that make up the regional network of childhood services.
 
Nanny services are an alternative social response to the daycare and are intended to help families in the care of children in a family environment, with the necessary conditions for their full development. Nannies may take care up to four children aged between the end of Parenting Leave and three years.
 
In the Autonomous Region of the Azores, this activity is regulated by Regional Legislative Decree no.18/2016/A of September 29, which approves the Legal Scheme on Nanny Activities is now complemented by the publication of the following documents: Administrative Ordinance no. 45/2017 of June 23, approving the regulation of nanny activities and their setting in family daycare centres; Ordinance no.46/2017 of June 23, which regulates the duration and content of the initial basic training course for nannies and continuous training; Normative Order no.21/2017 of June 23, which establishes the amount of the monthly reimbursement to determine the monthly payment due to nannies.