Childcare

No — with Puffin Services they are the same booking. A caregiver comes to your home from three hours, at $32/hr for children 12 months and over, $38/hr if a child under 12 months is present, and $36/hr for after-school pickup or overnight care. Families tend to say "babysitter" for a one-off evening and "nanny" for something regular, but the caregiver, the vulnerable sector check, the insurance and the rate are identical either way. There is no membership and no minimum number of bookings, so it works for a single night as well as a standing weekly slot.

Online, start to finish, at whatever hour suits you. Choose the service, the city, the date and the hours, tell us anything specific about your family, and pay on the site — there is no phone call, no callback and no waiting on a quote before you know the price. Hourly childcare, postpartum support, senior and adult support and event nannies all work this way, and nanny placement will too once it opens. Pediatric support is the exception: SLPA, OTA, behaviour intervention and autism respite are enquiry-only for now, and those pages say so. A phone line is there if you would rather use it — (604) 283-2829 — but nothing requires it.

Yes — a caregiver travels to the address you give us, and a hotel room, serviced apartment or short-term rental is booked the same way a house is. The rate does not change for it: $32/hr for children 12 months and over, $38/hr if a child under 12 months is present, three-hour minimum, and no travel surcharge anywhere in the city. Two things are worth sorting before you arrive rather than on the night. Online booking needs 24 hours’ notice, and a first-time booking includes photo ID verification for the household, reviewed by an administrator before a caregiver is dispatched — quick, but not something to leave until the evening you are going out. Give us the building and the room or unit number when you book, and mention the front-desk or concierge arrangement if there is one, so the caregiver is not held up in a lobby.

Many of Puffin Services' caregivers hold Early Childhood Educator (ECE) certification, though it is not a requirement for every role and not every caregiver has it. What every caregiver has, without exception, is a clear police vulnerable sector check, and infant-specific first aid and safe-sleep training where the booking involves a child under 12 months. If ECE certification matters to your family, say so when you book and we will match accordingly.

Yes — most hourly bookings are part-time. A part-time nanny through Puffin Services is simply a repeated hourly booking: the same caregiver, the hours you choose, from three hours at a time, with no minimum number of weeks and nothing to cancel if your needs change. Families who need genuinely full-time permanent coverage will usually be better served by Nanny Placement once it opens (it is coming soon), where the nanny will become your own employee.

Two different things, and it is worth knowing which you need. Hourly nanny services — booked by the hour, from three hours, with the caregiver employed by Puffin Services — cover childcare from newborn to 12 years, day or overnight, including after-school pickup. Nanny Placement, coming soon, is the other: a one-time search and vetting service that will find you a nanny who then becomes your own employee. Alongside those we provide postpartum support, senior and companion care, and event nannies.

Often, yes. Online booking needs 24 hours' notice so a caregiver can be matched and scheduled, but same-day and emergency childcare can frequently be arranged by phone — call (604) 283-2829 and we will tell you honestly what is possible for that day. First-time in-home bookings also need photo ID verification reviewed by an administrator, which is quick but is worth not leaving to the morning you need care.

Puffin Services does not run a drop-in centre — a caregiver comes to your home rather than you bringing your child somewhere. What families usually mean by drop-in babysitting is covered: occasional, one-off bookings with no ongoing commitment, from three hours, at $32 an hour for children 12 months and over. Book as often or as rarely as you like; there is no membership and no minimum number of bookings.