A nanny pay review is best treated as a structured conversation about the current job, the nanny’s performance and the market, not as an automatic percentage increase. In Filipino Nanny Agency’s experience, families commonly review pay annually, often around the nanny’s work anniversary or the start of a new school year, and also when duties, hours or responsibilities change materially.
By Filipino Nanny | Updated 23 August 2026
When should a family review nanny pay?
There is no single statutory date on which a nanny’s pay must increase, but a regular review helps stop the job description and the salary drifting apart. The most useful review points are:
- Annual anniversary: compare the current role with the role originally agreed.
- New baby or additional child: check whether the workload or level of responsibility has changed.
- More duties: substantial housekeeping, family cooking, driving, travel or household administration can change the nature of the job.
- Hours change: longer days, regular overtime or new evening and weekend expectations should be discussed rather than absorbed informally.
- New qualifications or specialist skills: relevant training can justify a fresh market comparison where it changes the value the nanny brings to the actual role.
- Market movement: if the salary has fallen significantly behind comparable current roles, a family may choose to realign it to support retention.
What is the current London benchmark?
Nannytax’s 2026 payroll data reports average gross full-time nanny pay of £21.63 per hour in Inner London and £22.64 per hour in Outer London and the Home Counties. These are regional averages across payroll records, not a tariff for every nanny.
Our London nanny salary guide puts those figures beside the working ranges we see in our own placements. A pay review should compare like with like: live-in with live-in, part-time with part-time, and a pure nanny role with a pure nanny role rather than a nanny-housekeeper position.
Start by checking whether the job has changed
Before discussing a number, read the existing job description and contract. Ask whether the children, hours, household duties, travel, driving, overnight work or availability expectations have changed since the role started.
GOV.UK says changes to employment-contract terms will usually need agreement between employer and employee. When agreed changes affect the main written terms, the employer must put the changes in writing within one month. Acas similarly recommends making agreed changes clear in writing and monitoring how they work.
If the role has evolved significantly, use our evolving childcare needs guide before treating the issue as a pay question alone.
How to prepare for the review
- Write down the nanny’s current gross hourly, weekly or annual salary.
- Confirm the normal weekly hours and whether any overtime is regular.
- List the duties actually being performed now.
- Compare the role with current London market evidence.
- Review performance using specific examples rather than personality labels.
- Check whether the family can afford the total employer cost, not just the gross wage.
- Decide whether any proposed change is permanent or temporary.
For budgeting, the total cost of employing a nanny page separates gross salary from employer National Insurance, pension, insurance, payroll costs and the agency fee.
From our placement experience
Filipino Nanny Agency reports more than 800 placements since 2023. A recurring retention problem is not simply that a family has failed to give a pay rise; it is that the job has grown while the original salary and role definition have stayed frozen.
Examples include adding another child, increasing family cooking, expecting more housekeeping, introducing regular travel or extending the working day. When those changes are discussed early, the family and nanny can decide whether the existing role still makes sense. When they are added informally, frustration can build even if the original placement was strong.
We therefore advise families to review the job and the pay together. That keeps the conversation evidence-based and avoids using salary as a substitute for fixing unclear hours, unrealistic duties or poor communication.
How should the pay-review conversation work?
Use a short, dedicated meeting rather than raising salary in the middle of a difficult day. Start with what is working, then cover any changes to the role, current market evidence and the family’s proposal.
A useful agenda is:
- Review the agreed role and any changes.
- Discuss performance and any support needed.
- Compare the current gross salary with relevant market benchmarks.
- Discuss the proposed salary and effective date.
- Confirm any changed duties or hours.
- Put the agreed changes in writing and update payroll.
Gross pay matters more than a headline net figure
For a pay review, agree the new salary in gross terms. Net take-home pay can change because of tax codes, National Insurance, pension contributions or other deductions. A gross salary makes the employer’s contractual commitment much clearer.
See gross vs net nanny salary for the distinction.
Pay review is not the same as a Christmas bonus
A salary review changes ongoing contractual pay. A discretionary gift or bonus is a separate question and should not be used to avoid reviewing a role whose duties or market value have changed. Our Christmas-bonus article is scheduled as a seasonal page rather than being mixed into this evergreen salary guidance.
Do not base pay on nationality
Filipino Nanny Agency specialises in Filipino candidates, but nationality is not a pay criterion. Pay should reflect the actual job and the individual candidate’s experience, references, qualifications, communication, hours and responsibilities.
What happens after a pay rise is agreed?
Confirm the new gross rate and effective date in writing, update payroll, and check whether the change affects pension contributions or other employer costs. If the duties or hours have changed as well, record those changes clearly.
For the wider working relationship, see managing your nanny relationship. If the role is no longer the right one, compare nanny, nanny-housekeeper and housekeeper options.