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A demi pair is a full-time student who is normally in Australia on a 12 month Working Holiday Visa. Our demi pairs study English in Southport, Mermaid Beach, Brisbane or the Melbourne CBD usually from around 8.30am to 2.30pm daily. They live with an Australian family while they are studying and provide 15 hours of work per week in exchange for their accommodation and meals.
A demi pair is not a fully qualified nanny; however, our demi pair students are required to have some child-minding experience. They provide assistance to the parents, sharing housework and child-minding duties as required. The demi pairs range from 18 to 40 years old, but are often in their early 20s.
Students are required to have a reasonable level of English so they can adequately communicate with their host family. They must apply for and be granted a Blue Card and it is desirable (but not essential) that they have an international driver’s license.
Australian Demi Pairs places the demi pairs based on the family requirements that best match the student´s skills, experience and personality. Placements are for between 8 to 20 weeks, but some demi pairs will stay on longer after their English course is finished and will find part-time work elsewhere while still completing their 15 hours work for the family. Some students will go to work on three-month farm stays so that they can receive another twelve month visa and may then return to the family.
Our families are all interviewed and selected for their suitability as a host family. All placements are monitored by the Demi Pair Coordinator; participating families are well-informed and welcoming to the international students into their homes. The family will do everything they can to ensure their demi pair feels safe, comfortable and part of the family.
Demi pairs are expected to assist with the housework and the children. Tasks could include waking the children, helping them get dressed, giving them breakfast and getting them ready for school. In the evenings, the demi pair may be asked to give the children dinner and get them ready for bed.
The demi pair will also be required to help with household tasks considered reasonable in a busy family home. This may include doing some housework (ironing, laundry, vacuuming, washing floors, dusting, cleaning toilets and bathrooms, helping with meal preparation, washing-up after meals, loading/unloading the dishwasher), in addition to keeping their own room and bathroom clean and tidy.
Students in the demi pair program benefit from the experience in various ways. Living with an English speaking Australian family helps students improve their language skills and reduces homesickness and they get to experience the Australian culture and lifestyle while working in a safe and comfortable environment.
If you are interested in the demi pair program, either as a student wanting to apply to be a demi pair or a family wanting an extra pair of hands, please get in touch with us today.