Safe Sitters

I set up Safe Sitters to help solve two problems. The first problem being the struggle many parents have trying to find babysitters they can trust in their community. Many parents now live quite a distance away from their parents' and families or simply don't want to be constantly asking family members to babysit their children. The second problem is a lot of teenagers have no source of income and are relying on hand outs from their parents. Some suffer from boredom on a regular basis and some lack self confidence.

Safe Sitters solves both of these problems by training young teens to be responsible and safety conscious when it comes to looking after children. We work on their self confidence and give them the skills they need to find babysitting jobs, take care of and entertain the children in their care, handle any accidents, injuries or illnesses that may occur and to handle any difficult scenarios they may encounter.

My aim is to have an army of Safe Sitters in every community in Ireland ready to spring into action to help the many stressed out parents in their community giving them some time to themselves and peace of mind, knowing their children are in safe, responsible hands.

My name is Karla. I was a stay-at-home Mum for ten years. Before that I worked as a Telecoms Engineer for an American multinational. After having my three children my priorities completely shifted and I no longer wanted to work for a big, soulless corporation, I wanted to do something that made a difference to people and helped solve some problems. I've always loved children and have enjoyed spending time with them, helping them to integrate and learn new skills. When I was a teenager I would run a toddlers Olympic games in my estate in the summertime. I looked after my younger brothers all the time as well as babysitting for neighbours and friends. I spent a summer working at a summer camp in Blackrock College which I absolutely loved. In 2014 myself and my friend set up an Afterschool Club in our daughters' primary school in Navan which has been extremely popular with the children and their parents. In 2016 I started working as a teacher with Gymboree Meath. I teach music and play classes to babies and toddlers along with their parents/carers.

I absolutely love interacting with children of all ages and get a real buzz from helping them learn new skills, make new friends and achieve their goals.