Once probably the most desirable of jobs for teenagers, today there are fewer and fewer demands for their services. 

Cost is one factor, with some babysitters charging €20 an hour. 

Increasingly, parents are turning to family for support - or even not going out at all. 

On Lunchtime Live, journalist Niamh O’Reilly said some people just don’t want strangers in their home. 

“Rightly or wrongly, parents today are probably a bit more anxious and a bit more thoughtful about who they have in their house, minding their kids,” she explained. 

“I think that a lot of grandparents are involved in childminding anyway - I know that mine are.

“They’re the people you sort of naturally turn to when you’re looking for a babysitter.” 

A child on a bike. Picture by: Alamy.com. 

One mother of a toddler, Ola Jordan, said she considered herself “very lucky” that she has family living nearby. 

“They do help us out a little bit but it’s not every day that we rely on them,” she said. 

“The few times that they actually offered to mind Oscar for us, to allow us to go out, we’re very fortunate to have that. 

“Even when we avail of that, we’re still conscious of the time that they’re with them.” 

Still, she tries not to ask too much of them, given that looking after a toddler is “not a walk in the park”.

Main image: A childminder with a little boy. Picture by: Alamy.com.