---
title: "Babysitting Agency App: Sitter Schedules, Booking | GoodBarber"
description: "Childcare booking for your babysitting agency, without code: one schedule per sitter, evenings booked only by registered families. iOS, Android and web."
canonical_url: "https://www.goodbarber.com/booking-app/babysitting/"
lang: en
---

# Babysitting Agency App: Sitter Schedules, Booking | GoodBarber

[https://portalstorage.ww-cdn.com/misc/1724833708074_31-scheduling_babysitting_vid1_processed.webm](https://portalstorage.ww-cdn.com/misc/1724833708074_31-scheduling_babysitting_vid1_processed.webm)

Create a babysitting agency app

# Babysitting agency app: registered families book their evening with the sitter of their choice

## Parents you've already met pick the sitter their kids know, book the evening without calling you and read your rules before the first night out.

Give your babysitting agency an app of its own, listed on both app stores and open on the web, all without code: family sign-up, one schedule per sitter, childcare evenings booked only by the families you've met, and a notification when holiday nights open up.

[Start for free](https://www.goodbarber.com/create/)

Free 30-day trial - No credit card required

![](https://portalresize.ww-cdn.com/beautifull_pict/v1/391x615/50x50/6/92/img/1724739088655_30/booking_ia_banner.png)

## From a new family to a family that books

An agency doesn't send a sitter to parents it has never met. The app follows your order of things: sign-up, meeting, then booking.

1. 1

### Sign-up, in the app
  The family creates an account, then fills in your sign-up form: number of children and their ages, neighborhood, the evenings and afternoons they'll need you. Only ask about the children what it takes to look after them. Each new sign-up reaches you by email.

2. 2

### The meeting, then the "Families" group
  You meet the parents at the agency or at their home, as you do today. If it goes well, you add their account to the "Families" group in the back office; until then, nothing changes for them in the app.

3. 3

### The calendars open up
  Next time they open the app, the family sees what only that group can see: the sitters' calendars, the list of what to leave for the sitter, your cancellation terms. They can then book their first evening.

Why keep the calendars closed? Open to everyone, they would let a stranger have one of your sitters come over on a Saturday night. Limited to the "Families" group, they only show to parents you've met in person.

## One calendar per sitter, and the family chooses

![](https://portalstorage.ww-cdn.com/misc/1712045266954_31-light__users.svg)

### Exam prep, a weekend at her parents': her Google Calendar closes her evenings, not anyone else's

Each sitter gets a section under her first name, linked to the Google Calendar she carries in her pocket. The family opens the calendar of the sitter their kids know and only sees her free evenings. Many sitters are college students: a study night before an exam or a weekend at her parents', entered in that Google Calendar, closes the evenings it overlaps. Her class schedule works differently: if she has class until 9 p.m. on Thursdays, her section simply doesn't open on Thursdays. Every booked evening lands in her calendar, with the address and bedtime in the description.

![](https://portalresize.ww-cdn.com/beautifull_pict/v1/680x541/50x50/6/92/img/1724739093855_31/booking_ia_bloc4.png)

## Booking an evening takes two choices: the sitter, then the time

### Four hours, 7 to 11 p.m., and what she needs to know before ringing the bell

In the chosen sitter's calendar, the family picks a free evening: a four-hour slot from 7 to 11 p.m. The booking form asks for the number of children, bedtime, expected return time and address, so the sitter knows on arrival that she's putting two kids to bed at 8:30. The family and the agency each get a confirmation email that repeats those answers. Dinner plans fall through? Parents cancel without calling you, from the app or their email, and the evening goes back into the calendar; you get the cancellation email too. The same form serves every section, so label the field "bedtime or snack time" and it works for Saturday afternoons as well.

![](https://portalresize.ww-cdn.com/beautifull_pict/v1/334x573/50x50/6/92/img/1724739089551_31/booking_ia_bloc1.png)

## Thursday to Saturday nights, plus Saturday afternoons

### Hours that follow parents' nights out, and 24 hours' minimum notice

Evening sections open when parents go out: Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 7 to 11 p.m. Saturday afternoons run longer, so sitters who work them get a second section with five-hour slots, 1 to 6 p.m., tied to the same Google Calendar as their evenings. Set the minimum notice to 24 hours: no family can ask at 6 p.m. for a sitter at 7. Days when the agency is closed are entered ahead of time in each section; an evening already booked that day is then canceled, and the family gets an email.

![](https://portalresize.ww-cdn.com/beautifull_pict/v1/497x399/50x50/6/92/img/1724739090288_31/booking_ia_bloc2.png)

## What families find in the app

### Sitter profiles

Photo, studies, languages spoken, the ages she's happy to look after: the agency writes each profile and decides whether it's public or limited to the "Families" group.

### What the agency checks

Interview, references from past families, experience with toddlers: a page where you set out your own criteria; the app displays it and checks nothing on your behalf.

### What to leave for the sitter

The list to prepare before heading out: how to reach the parents, a neighbor's number, the keys, allergies, the favorite stuffed animal and the bedtime routine.

### Your rates and late-night surcharge

The hourly rate, the extra charge per child, what changes after midnight and how the sitter gets home at the end of the night.

### Cancellation terms

How late an evening can be canceled free of charge, what you ask for a last-minute cancellation: rules families read before their first booking.

## Running a sitter agency: seven questions about the app

**### Can anyone book a sitter through the app?**

No. Booking sections are limited to the "Families" group, and only you add accounts to it, after meeting the parents. A visitor who installs the app sees the agency's presentation and the sign-up form, not the calendars. This relies on two extensions: Authentication for the accounts, User groups for the "Families" group.

**### Can a family pick their usual sitter?**

Yes: each sitter has her own calendar, and the family opens the one belonging to the person their kids know. If she's taken that night, the parents see her next free evenings or choose another sitter from the agency. Every evening is a booking of its own, with nothing repeating from one week to the next.

**### How do I open New Year's Eve bookings in November?**

With the booking window, which sets how many days ahead a calendar opens. In early November, extend it on the evening sections until it reaches December 31; the rest of December opens with it. The same day, a push notification sent to the "Families" group only announces it: every family hears about it at the same time.

**### Does daily school pickup have to be booked every week?**

No. School pickup at 3:30, Monday to Friday, is arranged once for the school year between the family, the sitter and the agency, outside the app. Those hours aren't part of any of the sitter's open hours, so no other family can take them.

**### Can families pay for the evening in the app?**

No. No money goes through the booking, not even an advance: families pay you as they do today, on the terms posted next to your rates.

**### A sitter has finals coming up: how do I close her evenings?**

Have her enter her study and exam days in her Google Calendar, as all-day events if needed: her evenings drop out of the app. You can also close those days in her section, but an evening already booked that day would be canceled, with an email to the family: call them first to offer another sitter.

**### Can the app run payroll for my sitters?**

No: it doesn't compute hours, issue pay stubs or file anything. What it does give you: every booked evening sits in the sitter's Google Calendar, where you can count her hours for the month before entering them in your payroll software.

Extension Store

For a babysitting agency: Appointment booking carries the calendars, while Authentication and User groups keep them away from strangers; all three are Premium add-ons, included in Pro. Free: the Form for sign-ups, Push notifications for holiday nights, CMS Articles for your rules.

[illustration for Appointment booking Appointment bookingDisplay your availability and let your customers book an appointment from your application$15/month](https://www.goodbarber.com/extensions/appointment-booking/)

[illustration for Authentication AuthenticationAuthorize access to all or a part of your app only to users who have a username/password$12/month](https://www.goodbarber.com/extensions/authentication/)

[illustration for User groups User groupsCreate user groups and customize access rights to sections of your app.$5/month](https://www.goodbarber.com/extensions/user-groups/)

[illustration for Form FormInteract with your app users and collect data with GoodBarber's Form integration.Free](https://www.goodbarber.com/extensions/form/)

[illustration for Push notifications Push notificationsSend notifications to keep your users engaged and informedFree](https://www.goodbarber.com/extensions/push-notifications/)

[illustration for CMS Articles CMS ArticlesCreate and publish articles from your back officeFree](https://www.goodbarber.com/extensions/cms-article/)

![](https://portalstorage.ww-cdn.com/misc/1724739097381_29-light__calendar-plus.svg)

Families you know, with the sitters they know

A sign-up form, a meeting at the agency, then evenings booked in each sitter's calendar: your agency's app goes live on both stores and on the web, without a line of code.

[Explore all the benefits](/booking-app/)

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