What if au pairing didn’t look like what you imagined?
A job. A home. Reliable support. Rethought for life in Australia.
Forget pocket money, vague expectations and the idea that an au pair has to be a 21-year-old backpacker from Europe.
Modern au pairing can be much simpler than that.
Someone needs reliable support with their family.
Someone else wants flexible work and, perhaps, an affordable place to live.
When the right people find each other, both can work better.
That’s modern au pairing.
And it’s what Kokun is built for.
Why au pairing makes sense right now.
The way we live has changed.
Families are juggling work with school drop-offs, daycare pick-ups, activities and the hours traditional childcare doesn't always cover.
At the same time, young Australians are living at home for longer. Housing is expensive. People move cities to study or work. Others take gap years, work part-time or want more flexibility than a conventional nine-to-five job allows.
Au pairing can bring those needs together.
For a family, it can mean reliable help from someone who knows their children, their home and the rhythm of their week.
For an au pair, it can mean a genuine job with agreed hours and proper pay, combined with somewhere to live where that suits both sides.
And you don't have to come from overseas.
You might be travelling Australia on a working holiday visa.
But you might also be a university student from regional Australia moving to the city. Taking a gap year. Starting your first job. Relocating interstate. Saving money. Or simply at a point in life where flexible work and affordable housing make sense.
That’s modern au pairing.
Au pairing was built for a different world.
Traditionally, au pairing was primarily about cultural exchange.
Travel overseas. Live with a local family. Become part of family life. Help out with the children in exchange for accommodation, meals and pocket money.
There is still something wonderful about that experience.
But it isn't the only way au pairing can work anymore.
For many families, childcare isn't incidental. They need someone they can rely on.
And for the person doing that work, the arrangement matters too. Hours, pay, privacy, time off, accommodation and expectations shouldn't become clear only after you've moved into somebody else's home.
Australia also doesn't have a special legal category or visa for au pairs. Depending on the arrangement, ordinary Australian employment laws apply.
So we think au pairing needs to grow up too.
A real job. In a real home.
That combination is what makes au pairing so different from almost any other job.
It can also make it complicated.
You're not just choosing an employee or an employer. You're choosing people you're going to live with.
Does the role fit around your life?
Do the hours work for everyone?
What happens when plans change?
What is work and what is simply being part of a household?
Can friends come over? Who uses the car? What happens when someone is sick? What happens if something isn't working?
These things matter to both sides.
And they're much easier to talk about before anyone moves in.
That’s the idea behind Kokun: modern au pairing, with the structure and support to make it work.
Could modern au pairing work for you?
That combination is exactly what makes au pairing brilliant.
Maybe you're a family wondering whether an au pair could make the week work better.
Maybe you're looking for work and have never considered becoming an au pair before.
Maybe you're moving, studying, travelling or simply curious about an arrangement that could give you work and somewhere to live.
You don't need to have it figured out.
Tell us a little about yourself and what you're looking for.
We'll explain how modern au pairing works and what it could look like for you.