Find a Qualified
Special Needs Nanny& Get Ready for an Experience
That Can Radically Improve Your Life
√ You want to be SuperMum and SuperDad who effortlessly juggles children, ambitious careers, therapy and the abundance of daily tasks that make a treadmill seem like a joy ride.
√ You want to give your child with special needs the best possible care, attention and therapy while not neglecting your other child(ren) and want something better than a “one size fits all” approach.
√ But more than anything, you want to be able to lean back and be a parent again, not a therapist, so you can stop feeling stressed out and be able to breathe freely again. More sleep would be a bonus too!
If you’re struggling to get the right care that fulfills all your needs, chances are that
knowing exactly what you want isn’t the problem – it’s knowing where to find it.
Having provided live-in therapy assistants & carers to over 800 families in Australia & the US, we know that right now:
√ You feel overwhelmed & impatient – your carer for your child with special needs has not shown up, or it is another new face to train.
√ You sit and wonder how you are ever going to tackle the ever-increasing challenges of raising a family and the demands of a child with special needs. Also, wouldn’t it be nice to have time to watch your favourite series on Netflix for a change?
√ You feel like everything in your life is hectic and you just wish someone could help organise the chaos around you, give you extra bandwidth and reduce your mental load.
√ You are unable to concentrate on your tasks or career as your thoughts are always at home with your family.
√ Your partnership suffers because you are too exhausted for couple time and reviving that sweet ole romatic feeling.
√ You’re desperate for help and don’t know where to find it: A nanny or au pair is too inexperienced to care for your special needs child and support workers are not consistant enough. The dilema is real!
If this sounds like the story of your family life, just sit back, take a deep breath and relax.
You’ve come to the right place
Live-in care professionals & therapy assistants offer numerous benefits to Australian families including:
√ Professional skills & training
√ Therapy programs inegrated into daily life
√ Nanny like service with an international flair
√ Balanced care for all your children in the comfort of your home
√ Availability nights, weekends & holidays
√ Scheduling flexibility
In fact, this is what all our families we have helped go through and we know it all too well: A couple of years ago, our founder Susan was in your shoes.
A working mum of two, with a demanding career and no local family support, she faced the challenge of finding high quality care – not only a time consuming but very emotional process. After all, you want your children to be in safe hands, loved and well cared for.
Like you, she didn’t know that the comfy combo of qualified carers and au pair flexibility even existed.
She faced the same fears:
If I get a live in care giver, will we still have family privacy?
Will our care professional be mature enough to deal with extreme situations?
Will the perfect care giver be too expensive for my family?
Will an international carer really care about my kids, or just want a good time abroad?
What happens if we don't get along with the carer? Will we get a replacement?
Worries, sleepless nights and the constant feeling of being over-stretched was common for Susan. Susan knew that she needed to find a solution or her sanity was at stake – It was time to act!
Since she couldn’t find the Swiss Army Knife of care, she finally decided to start recruiting her own caregivers from her home country. She was awed by the professionalism and dedication of these carers and quickly founded Apex ProAupair in the US, then Apex Professional Exchange in Australia.
The mission:
To help parents like you get flexible and qualified live-in carers for your little ones!
Now you have probably looked into nannies but found that they do not have the specialised experience and training needed to work with your child with special needs. Traditional in-home support workers are too expensive and do not offer the consistance of care your little ones need.
Live out workers don’t have the flexibility that you need if a kid gets sick and you need emergency care.
Maybe you have looked at regular au pair agencies. The international flair is nice. But finding a special needs qualified candidate for your little one is like finding a needle in the haystack, since that is not the focus of these agencies.
So What's Missing?
A large choice of special needs qualified carers – a “bowl full of needles”, making your search for care much easier and more sucessful.
Apex Professional Exchange to the rescue! We provide that “bowl” and so much more. Since we focus soley on providing top-notch care and therapy assistance, you will not find this concentration of qualified carers anywhere else.
Our carers are not just au pairs with a one day emergency rescue course – they are degree qualified professionals with additional training and experience caring for children with special needs. Our carers are qualified Occupational Therapists, Speech Therapists, Special Needs Care Providers, Physical Therapists and more, they come to Australia to learn and experience new therapies and techniques. This means they can seamlessly integrate therapy and care and are motivated to learn and implement your childs therapy programs at home!
Just imagine, wouldn’t it be awesome to:
Enjoy the relief that you don't have to carry the world on your shoulders all by yourself - and sleep better too
Be overjoyed that your child with special needs is reaching milestone after milestone, not going backwards
Free your mind because you know your child is cared for in a safe and stimulating environment
Excel at your job knowing everything is taken care of and not getting a "hell just broke loose" call every day
Broaden your horizon with cultural exchange in your own home
Have more time for yourself, loved ones and the long yearned for candle lit dinner with your partner
Improve your families quality of life and be the calm, cool, poised parent you always dreamt of being
Gain a new family member that will share tips, tricks and therapy ideas with you
Watch this inspiring story from parents like you who talk about how getting a live in care professional has changed their lives
The good news is: The Swiss Army Knife of care does exist, and we can make that dream scenario happen for you if you are ready to take your care to the next level!
Yes, I want to be a relaxed parent!
Sign Me Up For Free!We are Apex Professional Exchange, the only care agency that specialises in professional live-in care offered by well-trained therapists, teachers and nurses as your care professional.
Here’s how you benefit from our high standards. You will:
Feel reassured
All our professional carers from Germany or Austria have degrees and/or professional experience in special needs care related fields such as paediatric nursing, special needs education, early childhood education, teaching, occupational and physical therapy. They will keep calm and stick around even when the going gets tough!
Feel safe
They have experience working with children with special needs. Being empathic and patient, plus thinking ahead, they can tackle even tricky situations. They work closely with your family to establish supportive routines your child and their siblings will love.
Feel seen
100% of our host families have children with special needs including autism, Down syndrome, ADD/ADHD, cerebral palsy, epilepsy and seizures, developmental delays, learning disabilities, and undiagnosed conditions. We know what it takes to meet your needs.
Feel relieved
Our programs are priced per family, not per child – a clear medal winner for your budget. And even more golden: NDIS funding can be used to fund some or all of your fees when you hire one of our professional caregivers!
Feel free
Our professionals work up to 40 hours per week according to your schedule. We provide flexible care that adapts to your family’s ever-changing needs – from Plan B to Z. Another “atypical” day? We’ve got you covered!
Feel special
We source, screen and hand-select our care professionals directly and year-round, meeting each one in person. This allows us to ensure high-caliber, trained professionals enthusiastic about caring for your children.
Feel supported
You get personalised service through every stage of the process: completing your application, interviewing care professionals, managing the logistical details for your carers’s arrival (visas, airfare, travel and accident insurance, etc.) plus year-round 24/7 support and guidance.
Get the best of two worlds with our unique combo of support worker, nanny and au pair and make a huge difference in your children’s lives!
So how do you put this in a nutshell? Easy: Consistent, reliable and trustworthy care and therapy assistance that is like family. Affordable, flexible, professional – and with a massive impact on the development of your child(ren).
By the way, Germans and Austrians are quite fun, despite their reputation of not being the most humorous people on earth. Our carers do share a good laugh with their families. And laughing together makes the challenges so much easier to overcome.
Most of the families are actually as thick as thieves with their carers; they are “partners in crime”, a well attuned team that only works towards one goal: the good of the child. If you wish you can also have the carers speak German to your child. Language learning on the fly!
What’s the quickest way to my stress-free family life?
Sign Up
You sign up with your name, email and phone number, then on the second screen confirm your contact data. This gives you access to start looking at our Care Professional Candidates.
The Choice Is Yours
You can browse our candidates, complete your family profile and request interviews with your favourite candidates or our program advisor can call and answer all your questions.
Once You Have Chosen Your Carer
We guide and support you through to the day your care professional arrives, and for your entire time working with Apex care professionals.
Sign Up & Browse Our Care Professionals For FREE
A stressless family life is within reach!
Have you been searching for a while and finally want to seal the deal? We have a limited number of care professionals ready to go now!
If you’re serious about creating more balance in your life and family, don’t waste any more time searching for a childcare scheme that only fulfils half your needs.
Sign up now, and chances are you might welcome your new family companion as soon as in five weeks. In a year from now you will congratulate yourself for this life-changing decision!
After you sign up you will receive full access to all our care professionals profiles. If you find candidates that appeal to you one of our Program Advisors will assist you taking the next steps.
Check out for free how our care professionals can immediately change your life, too!
F.A.Q
You have questions – we understand. Combining the advantages of a special needs carer and au pair might be a new concept to you. Also, getting someone to live with your family can feel a bit intimidating at first.
Who is the Apex for?
The vast majority of our families have at least one child with special needs. Some have multiple special needs children, others have a mix of special needs and neuro typical children.
In general, parents who need a mix of therapy assistance and childcare benefit from our program.
Can I use NDIS funding?
You may use your NDIS funding from your core supports if you are plan managed or self managed. Please consult with your NDIS support coordinator.
Apex is not a registered NDIS provider.
Where do the carers come from?
Our care professionals come from Germany and Austria and all hold European degrees in their chosen field.
The majority of our candidates in Australia have completed 1-2 years in our US program, gaining even more experience!
How do you select and vet candidates?
We have teams in Geramny and Austria that work with universities and organisations like the Red Cross to identify suitable candidates.
From there our team goes through a rigourous interviewing process, verifies qualifications and references and the candidates attend a full day workshop.
After this, candidates undergo our online training course that is specific to being a live in care provider.
Will we still have privacy with our carer living in?
Absolutely! Our care professionals are mature and independant and want time to meet up with friends, unwind after caring for your little ones and, or course, explore their new area!
You can involve them in your family life as much or as little as suits you.
How quickly can I get a carer?
This depends on a few things, including how fast you work through your interviews with the care professionals you are interested it.
We normally advise a family to start their search 4-6 months in advance of their ideal start date to make sure they find the perfect person. Once you have found the right carer for your family, they can arrive in as little as 5 weeks.
What if my kids don't bond/we don't get along with our carer? Is there any guarantee?
Our team works closely with you in finding the right carer for your family and is there to help you build and maintain a good relationship through out the process to ensure everything goes smoothly in your match.
In the unlikely event things don’t work out, you are protected by a 3 month garauntee were we will replace your carer at no additional charge.
What are your agency fees for?
A large portion of the fee goes to recruitment of your care professional but the support doesn’t end there.
We support you through the entire matching and arrival process and provide ongoing support, resources and documentation for NDIS planning & reviews.
We are your care partners and are here to support you and your care professional for your entire time with Apex.