Recruiting and training church nursery volunteers

This is the third blog post in a series about the ministry of the Church Nursery as one of the first touch points and spaces your church serves for your youngest members and guests. Did you miss our first two? Check out our first and second in the series! Our last blog post in this series will be published on August 27.

The church nursery is a place where a spiritual foundation is laid for many children. It’s also often the place where parents leave their babies for the very first time. Because this can be such a bittersweet time in the lives of parents with young children, it’s important that nursery care is detailed, well-executed, clean, nurturing, and safe. And for that, many churches depend on nursery volunteers. Invest in these ministers by recruiting intentionally, training thoroughly, and developing spiritually and personally.

Recruit church nursery volunteers intentionally

When you are recruiting new volunteers to serve in your church’s nursery, it is imperative to recruit people who are nurturing and attentive to the needs of babies and their families. Where do you start?

1. Be intentional about who you invite. Pray and ask God who might be a good fit.
2. Ask church staff or leadership for names. They know the people they work with well.
3. Encourage current and past volunteers to invite one or two others to consider this ministry.
4. Check the church database. Reach out to people with early childhood experience. They may know others to invite.
5. Target specific demographics, including empty nesters and grandparents. Don’t overlook youth and college students too!
6. When inviting someone to serve, remember to introduce yourself, share the vision of your ministry program, explain what you’re looking for, and tell them why you are asking them specifically.
7. Give potential volunteers a deadline to respond to your request including time to pray about how they should proceed.

Train church nursery volunteers thoroughly

When training your volunteers, think about a couple of different options: Group training and hands-on training.

If you get your new volunteers together for group training, offer fun, nursery-themed ways for your team to get to know each other such as a doll diapering relay and bottle juggling. Then review policies and procedures regarding your ministry context. These things include, but are not limited to, safety and security, diapering, feeding, teaching materials, cry policy, and communicating with parents.

For hands-on training, pair new volunteers with veterans to spend time working in the nursery. Allow opportunities for them to observe, have hands-on experiences with classroom duties, and ask questions about what they’ve seen, why things are scheduled the way they are, and so on.

Develop church nursery volunteers spiritually and personally

Once your volunteers are in place, be intentional about developing them. This step can determine how short- or long-term they serve with you. If they don’t feel like valued members of your team, they may quit early on. It’s important to invest in your volunteers spiritually and personally.

For spiritual support, provide devotional materials and Bible-based lesson plans in advance. Encourage them to spend time in worship, prayer, and Bible study to help them grow in their own faith. They are helping little ones build their spiritual foundation.

For personal support, check in with them regularly outside of the nursery context. Meet with them over coffee and talk about their joys and challenges in life. Keep them invested by asking their opinions about what is working and what they might suggest for making improvements.

As your nursery volunteers serve by sharing their gifts and passion, be sure to invest in them, and help them develop and strengthen their skills through training. You will then set in place healthy patterns of service and leadership.

This blog is excerpted from “Recruiting and Training New Nursery Volunteers,” just one of the articles in the Frolic Nursery Practices library available on Sparkhouse Digital – sign up for your FREE 30-day trial now to view! This content is also available in our Frolic Nursery Coordinator Guide.