Children’s Ministry is essentially a church within the church. Adults go to Adult Church, and kids go to Kids Church. It’s a ministry that has its own “Senior Pastor,” that being the Children’s Pastor or Director.
Its congregation is comprised of the kids that make up, on average, 10 to 20 percent of a church’s total attendance. It has its own media team, worship team, greeters and registration team.
So, it stands to reason that children’s ministry spaces then usually take up one-third to one-half of the real estate of the total church property.
Because of this, children’s ministry spaces need and deserve to have the same excellence level as the adult church.
Often, this space can get the leftovers, scraps or Pinterest ingenuity of its leaders to do the best with slim budgets that don’t match the proportions of kids to adults that are attending. This can be a fatal mistake.
Know this…so goes children’s ministry, so goes the church! It deserves our best, our brightest, our utmost.
So, what do ministry leaders need to do?
First, let’s talk budgets. This is an area that every department within the church must be good stewards of no matter what.
But, in an effort to free up funds, the children’s ministry is often the area asked to wait or “get creative” in how it accomplishes its goals.
The good news is there has been a growing shift in the investment into children’s ministry, but still many are far under what’s adequate.
So, what should a budget look like?
Well, according to research done by Ministry Architects on children’s ministry norms, the average budget, which has been increasing, with churches is $1,100 per child per year.
In other words, if you run 50 kids weekly, you should have an annual budget of $55,000 to support that level of engagement.
Now that may be sticker shock to many, and one may be wondering what on earth does that need to be spent on?
First and foremost, you must have a staff that is leading it.
Again, according to Ministry Architects, you should have 1 full-time staff member for every 70 kids you see regularly in the weekly life of the church.
Often, churches will be way behind on this curve of leadership necessity that the most forward-thinking, futuristically minded ministry of the church must have.
But get this part backwards or upside down, like having 1 staff member managing 300 kids, and you will meet another, but undesirable norm…that of the average stay of a Children’s Ministry Pastor or Director at 18 months before they are gone.
With that being said, those salaries will take a big chunk of that $1100 per child, but it’s worth it in order to build something long term and excellent.
After that, with the rest of what’s left over, here is a list of items that are by no means exhaustive, but the high-priority items will be things that accentuate and make excellent the children’s ministry space and program.
- Quality TVs or LED walls
- Stage lighting and light boards
- Solid sound equipment and sound boards. This would include having high-quality microphones and headset mic options.
- Computer equipment to have effective check-in area
- Curriculum is the backbone of the teaching calendar, so buying whatever is deemed best by the children’s ministry staff needs to be done.
- Management software that allows for ease of onboarding, managing volunteers, managing registrations, check-ins and events help the ministry leader feel more organized and in control.
Environmental Décor
When you start getting into the theme and style of environments from check-in areas to auditoriums, this needs to be thought through but not short changed. There are amazing environmental companies that can do all-inclusive design remodels that can really give that punch of WOW factor as families enter the kids space.
Or, to save thousands in custom design fees, incorporate volunteers who are good at design and carpentry and just purchase the materials. It’s an incredible bonding opportunity, too, for those who involve themselves in it.
Special Events
Outreaches for Easter, Summer, Fall and Christmas can and should be some of the more heftier expenses as the church lives out its mission to reach the lost. Go BIG or don’t go at all.
How you execute these events conveys how your church feels and sees children’s ministry. If it looks cheap, families will think you are cheap…when it comes to children, anyway.
Maintenance
You need a solid, preferably professional cleaning company and schedule. Again, because the children’s ministry takes up one-third of the real estate of the church, your one kidmin leader can’t be the only one cleaning all four nursery preschool rooms, vacuuming and cleaning a 2000-square-foot auditorium and wiping down the registration area.
Even having volunteers helping to do this as they exit is not enough when classrooms are used throughout the week for ministry purposes. Having a regular deep clean is essential for an area heavily trafficked by children.
And don’t forget about your preschool toys, equipment like high chairs, changing tables and baby swings. All of these, of course, are regularly needing to be evaluated and re-purchased as things get worn out and old. That doll with ratty hair and Crayon all over the face doesn’t look good and needs to go no matter how much little Sally loves it.
If it hasn’t become abundantly clear, children’s ministry needs the best resources we can muster. Families go where excellence, forethought, and intentionality are given to their children.
It has often been said that children’s ministries are a growth engine for the church. It’s true. And, if that’s the goal, this is the way.
But I challenge us all that we don’t give excellence to children because it grows the church but rather because they deserve it. After all, it was the children that Jesus said let them come to me.
Our job is to do whatever it takes to capture the eyes and ears of children so the Holy Spirit can capture their hearts and children can come to Jesus.
Preston Plentl has been a children’s pastor for 20 year and is the founder of Kidmin Kickstart and Consulting, www.kidminkickstart.com.
