2005 Nursery Guidelines
St. Philip Lutheran Church
Raleigh, NC

Nursery Coordinator
January 30, 2005
* Final Draft *

St. Philip’s nursery is staffed by volunteers, mainly the parents of our young children and our youth (5th grade and older).  The following guidelines for volunteers and parents have been developed by our Nursery Coordinator in order to provide a safe, nurturing environment for our children while our adults attend worship.  Please direct any comments, questions, or concerns to _______. These guidelines are reviewed at the beginning of every year by the Children’s Ministry at St. Philip.

Nursery Coordinator:
1.	Maintain list of nursery volunteers, phone numbers, and email addresses.
2.	Create the nursery volunteer schedule once each quarter (approx. 1 month before the start of each quarter).  Schedule one adult and one youth (5th grade and older) volunteer OR two adult volunteers for each Sunday service.  
3.	Send the completed schedule to all volunteers (via email or mail) and to the church office for posting of names in the epistle and weekly bulletins. 
4.	Maintain copies of the volunteer schedule in the sign-in book located in the nursery and posted on the bulletin board outside the church nursery.
5.	Check supply of sign-in sheets and make additional copies when needed.
6.	Keep sign-in book stocked with nametags and labels for food and drinks.
7.	Check the supply of sanitizing wipes and gel in the nursery.
8.	Contact new volunteers (from Time and Talent sheets, sign-in roster, etc.) who express interest in becoming volunteers for nursery duty. 
9.	Send the Nursery Guidelines (this document) after each revision to the nursery volunteers, and post on the bulletin board outside the church nursery for the parents to access.

Nursery Volunteers:
1.	Please arrive at the nursery 15 minutes before your scheduled service.
2.	If you cannot serve during your scheduled service, please contact one of the other volunteers on the schedule (a copy should be e-mailed or mailed to you each quarter) and arrange a swap with another volunteer.  Contact the church office (846-2992) if you swap with another volunteer so the bulletin can list the correct names each Sunday.  If you don’t have time to swap with another volunteer, contact the church office (846-2992) on Sunday morning and the other person you are scheduled to serve with, to make sure they are planning to be in the nursery.
3.	At least one adult must be in the nursery at all times.  One adult and one youth (5th grade and older) volunteer OR two adult volunteers should be scheduled for each Sunday service.  
4.	The allowed ratio of children to volunteers in the nursery is 4:1 (maximum of 8 children to 2 volunteers).  Instruct parents who wish to leave their children in the nursery after capacity is reached that they must stay to assist you. 
5.	Please wear a nametag.
6.	Please ensure that parents fill out the sign-up sheet and a nametag for each child, and that they label any food or drink brought into the nursery.
7.	If possible (if another volunteer is available to stay in the nursery with the other children), diapers should be changed in one of the bathrooms across the hall on the changing table.  Spare diapers and wipes are available under the sink in each bathroom.
8.	Please check for toys that are dirty or broken before children play with them.  Place dirty toys into the dirty toy bin and throw away broken toys.
9.	At least one adult nursery volunteer must stay in the nursery until all children are picked up.
10.	Please straighten up the nursery before you leave.  If time permits, wipe any dirty toys with sanitizing wipes and put them away.

Parents:
1.	Please do not bring sick children to the nursery (fever, vomiting, or diarrhea in the 24 hours prior to church, or thick stuff coming out of noses!).
2.	Please sign your child in when dropping off at the nursery.  Indicate on the sign-in sheet any food allergies your child has, and indicate any foods your child can or cannot have.  
3.	Place a nametag on your child if requested by the nursery attendant.  Nametags are provided in the sign-in book.
4.	Snacks are provided in the nursery (animal and/or graham crackers).  If you leave any other food or drink in your child’s diaper bag, please label it with your child’s name and let the nursery attendant know what your child may have.  Labels are provided in the sign-in book.
5.	As a general rule, children ages 6 months to 4 years old are welcome in the nursery.  Due to limited space, safety concerns, and the desire to maintain a child/volunteer ratio of no more than 4:1, school-age children (kindergarten and older) are encouraged to be in worship.  At the discretion of the nursery volunteer(s), you may be asked to stay in the nursery with your school-aged child until they are ready to return to worship.  If nursery capacity has been reached (8 children with 2 volunteers), you can use the library, parlor, or narthex if you need to leave the worship service with your child.
6.	Please have the same person who dropped off your child pick them up immediately following the service.