Departments

Children's Ministries

About the Department

Children attend weekly church services held throughout the North England Conference with their families and friends. Children of different socio-cultural backgrounds, with multi-dimensional needs, constitute a very special part of the church family.

The Children's Ministries Department aims to nurture children (0-14 years old) into a relationship with Jesus, where they come to experience His great love. It enables our children to love each other and, where worship is understood as a response to God's great love, they experience a love that must be shared with those in our communities. 

The nurturing of children is accomplished through the spiritual leadership of Pastors, Parents, Leaders and Teachers. The Department's main focus is to provide training for Children's Ministries Leaders and Teachers, who have been elected to serve within their local church, including Pastors and Parents. The training seeks to equip individuals with the skills to implement an effective Children's Ministries Department within their local church, providing an understanding of the GraceLink Curriculum and multi-ministries.

Our Department's Objectives

  • Grace-oriented ministries, in which all children will experience the unconditional love of Jesus, find assurance of acceptance and forgiveness, and make a commitment to Him and develop their faith.
  • Inclusive ministries, in which the volunteers who minister and the children to whom they minister will be valued and involved regardless of race, colour, language, gender, age, abilities, or socio-economic circumstances.
  • Leadership ministries, in which volunteers are empowered, trained and equipped for effective ministry to children.
  • Service-oriented ministries, in which children are given opportunities for hands-on service to people in their neighbourhood or city, which could establish a pattern of outreach to others that may well continue through life.
  • Cooperative ministries, which involve working in partnership with other ministries such as family ministries, Sabbath School, and stewardship, to support and help parents develop their children's faith.
  • Safe ministries, whereby our churches adopt safeguards to protect children from physical, sexual, emotional, and spiritual abuse; to choose volunteers with high spiritual and moral backgrounds; and to minimize the church's liability; and,
  • Evangelistic ministries, in which children who are not enfolded in the church family will be introduced to the love of Jesus through outreach programs such as Vacation Bible Schools, children's branch Sabbath Schools, Neighbourhood Bible Clubs, and Story Hours.

Director's Role

The Children's Ministries Department is a 50% budget. The current director, Pastor Patricia Douglas, ministers in a local church with the remaining 50% of her time. Her role in the Department includes:

  • To serve as a specialist in children's spiritual development
  • To serve as an advocate for children
  • To co-ordinate the activities of the Department with the Local Church, Children's Ministries Coordinator
  • Provide leadership and acts as a consultant in Children's Ministries  for Local Churches
  • Promote coordination and networking amongst ministries for/with children
  • Serve as a member of committees as assigned
  • Plan a budget for implementing the strategic plans of the Department
  • Conduct seminars and workshops on child-related issues
  • Evaluate and analyse information to identify the need for materials, programs and training
  • Provide training and resources for the Children's Ministries Leaders
  • Provide leaders and teachers with training in the use of the GraceLink Curriculum
  • Evaluate projects/events/programs

Key Dates

  • March 3: Equipped for Service
  • March 16: Global Children's Day
  • May 25: World Day of Prayer for Children at Risk:
  • July 27: Children's Sabbath
  • August 24: End it Now!
  • September 1: Coming of Age Service
  • October 26: Creation Sabbath
  • November 16: Wolrd Orphan and Vulnerable Children's Day
  • November 2, 9, 16 and 23: Smart Love Seminar
  • November 24: Smart Love Graduation and Banquet
  • October - December: Share the Word Challenge

Helpful Links

  1. GraceLink Videos. Animated bible stories for kindergarten and primary-level children - https://www.faithfinders.com/gracelink-videos
  2. Mission 360 TV. Produced by Adventist Mission - https://m360.tv/children
  3. Ellen G. White Estate. Sharing the Vision - https://ellenwhite.org/pioneer-adventures
  4. My Place With Jesus. An It Is Written ministry - https://myplacewithjesus.com

Posters

Resources

Resources for Leaders

  1. A Step by Step Guide for Organizing Children’s Ministries for the Local Church. Click here for more information
  2. Pastors and Elder’s Handbook for Children’s Ministries. This booklet is a guide for pastors, elders, volunteer children's leaders, parents and others in the local church who wish to understand and learn how to organize a new children's ministry or strengthen an existing one. In which volunteers are empowered, trained, and equipped for effective ministry to children.  Click here for more information
  3. A Guide to Organising Children’s Prayer Conferences. Click here for more information
  4. Programs and Ideas for Prayer Stations. This book explores both the ‘why’ and the ‘how’ of intergenerational worship and provides simple history of worship through the Bible, an exploration of Jesus’ theology of childhood, and His own approach to intergenerational worship. By the time you reach the end of this book you’ll have the resources to run at least three different intergenerational worship services on Creation, The Story of The Lost Sheep, and The Parable of the Talents. Click here for more information
  5. Coronavirus (COVID-19) resources. Coming soon
  6. Certification Training. This will comprise of links to webinars and quiz sheets.
  7. Information on Smart Love. Click here for more information
  8. Coming of Age Service. Click here for more information

Resources for Children

  1. Bible Adventures for Young Readers. This Bible study set uses a creative, kid-friendly approach to the 28 fundamental beliefs, which will introduce children to the pillars of our faith. With its easy-to-understand format and interactive approach, children will quickly grasp the concepts and have fun learning. You must have Adobe.com PDF Reader to view the files.  (I will attach the PDF)
  2. Day by Day with Jesus Bible Reading Guide. The new 2012 Bible Reading Guide for children ages 9-14 is now available in PDF format
  3. Bible Timeline
  4. GraceLink Videos. Animated bible stories for kindergarten and primary level children -  https://www.faithfinders.com/gracelink-videos
  5. Mission 360 TV. Produced by Adventist Mission - https://m360.tv/children
  6. Ellen G White Estate. Sharing the Vision - https://ellenwhite.org/pioneer-adventures
  7. My Place With Jesus. An It Is Written ministry - https://myplacewithjesus.com

Children Ministries Sabbath School Milestone Certificates

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Patricia Douglas

Patricia Douglas

Director

Department: Children's Ministries

22 Zulla Road, NG3 5DB  Nottingham, United Kingdom.

Phone: +44 115 960 6312

Read More About Patricia Douglas