One of the most common questions church leaders ask is: “How many custodians and maintenance personnel should we have?” While it seems straightforward, this question reveals a deeper challenge many churches face—understanding the true scope of facility stewardship and the consequences of understaffing.
The Wrong Question vs. The Right Questions
Instead of asking, “How many staff do I need?” start by asking more revealing questions:
- What’s being overlooked in our facility maintenance?
- What’s wearing out faster than it should?
- What’s deteriorating because we lack the resources or capability to address it?
- Where are our biggest shortfalls coming from?
These questions move the conversation away from arbitrary staffing numbers and toward understanding the real issues driving facility challenges.
The True Cost of Understaffing
Management Overwhelm
When facility managers are stretched too thin, they can’t truly manage. Instead, they’re forced to spend their time putting out fires instead of planning ahead. This creates a ripple effect across the entire organization, where long-term strategy gives way to constant crisis response.
Custodial Shortfalls
Understaffing often means only the most visible areas get attention.
- High-traffic spaces receive basic cleaning, while low-use areas are neglected.
- Deep cleaning tasks—like floor stripping and waxing—get postponed indefinitely.
- The overall appearance of the facility declines, leaving a poor impression on guests and members alike.
Maintenance in Reactive Mode
When teams lack the bandwidth for preventive care, they shift into “find it and fix it” mode. The results are predictable:
- Mechanical failures occur more frequently.
- Emergency repairs become the norm, driving up costs.
- Equipment lifespans are cut short due to missed routine maintenance.
Safety and Security Compromises
When staff are constantly rushing, safety often takes a back seat.
- Doors are propped open for convenience.
- Security checks get skipped to save time.
- Equipment and supplies clutter hallways and block emergency exits.
Collectively, these challenges reveal a simple truth: when your facility is understaffed, maintenance turns reactive, safety is compromised, and costs rise.
The Industry Rule of Thumb: One FTE per 35,000 Square Feet
The Basic Formula
A commonly used calculation is one full-time equivalent (FTE) per 35,000 square feet for both custodial and maintenance combined. While this provides a starting point, it’s more complex than it appears.
Why the Math Gets Complicated
At first glance, a 35,000-square-foot facility might seem to require just two people—one custodian and one maintenance worker. But in reality, staffing needs are rarely that simple. You have to account for time off due to vacation, sick days, and personal leave. Someone must also be available during holidays or for after-hours emergencies. Add in the time required to train new employees and the additional coverage needed during peak activity seasons, and the workload quickly expands. What initially appears to be a one-person job often requires 1.5 to 2 full-time equivalents to provide consistent, reliable coverage.
The Real Staffing Need
For a 35,000-square-foot church facility, this translates to roughly two to four full-time custodial and maintenance staff, plus one facilities manager or director. In other words, a minimum team of three to five people is typically needed to keep operations running smoothly and proactively manage the facility’s long-term health.
Understanding the Full Scope of Facility Stewardship
Common Misunderstanding
Many church leaders drastically underestimate what facility stewardship involves. A frequent mistake is combining facilities with other roles like hospitality, assuming facilities work is just “fixing things when they break.”
The Complete Facility Stewardship Scope
Everything that isn’t children’s, women’s, men’s ministry, youth ministry, finance, or weekend preaching typically falls under facility stewardship:
Daily Operations
- Event setups and takedowns
- Regular cleaning and deep cleaning
- Basic repairs and maintenance
- Safety monitoring and compliance
Preventive Maintenance
- HVAC system maintenance
- Plumbing and electrical inspections
- Roof and gutter maintenance
- Equipment lifecycle management
Specialized Tasks
- Floor stripping and waxing
- Parking lot maintenance and traffic direction
- Landscaping management (if not outsourced)
- Vendor relationship management (if services are outsourced)
Seasonal Responsibilities
Each season brings specific facility needs:
- Spring: Deep cleaning, HVAC transitions, landscaping prep
- Summer: Cooling system maintenance, exterior maintenance
- Fall: Heating system prep, gutter cleaning, winterization
- Winter: Snow removal, ice management, emergency preparedness
Developing Your Staffing Strategy
Step 1: Establish Your Baseline
Assess your current situation honestly:
- Take pictures of problem areas (mechanical rooms filled with junk are tell-tale signs of understaffing)
- Document what’s being missed or delayed
- Identify safety concerns that result from time pressures
- List equipment that’s failing prematurely due to lack of maintenance
Step 2: Calculate Your True Square Footage Needs
- Measure your total facility space
- Consider complexity factors: Multi-level buildings, specialized spaces (kitchens, gyms), and high-traffic areas require more attention
- Account for outdoor space: Parking lots, sidewalks, and landscaping add to maintenance requirements
Step 3: Factor in Your Activity Level
- Event frequency: Churches with daily activities need more staff than weekend-only facilities
- School operations: Educational programs significantly increase cleaning and maintenance needs
- Community usage: Facilities used by outside groups require additional oversight
Strategic Staffing Solutions
Hybrid Staffing Models
Many churches find that a hybrid approach—combining core staff, volunteers, and outsourced services—offers the best balance of stewardship and efficiency. A full-time facilities manager provides essential oversight and accountability, while part-time or contract staff can take on specialized tasks such as electrical or HVAC work.
Trained volunteers can also play an important role by handling repeatable, low-risk responsibilities like checking emergency equipment or assisting with seasonal projects.
Outsourcing Considerations
Certain services are often more cost-effective and reliable when outsourced. Custodial work, for example, can be contracted out if daily oversight isn’t required. The same applies to specialized maintenance tasks like HVAC, electrical, and plumbing, as well as landscaping, snow removal, and deep cleaning projects.
However, some responsibilities are best kept in-house—especially those tied to daily facility operations, event setup and breakdown, emergency response, and vendor management. These tasks require familiarity with the facility and a quick response time that outside contractors may not be able to provide.
Volunteer Integration Strategy
Volunteers can significantly enhance your staffing capacity when used strategically. They’re often well-suited for specific, well-defined tasks such as inspecting safety equipment, assisting with preventive maintenance, preparing for seasonal changes, or helping with special projects. The key to success lies in providing clear direction, proper training, and consistent follow-up. When expectations are well-defined, volunteers become a valuable extension of your facility team rather than an added management challenge.
The Accountability Factor
The Critical Disconnect
Often, the person held accountable for facility performance lacks control over the three essential resources:
- Time (urgent issues consume their schedule)
- Personnel (they don’t control staffing decisions)
- Money (they don’t set the facilities budget)
Leadership Responsibility
If you’re holding someone accountable for facility stewardship, it’s essential to also equip them with the resources needed to succeed. That means providing adequate staffing to meet expectations, granting appropriate budget authority for maintenance and repairs, and allowing enough time for planning and proactive management—not just reacting to emergencies. Without these supports, even the most capable facilities leader will struggle to deliver consistent, long-term results.
Making the Investment Case
Short-Term vs. Long-Term Costs
While cutting back on facility staff might seem like a way to save money in the short term, it almost always leads to higher costs over time. Understaffed teams are forced into reactive maintenance, which accelerates equipment failure, increases emergency repair expenses, and shortens the overall lifespan of building systems.
By contrast, appropriate staffing is an investment—one that protects your assets, reduces long-term expenses, and supports the ministry’s overall effectiveness. Professional facility management ensures that small issues are addressed early, before they become costly problems.
Ministry Impact
The benefits of proper facility staffing extend far beyond the maintenance department. A well-staffed team enhances first impressions for visitors, creates a safer environment for everyone who uses the building, and ensures ministry programs run smoothly because spaces and systems function as intended. It also boosts volunteer satisfaction—people are more eager to serve in a clean, well-maintained, and organized facility. In short, investing in your facility team is investing in your ministry’s health, safety, and reputation.
Conclusion: Right-Sizing Your Team
The question isn’t simply “How many staff do I need?” but rather “What level of facility stewardship does our ministry require, and what resources are necessary to achieve it?”
Start by honestly assessing your current shortfalls, understanding the full scope of facility stewardship, and recognizing that adequate staffing is an investment in your ministry’s long-term effectiveness. Whether through staff, volunteers, or outsourced services, ensure someone has both the accountability and the resources necessary to maintain your facility as the ministry asset it’s meant to be.
Remember: Your facility either supports your ministry or becomes a distraction from it. Proper staffing helps ensure it’s always the former.
