The Vatican, in a historic venture for its employees’ well-being, opens the first nursery for the children of the employees.
According to the Vatican Governorate, this initiative represents a new stage in support for families, responding to the needs of employees and providing them with “a safe and enriching environment for their children.”
This is the first nursery in the Vatican, which will open next spring and will have the capacity to accommodate 30 children between 3 and 36 months old.
The aim of this new educational and social centre is to help families in the growth and comprehensive education of their children, with a structured and organised space where children will have the opportunity to grow, share and carry out activities.
Parents will be able to leave their children with educational equipment that will “help stimulate knowledge, skills and autonomy appropriate to each stage of their development,” the statement said.
The centre will be called “San Francisco e Santa Clara” and will be located in a building on Via San Luca, inside the Vatican. It will also be open from Monday to Friday, from 7:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m., and activities will be held in Italian and English.
In the Vatican, more than 4,000 people perform various functions, including religious staff, administrative employees in the dicasteries of the Roman Curia, members of the Swiss Guard, as well as workers in financial, gardening, cooking, maintenance and health care areas, among others.
During the Christmas audience with Vatican employees last year, Pope Francis expressed his gratitude for their work, highlighting in particular the effort they make “in the secret of everyday life,” carrying out tasks that, although they may seem insignificant, “contribute to offering a service to the Church and to society.”