"Who sweeps a room, as for Thy laws,
Makes that and the action fine."
George Herbert,
1593-1632.

The earliest reference to a caretaker, or chapel keeper as they were called, was to a Mrs Keen. In 1868 she was paid £1 per quarter for her work. Her duties included sweeping the chapel walks and keeping the gas mantles in good condition. In 1874 one Samuel Martin was appointed chapel keeper at the increased salary of £5 p.a. In 1880 the Trustees bought for £36 a hot water apparatus, the money having been raised by private subscriptions from the congregation. This was installed in the first church and no doubt Mr Martin had to contend with the vagaries of this monster as have many other people with similar appliances during the past century. At some time unknown Samuel Martin had been replaced by a Mr Harris but his tenure of office came to an end in 1886 when he resigned. The Trust decided to advertise the position of chapel keeper at a salary of £13 p.a., but could get no one until they re-advertised at £15 p.a., when a certain Mr Davis was appointed. Mr. Davis was not at all satisfactory, and on one occasion the chapel stewards had to admonish him as many complaints had been received as to his inattention to his duties. Mr Davis's conduct did not improve and in 1894 he was given three months' notice. Unfortunately, his son, Master A.E. Davis, had been bringing some useful money into the family as the organ blower for Mr Glassey and as a result of his father's dismissal he too lost his job. The next holder of the office of chapel keeper was a Mr. F. Colman who held it with a raised salary of £18 p.a. Mr Colman only held his post for a year when a John Henry Martin, of 3, Poplar Avenue, Broad Road, Acocks Green, was appointed. It may be that John Henry was related to Samuel Martin who had had the position in the 1870s. John Martin must have given every satisfaction because he and his wife held the position of caretakers until July, 1909, only then resigning on account of his wife's ill health.

It would appear that the church made do with temporary caretakers until September of 1912 when a Mr George was appointed at the sum of £24 p.a. For the next fifteen years Mr George more than ably fulfilled the position of caretaker. In addition, he acted as deputy organist for which he was paid the not munificent sum of £5 p.a. It was not until 1935, when the caretaker's house was built behind the Sunday school buildings, that there was a resident caretaker. However, Mr George did not live far away, only at 16 Hazelwood Road. The conditions of his employment took Mr George on a weekly round of Acocks Green village. During his years of office the church advertised its Sunday services and social activities on three notice boards in the area, one at the church, one at Acocks Green railway station and another at Pitts, the greengrocers. It was Mr George's job to see that the name of the preacher for the following Sunday services was in position on these boards first thing on Monday mornings.

The Trust minutes do not record who succeeded Mr & Mrs George but a Mr & Mrs Wootten moved into the new caretaker's house in 1935 (built at a cost of £550). They stayed throughout the war until Mr Wootten, by then a widower, left in 1947. Since then the list of caretakers reads as follows:
Mr & Mrs W.P. Long, Mr & Mrs H.W. Gibbs, Mr & Mrs L.W. Gibbs, Mr & Mrs Wright, Mr & Mrs Monk and Mr & Mrs Hammersley.

It seems fitting that the church's present caretaker, Mrs Thelma Dowling, should have served the church for the longest period and together with her late husband, Percy, should have given such devoted service. Their joint tenure began in 1964 and twenty two years later Mrs. Dowling is still a welcome and familiar figure on the church premises.