Press Releases
Four More Large Child Care Centres to Open by 2018
18 Jan 2017
1. Parents in Punggol, Sengkang and Bukit Panjang can look forward to more quality and affordable pre-school places next year. Four new large child care centres will begin construction this year as part of the Government’s continued efforts to meet the needs of young families. Together, they will add 2,700 new places at these estates, and are expected to open by mid-2018.
2. The four new centres are in addition to the five large child care centres that the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) had earlier announced. These four centres will be run by three Anchor Operators – PAP Community Foundation in Punggol, NTUC My First Skool in Punggol and Bukit Panjang, and Skool4Kidz in Sengkang. The two centres in Punggol will have a capacity of 1,000 child care places each, while the centres in Sengkang and Bukit Panjang will have a capacity of 400 and 300 places respectively. The Anchor Operators (AOPs) will draw on their past experience in developing and managing existing large child care centres, which have been progressively opened since 2016, to ensure good care and programmes for the children.
3. To enhance learning and developmental opportunities for children enrolled in the new centres, they will be constructed to integrate with the community and the environment. For example, the centre at Sengkang Riverside Park will be the first child care centre built in a park.
4. Speaking at the ground-breaking ceremony for the Sengkang centre, Minister for Social and Family Development, Mr Tan Chuan-Jin reiterated the Government’s commitment to provide more quality and affordable pre-school places to better support young families. He added, “ECDA is constantly looking at different ways to provide better learning opportunities for our children. This centre at Sengkang Riverside Park is the result of a partnership with NParks, so that our children can easily participate in physical and outdoor activities. This enhances their well-being and development, and also nurtures their appreciation for nature from a young age.”
5. ECDA’s partnership with NParks also include activities and programmes for young children to learn about Singapore’s natural heritage. An educational resource package about Singapore’s biodiversity has been distributed to more than 1,600 pre-schools, reaching out to almost 80,000 pre-schoolers.
6. Registration for the four new large child care centres will be open in the second quarter of 2017, through ECDA’s online Registration Management System accessible at www.childcarelink.gov.sg.