Wondering how to ensure your Childcare Interior Design is compliant with ECDA standards and designed with functionality in mind? Here’s a checklist!
When building a childcare business in Singapore from the ground up, our main priority is the health, safety and overall welfare of a child. People rarely get into this profession simply to create profit. Our passion for nurturing children, though a tiring job, helps us keep things in perspective. This is why we are passionate about the interior design of childcare centers.
So we, at Childcare Renovation, decided to create a mini-checklist for you. When launching your next care business, or even checking compliance with regulations and standards. This should help you evaluate your business.
These standards are ECDA compliant.
Childcare Interior Design Checklist:
Childcare Interior Design 1: Site Selection
Always pick the ground floor of the premises. Intuitive as this may seem, Singapore’s real estate markets may deter people from doing so. It is mandatory, and if you would like an exemption, you would need to get the Director of Social Welfare’s approval and you need to write to the Early Childhood Development Agency or ECDA asking for its approval too.
If you’re using a private residence, then it’s simple: You can use a detached house or a pair of semi-detached houses with access to playground facilities.
If you’re renting the place, you need the approval of your landlord and a lease that’s at least 3 years long with an option to renew.
Keep your center accessible, with parking spaces for parents, and far from gas stations and main roads.
Childcare Interior Design 2: Spaces in Childcare
This is the most important part of childcare renovation. If you’re caring for infants, you need 5 square meters of usable floor space per infant. For children, the number drops down to 3 square meters per child at no less than 4 children, which is a minimum of 12 square meters.
Take note: this spacing requirement doesn’t cover service areas, entrance areas, hallways and diapering areas. Those are separate.
What’s within a Childcare Interior Design Service Area?
- Washing facilities, dressing areas, toilet bathrooms
- A kitchen and pantry
- Storage areas for all your bedding and equipment
- An office for your administrative work
- An enclosed sickbay to isolate sick children
Childcare Interior Design Service Area 3: Bathing And Sanitation
To make your toilets child-friendly, install pedestal child sized flush toilets (at a height of no more than 350 mm) and wash basins (at a height of no more than 500 mm to 600 mm from the floor). Every floor needs them. For every 20 staff members, install an adult-sized toilet on every level.
When it comes to toilet blocks you also need to use glazed tiles for internal walls, up to a height of 1.5 m and the backsplash needs glazed tiling at a height no less than 450 m. Partitions between toilets need to be at least 1 m high and toilet paper holders should be within reach of children.
For liquid soap dispensers, mount them on your backsplash or the wall next to the wash hand basins. Mount one for every two sinks. For hand drying, try not to get an electric hand dryer. Single-use disposable paper towels are a better option and can be installed at an adjacent wall to the wash basin.
You also need a water heater for bathing and showering the children.
Childcare Interior Design Service Area 4: When Looking after Toddlers
You need a separate facility for infants and toddlers because diaper changing and dressing takes a lot more effort. For a more efficient diaper change, install a sink with running water next to the diaper changing area. This sink must have 4 raised sides that are 3 inches high, and you need 1 sink for every 10 infants. You also need potty chairs for the toddlers to use.
Childcare Interior Design Service Area 5: Play Areas
Our childcare needs an outdoor and an indoor play area. If you have an outdoor play space then the indoor play space can also be counted as teaching and learning space. If you don’t, then the allocated indoor space does not factor into the teaching and learning space.
Both the indoor and outdoor play space should come up to at least 40 square meters or one-sixth of the centers capacity (4 square meters per child). The larger figure is counted.
For outdoor playgrounds, always make sure it’s close enough to be within walking distance. This means, the kids can’t cross any roads to get to the playgrounds, nor can they climb more than 2 flights of stairs or 10 steps to reach it.
Childcare Interior Design Service Area 6: Safety First
Always follow these important rules:
- For all windows that are not on the ground floor, Grill them up.
- Install safety gates on either side of the staircase.
- Never get a spiral staircase. They must be safe for children, so keep them at an angle of 45 degrees or less, with non-slip surfaces and 1.5 m high railings on both sides, while ensuring the gap between the banister railing and steps remains small.
- Block access to the kitchen or pantry.
- Every level must have regularly serviced firefighting equipment that is placed out of reach of children.
- The floors of a child care can never be bare concrete, as they may slip, fall and injure themselves. They should be clean, safe, damp-proof, level, washable and non-slip.
- Absolutely no swing doors allowed anywhere on the premises.
- Keep all exits, staircases, and passageways free from obstruction.
- Never store water in a bathtub. Cover it up when not in use, surround it with non-slip mats.
Looking for a good plan design for your kindergarten?
Speak with The Experts
Planning to get started at your kindergarten but have no idea about it?
Childcare Center Renovation Singapore is a reliable company for renovation and interior design. They have about ten years of experience in this field and also have a good reputation from customers.
Call us now to get your desired kindergarten design ideas now!
