Winning suggestions for pre-school designs

Winning suggestions for pre-school designs

The huge space under the Thomson Flyover, once famous for housing the Whitley Road Hawker Centre, is now home to the Offside futsal complex.

But Filipino architect Ronald Kendrick Rosilio believes it could be a great site for a pre-school.

"It is close to residential areas and easily accessible by public transport," said the 27-year-old, who works for a Singapore company offering green solutions.

His suggestion includes building outdoor classrooms and a playground, which would use play equipment such as bikes, swings, and see-saws that create energy.

His idea was among the three winning entries in a contest organised by philanthropic organisation Lien Foundation and The Straits Times to spur the public to rethink pre-school spaces.

The other two involve having a pre-school at Dakota Crescent's Dove playground and the Botanic Gardens.

Altogether, 180 readers sent in their ideas. The contest was launched after the release of A Different Class - Pre-school Spaces Redefined, a book that features 10 innovative pre-school designs.

Lekker Architects, which worked with the foundation on the book, had proposed siting kindergartens in university campuses, on top of multi-storey carparks, and along the Rail Corridor.

The winning entries were picked by Lien Foundation and Lekker.

Ms Amelia Soh, 21, an early childhood education student at the Singapore Institute of Technology, suggested building a pre-school around the Dove playground in Dakota Crescent, which is one of Singapore's oldest public housing estates.

The flats there are slated to be vacated by the end of 2016 to make way for new developments.

The Dove playground was designed in 1979 by Housing Board designer Khor Ean Ghee, who also designed the Dragon playground in Toa Payoh Lorong 6.

The third winning entry was from Mr Stanley Toh, who suggested building a pre-school designed as a greenhouse nursery in the Singapore Botanic Gardens.

Said Lien Foundation chief executive Lee Poh Wah: "The myriad range of responses we received shows how possible it is, with a little effort, to find imaginative solutions to our often-cited space constraints."

sandra@sph.com.sg


This article was first published on Oct 27, 2014.
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