3-IN-1 Family Centre - Singapore

Program Image

Program

  • Type of Program: 1) Child Care (Full-Day & Half-Day); 2) Student Care (Before & After School): 3) Aged Care (Social Day Care For The Frail Elderly)
  • Funding Sources: Capital Grant: Ministry of Community Development & Northeast Community Development Council
  • Presenter: Amy Fong-Chong PBM (Director)
  • Address: Block 209 Tampines St 21 #01-1347
    Singapore 520209
  • Telephone: 786-3133, 260-6361
  • Fax: 783-3130
  • Email: [email protected]

Program Purpose

The mission of the 3-in-1 Family Centre is to provide affordable day care services to working adults so that their young children and elderly parents could spend the day profitably at the Family Centre under the supervision of professionally trained staff.

Program Description

A Home away from Home. That is how the 3-in-1 Family Centre sees itself. Set up by the PAP Community Foundation Tampines East Branch in 1995 to provide daycare services to preschoolers, school students and senior citizens aged 55 and above, the 3-in-1 Family Centre answers the needs of working adults who want their family members well taken care of in the absence of supervision at home. The concept is simple. Getting together three diverse groups under one roof in a familiar, family-type setting to enjoy each other's company. For about 9 hours each day, this is where they live side by side, playing together and learning from each other under the trained eye of professional staff. Activities at the 3-in-1 Family Centre are educational while being exciting. There is music and movement for the very young. There are enjoyable learning courses and fitness classes for the school-going, and relaxing karaoke sessions for the seniors. Many activities cross all age barriers. Art, music, craft-making and excursions can be enjoyed by everyone. So can cultural traditions like the making of "rice-dumpling" and ketupat (Malay rice dumpling). Such inter-generational activities are a source of much enjoyment. Because if there's one thing to discover from all this, it is that age is no barrier to learning or having fun.

Objectives
Child /Child - Program Objectives We believe that childhood needs to be a time of fun, joy and exploration. Our curriculum provides for physical, emotional, social and cognitive development with a "hands-on" approach. Student Care - Program Objectives The Student Care program aims to provide students with a conducive environment for study and play. Elderly Care - Program Objectives The Elderly care program aims to meet the physical, social, emotional and intellectual needs of the elderly and provide a conducive environment for socialization and continuing education.

Most Unique Program Feature

What makes the 3-in-1 Family Centre unique is not the fact that it houses 3 diverse age groups under one roof but that it involves all three in many of the same activities. It is this conscious effort to integrate the three groups - to bring them together in a "family" setting - that makes the 3-in-1 Family Centre such an exciting prospect for anyone who needs its services. Our daily program allows interaction between the young and the seniors through handicraft sessions, singing sessions, games sessions, festive celebrations and hands-on cooking lessons. It strives to build a strong rapport between them so that the children may learn family-centred values where the respect for the elderly is encouraged. Bridging the gap at the 3-in-1 Family centre is the unique "family" concept, which is simply that, under the same roof, the very young, the school students and senior adults can and will benefit a lot from each other. The 3-in-1 Family centre is unlike any other centre that provides daycare services, in that it embraces the young and elderly alike. For children, the Centre prepares them for an adult life that does not fear or resent ageing. For Seniors, it is a place to find pride in ageing and discover a new sense of purpose.

Edited by Michael Kalinowski