SINGAPORE — The PAP Community Foundation (PCF) will open its first large-scale childcare centre, in Marsiling, by this month as it looks to meet demand for childcare places, which it expects to rise, compared with the demand for kindergarten places.

Catering for about 300 children, the 2,500sqm SparkleTots pre-school will also be PCF’s first standalone centre that is not at the void deck of a public apartment block.

“Going forward, PCF expects the balance to continue shifting towards childcare, as this is the area of growing demand and needs,” said a PCF spokesman, who noted that the shift is already occurring as it expands capacity in full-day childcare to meet working parents’ needs.

Childcare now comprises 34 per cent of total enrolment, with 66 per cent in kindergarten. In 2014, it was 25 per cent and 75 per cent, respectively.

On Sunday (Sept 11), Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam noted that PCF will be facing different challenges in the next 30 years.

“Meeting the demand for pre-school places, recruitment and retention of quality staff and improving the quality of the curriculum will be crucial for PCF if it wants to be always at the forefront of the early childhood industry,” he said.

Last year, PCF said its new centre, located at Woodlands Street 12, will cater for children aged from 18 months. According to the latest information available on its website, the centre will now cater for infants from two months to children in Kindergarten 2 (below 7 years).

The double-storey centre will have a rooftop play area, equipped with cycling and running tracks, as well as equipment for water and sand play.

There will also be generous outdoor spaces, including learning areas that integrate with the outdoors such as a herb and vegetable garden where children can grow their own food.

Fees at the centre will be within a monthly cap of S$770, after the Goods and Services Tax, it was said last year.

Currently, PCF, the largest preschool operator here, has 378 centres, with close to 43,000 children enrolled.

Mr Tharman, who was at the PCF Family Day held at the Singapore Zoo, where he took photos with the new Ah Meng and mingled with families who attended, also pointed to PCF’s new focus on senior care.

Its first Senior Care Centre, Sparkle Care, opened at Changi-Simei last year. Services include dementia day care, nursing care and community rehabilitation.

A second one will open later this year at Yew Tee, he said, stressing that fees will be kept affordable.

“As our population ages, PCF must also respond quickly to play a meaningful role to work with families to help their elderly spend their twilight years graciously,” he said.