AWWA Early Intervention Centre at Blk 660 and 661 Hougang Avenue 8 was officially opened on 23 July 2016! Our guest of honour, Mr Darryl David, Member of Parliament for Ang Mo Kio GRC, distinguished guests from the Ministry of Social and Family Development,  Ms Fatima Mustafa, Director of Disability Division, Social Development & Support, Ms Denise Low, Director of Service Development and Management Division, Service Delivery and Development Group, Ms Sally Tng, Senior Assistant Director of VWO Facilities Project Management and Facilities Management Section, Facilities Branch, Ms Rebecca Tan, Senior Assistant Director of Disability Services Section, CYF and Disability Services Branch, AWWA Board of Directors and Mr Tim Oei, CEO of AWWA, graced and officiated the event.

In his opening address, Mr Tim Oei, shared that with the expansion of AWWA’s early intervention programme in Hougang, followed by the opening of two new centres next year, AWWA will be reaching 720 children soon, as part of working with the Ministry of Social and Family Services to meet the upward trend of children diagnosed with developmental issues. He also shared that providing early intervention to the children in the centre goes beyond education and therapy and that it is preparing them for their future ahead, equipping them with functional skills, focusing on fine/gross motor, cognitive, communication, social and adaptive areas.

In his speech, Mr Darryl David, said that the latest figures provided by KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital (KKH) and the National University Hospital (NUH) showed a 76 per cent jump in cases of children with development delays, speech and language delays, learning difficulties and autism spectrum disorders (ASD) between 2010 and 2014 with 4,400 new cases diagnosed in 2014. He also said that this upward trend is not unique to Singapore, but found globally.

Following that, the audience were treated to two groovy upbeat performances by our students at the Early Intervention Centre. It was a proud moment for the parents and teachers of our tiny superstars; we were witness to their beaming smiles.

Before the day came to a close, guided tours were made available round the cozy centre. The structure and design were built with advice from therapists to make it a more conducive learning environment for our students. Our teachers and therapists were stationed at different points to answer any queries any one had.

For more information on AWWA Early Intervention Centre, click here.

Here’s Mr Steven Rendy Willyvans, Architectural Associate (Design), SQFT Architects Pte Ltd sharing his experience working with AWWA on the design of AWWA EIC at Blk 660 and 661 Hougang Avenue 8.

“Each of the design elements in this centre is the result of continuous and intensive discussion throughout the entire design process. I remember the times when clients brought books and images to show me the kind of feeling they wanted to achieve.  Though we faced difficulties as a team, I thank my team as well as AWWA for always trying to be a frontier; being supportive and having the courage to push for better designs, better details, and better budget.”