Early Childhood Development Centres Regulations 2018

No. S 890

Early Childhood Development Centres Act 2017

(ACT 19 OF 2017)

Early Childhood Development Centres
Regulations 2018

In exercise of the powers conferred by section 51 of the Early Childhood Development Centres Act 2017, the Minister for Social and Family Development makes the following Regulations:

PART 1

PRELIMINARY

Citation and commencement

1. These Regulations are the Early Childhood Development Centres Regulations 2018 and come into operation on 2 January 2019.

Definitions

2. In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires —

“assistant educarer” means an individual who is approved under section 25 of the Act to perform assistant educarer duties in relation to children enrolled in any of the following classes conducted at a centre:

(a)	playgroup class;
(b)	pre‑nursery class;
(c)	nursery class;

“assistant educarer duties” means the duties of an assistant educarer specified in the second column of item 1 of the First Schedule;

“assistant teacher” means an individual who is approved under section 25 of the Act to perform assistant teaching duties in relation to children enrolled in any of the following classes conducted at a centre:

(a)	playgroup class;
(b)	pre‑nursery class;
(c)	nursery class;
(d)	kindergarten 1 class;
(e)	kindergarten 2 class;

“assistant teaching duties” means the duties of an assistant teacher specified in the second column of item 2 of the First Schedule;

“centre” means —

(a)	in relation to an applicant for a licence to operate an early childhood development centre, that centre; and
(b)	in relation to a licensee, the early childhood development centre to which the licensee’s licence relates;

“developmentally-appropriate” means appropriate for the development of a child who attends a class at a centre;

“educarer” means an individual who is approved under section 25 of the Act to perform educarer duties in relation to children enrolled in any of the following classes conducted at a centre:

(a)	playgroup class;
(b)	pre‑nursery class;
(c)	nursery class;

“educarer duties” means the duties of an educarer specified in the second column of item 3 of the First Schedule;

“education service provider”, in relation to a licensee, means an individual who is approved under section 31 of the Act to be engaged by the licensee to provide any educational service for children at the licensee’s centre;

“full-day services”, in relation to a centre, means early childhood development services that are provided to children at the centre for a continuous period exceeding 6 hours in a day;

“half-day services”, in relation to a centre, means early childhood development services that are provided to children at the centre for a continuous period not exceeding 6 hours in a day;

“Health Officer” means a Health Officer appointed under section 4(1) of the Infectious Diseases Act (Cap. 137);

“identity card” means an identity card issued under the National Registration Act (Cap. 201);

“infant class” means a class conducted at a centre for children who are 2 months of age or older but are below 18 months of age;

“infant educarer” means an individual who is approved under section 25 of the Act to perform infant educarer duties in relation to children enrolled in any infant class conducted at a centre;

“infant educarer duties” means the duties of an infant educarer specified in the second column of item 4 of the First Schedule;

“kindergarten 1 class” means a class conducted at a centre for children who attain 5 years of age in the year that the class commences;

“kindergarten 2 class” means a class conducted at a centre for children who attain 6 years of age in the year that the class commences;

“nursery class” means a class conducted at a centre for children who attain 4 years of age in the year that the class commences;

“playgroup class” means a class conducted at a centre for children who are 18 months of age or older but are below 3 years of age;

“pre-nursery class” means a class conducted at a centre for children who attain 3 years of age in the year that the class commences;

“principal” means an individual who is approved under section 25 of the Act to perform principal supervisory duties;

“principal supervisory duties” means the duties of the principal specified in the second column of item 5 of the First Schedule;

“programme helper”, in relation to a licensee, means an individual who is approved under section 25 of the Act to assist an assistant educarer, assistant teacher, educarer, infant educarer or a teacher of the licensee’s centre in carrying out his or her duties;

“programme helper duties” means the duties of a programme helper specified in the second column of item 6 of the First Schedule;

“programme hours”, in relation to a centre, means the centre’s operating hours but excludes the following periods:

(a)	the period during which children arrive at the centre before the commencement of any class at the centre;
(b)	the period during which children are waiting to be fetched from the centre at the end of any class at the centre;
(c)	the periods that are designated for children who attend at the centre to rest;

“programme staff”, in relation to a licensee, means an assistant educarer, assistant teacher, educarer, infant educarer, the principal, a programme helper or a teacher deployed at the licensee’s centre;

“registered medical practitioner” means a person who is registered as a medical practitioner under the Medical Registration Act (Cap. 174);

“serious incident” includes —

(a)	an occurrence where a child sustains an injury; and
(b)	a situation where a child’s safety or wellbeing is compromised;

“staff”, in relation to a licensee —

(a)	means the body of individuals who are deployed by the licensee to perform any duty at the licensee’s centre, whether or not the individuals are employed to do so; and
(b)	includes the licensee, or a key appointment holder of the licensee, who is an individual and performs any duty at the licensee’s centre;

“teacher” means an individual who is approved under section 25 of the Act to perform —

(a)

educarer duties in relation to children enrolled in any of the following classes conducted at a centre:

(i)	playgroup class;
(ii)	pre‑nursery class;
(iii)	nursery class; and

(b)

teaching duties in relation to children enrolled in any of the following classes conducted at a centre:

(i)	kindergarten 1 class;
(ii)	kindergarten 2 class;

“teaching duties” means the duties of a teacher specified in the second column of item 7 of the First Schedule.

Made on 27 December 2018.

CHEW HOCK YONG

Permanent Secretary,
Ministry of Social and Family Development,
Singapore.

[ECDA 132-07-464; AG/LEGIS/SL/84B/2015/1 Vol. 1]

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