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RAS certifies more tourist attractions
under the Happy Toilet Programme (HTP)
After a brief meeting on
15th May, a total of 36 toilets at The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands were audited
and certified on 7th June. Prior to the certification, 24 employees from
the cleaning service provider of the Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands
underwent three training sessions on restroom inspections on 31st May. Including
the Shoppes, there are currently a total of 31 shopping centres on board
the HTP with 108 toilets rated 5 stars and 140 rated 4 stars. The Shoppes
at Marina Bay Sands is the first luxury shopping  and tourist attraction on
board the HTP. The Shoppes at Marina Bay Sands now boasts a total of six
newly upgraded Family Rooms. These rooms, each furnished with vibrant
interior and warm lights, are upgraded to serve its shoppers better. Each
room is fully equipped with a diaper-changing station, wash basin, hot
water dispenser, disposable diaper bags and comfortable couches.
A separate meeting was held
with the Sentosa earlier on 2nd May and they
also threw in their support to certify its Beach Station as a
‘Happy Toilet’. On 31st May, the toilets were certified and 12
employees of Sentosa underwent a similar
training session on the same day. With Singapore’s main tourist attractions,
Sentosa and the Shoppes on board the HTP, we
hope more tourist attractions will follow suit to uphold its corporate
social responsibility (CSR) to provide quality restrooms and help create
job opportunities for our low-income Certified Eco-Assessors.
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RAS releases
LOO (Let’s Observe Ourselves) Connect app on Google Play Store
The LOO Connect app, which is
compatible with Android devices
i.e. smartphones and tablets of version 3.2 and
above, was officially released on 9 May. The App was developed in
collaboration with the Singapore Land Authority (SLA) and the Nanyang Polytechnic (NYP). Mr Hoo
Chang Sheng, a 23-year-old NYP’s School
of Information Technology student developed the App while doing his internship
at SLA. The PC i.e. desktop/laptop version of the LOO Connect was
launched in September last year. Both the PC and the  mobile app versions work on
the same OneMap plug-in, which means comments
posted on the PC version, will be posted simultaneously on the mobile
version and vice versa.
As compared to the PC
version, the mobile version provides users with the convenience of
identifying their current location and uploading photos captured directly
from their Android devices. A new function included in both the PC and
mobile app version is the survey function which enables RAS volunteers to
submit results during a mystery audit of toilets under the Happy Toilet Programme. SLA’s development of an Apple iOS-based app is in the pipeline and will be made
available to the public from July 2013.
[Download App]
[Media Release]
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RAS successfully
applies to the National Council of Social Service (NCSS) as an associate
member
RAS
was founded as a non-profit organisation and registered as a society in
December 1998 to advocate for clean public restrooms. It became a charity
in January 2004 and an Institution Of A Public Character (IPC) in May 2010.
In December 2010, in its bid to also rebrand itself as a Voluntary
Welfare Organisation (VWO) addressing human welfare issues, the RAS
applied to the National Council of Social Service (NCSS) as a member VWO
but was advised that its existing Constitution, programmes and activities
had no indication of its active interest in social service. RAS heeded
the advice and began its lengthy preparation for the NCSS membership
application.
 The
Board had to first adopt a resolution at its Annual General Meeting to
amend the Constitution to include the mission of helping low income
individuals and the disadvantaged. The amended Constitution was submitted
to both the Registry of Societies and Commissioner of Charities for
approval. RAS also revamped two of its programmes and activities namely
the Certified Eco-Assessor
(CEA) Programme and the LOO (Let’s Observe
Ourselves) Awards. The RAS worked with Family Service Centres (FSCs) and Community Development Councils (CDCs) to recruit the low-income group as CEAs. At the LOO Awards, grocery vouchers were
presented to low-wage restroom cleaning attendants to help them cope with
rising living costs. After two years of hard work, RAS was accepted as an
associate member of the NCSS. This year, RAS will revamp its STAR Programme for schools by introducing a new kindness
project to encourage schools to organise activities to appreciate the
efforts of cleaning attendants.
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RAS presents
prizes to the top-three winners of the LOO (Let’s Observe
Ourselves) Whiz Facebook game
At
the launch of the LOO
Whiz Facebook game at the LOO
(Let’s Observe Ourselves) Carnival & Awards in December last year, a competition was organised
till 31st March. The competition attracted more than 400 Facebook users and the game was played more than 800
times. Players had to use the keyboard to control the
movement of the game character LOO Whiz and ‘left click’ the
mouse to select the right tools to clean up the mess left  behind by irresponsible
users. Players had to successfully
complete three stages in the fastest time to emerge as the top three
winners.
The top two winners
completed the game in less than 2 minutes while the third winner did so
after slightly more than 2 minutes. On average, the top three winners had
played the game at least 50 times before submitting their best timed
scores. The overall winner spent a total of 4 to 5 hours to clinch the
best timing. When interviewed, all winners agreed that the game is not
only fun for all ages but most importantly, effective in reminding them
to keep the toilets clean and respect the work put in by cleaning
attendants. One of the winners also continuously reminds his son to keep
the toilets clean after playing the game. RAS will continue to promote
the LOO Whiz game at community events and talks.
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RAS continues its
collaboration with the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) College
East
The
ITE College East launched the last 2 phases of its 3-year +ACT (Positive
Action for the Care of Toilets) campaign on 21st May – the theme of
phase 3 and 4 is, "Is my friend doing the right thing?"
and "We are doing the right thing" respectively.
RAS was to present prizes to the top-three winning entries of the +ACT video animation
competition. The winning entries  will
be presented to RAS to be incorporated as school educational materials
for its STAR Awards Programme for schools.
Apart from submitting educational video animations, students also
submitted posters and photos which were exhibited that day.
The
+ACT campaign was first launched in 2011 and RAS not only conducted
'Hygiene Awareness & Social Etiquette' talk for the ITE students but
also shared tips with ITE on projects and activities which its students
can effectively undertake and embark on before the launch. The first
phase in 2011 was, “Do the right thing” to address the
perennial problems faced by the college in rectifying numerous incidents
of its toilet facilities damaged and dirtied by acts of vandalism and
inconsiderate behaviour respectively. The second phase launched in 2012
was, “Am I doing the right thing?” to reinforce the message
of adopting the right user behaviour.
[View Videos]
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RAS supports
and participates in the International Facility Management (iFaME) Expo 2013
In
2012, RAS was invited as a supporting association and media partner for
the iFaME Expo 2013 which was held from 7th to
9th May at the Marina Bay Sands. As a media partner, we publicised the
event to our network of committed owners, cleaning companies, partners
and even the public through our e-newsletters and Facebook
page. As a supporting association, we participated in the event by
setting up a booth to generate awareness and share with more than 60
exhibitors and 6,000 trade professionals about our viable restroom
solutions.
 Posters which were designed
by the Ngee Ann Polytechnic students were also on display. The posters have
been well received because the owners have found the graphics and
messages captivating and impactful. MediaCorp
and Visa Worldwide have purchased and displayed the posters at their
office. The expo is the first facility management trade show in
Singapore. The expo brought together state-of-the-art products,
technologies and related services in the facility management industry.
Conferences were also held at the expo to serve as an ideal platform for
trade professionals to network and expose to better means of sustainable
facility management.
[More
Details]
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