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RAS participates in Care & Share Movement to appreciate cleaning attendants

When the announcement was made about the Care & Share Movement which was opened to National Council of Social Service (NCSS) members with Institution of a Public Character (IPC) status in December, RAS applied to participate in this national fund-raising and volunteerism movement for a matching grant. This means eligible donations raised by RAS from 1st December 2013 to 31st December 2014 will be matched dollar-for-dollar by the government. RAS submitted two activities namely the LOO (Let’s Observe Ourselves) Awards and the STAR (Sustaining Toilets As Restrooms) Awards Programme to appreciate the efforts of cleaning attendants. RAS is targeting to raise $50,000 from the two activities. The public can securely donate to RAS via the SG Gives portal.

RAS has been actively promoting appreciation activities for cleaning attendants in schools and also reaching out to cleaning service buyers and providers to look at ways to co-organise the appreciation activities at the workplace so that operations are least affected when cleaning attendants can easily return to work after the activities. RAS has been seeking to rebrand itself as a Voluntary Welfare Organisation (VWO) addressing human-welfare issues. RAS took concrete steps such as amending its Constitution and rolling out social welfare programmes to ensure its successful application to the NCSS as an Associate Member last year.

RAS certifies workers’ dormitory and construction company office under the Happy Toilet Programme (HTP) for the first time

The HTP has achieved another milestone with the certification of a workers’ dormitory for the first time. Samwoh is the first construction company to come onboard the HTP for its workers’ dormitory and its Samwoh Eco-Green Park’s private office. The strong commitment displayed by Samwoh in ensuring quality toilets for its local and foreign employees is indeed commendable. RAS is urging more companies with workers’ dormitories to come forth and join Samwoh in its bid to provide a safe and hygienic environment for its employees.

Over the years, there are rising concerns over the working and housing conditions of foreign workers. Since 2009, RAS has been actively working with construction companies to not only conduct hygiene talks for its workers but also restroom inspection courses for supervisors at worksites. Since 2009, more than 20 construction sites have come onboard the HTP with two construction companies selected to receive the LOO (Let’s Observe Ourselves) Awards in 2009 and 2010.

RAS hosts study visit for Malaysian delegates

On 10th March, RAS was approached by a lecturer from the Malaysian Institute of Industrial Technology of Universiti Kuala Lumpur (UniKL-MITEC) who requested to visit RAS on a study trip with a group of Malaysian government delegates. The purpose of the visit was to gain some information about how RAS comceptualises and develops projects to improve public restroom facilities in Singapore. The visiting delegates aimed to increase the level of customers’ satisfaction of public restrooms in Malaysia through developing proper toilet maintenance and design guidelines. On the day of the visit on 17th March, RAS President Ms Tan Puay Hoon made her welcome address to the visiting delegates about her volunteering stint with RAS and this was followed by a presentation on the latest edition of A Guide to Better Public Toilet Design and Maintenance by RAS Manager for Training & Standards Mr John Loh.

After the presentation, the visiting delegates embarked on a trip to a 5-star Happy Toilet at a food court at the National University Hospital followed by a final stop at Palawan Beach in Sentosa to study the design of beach toilets. During the trip, the vistiting delegates were also given a practical training session on restroom inspection which would equip them with the necessary skills to assess the minimum acceptable 3-star standard within the Happy Toilet Programme (HTP). RAS also hosted a study visit for Hainan government delegates, the first foreign study visit, on 25th November 2010 which was followed by another visit by Vietnamese delegates on 24th February 2012.

RAS supports Singapore World Water Day (WWD)

For the 3rd consecutive year, RAS supported the Singapore WWD which was organised by the PUB at the Marina Barrage on 15th March. Visitors were provided with information about the activities run by the RAS through video presentations and brochures. Our partner Nicae Trading & Industrial Supplies was also present to provide live demonstrations to visitors about its coating technology that would create a thin protective film enabling surfaces of sanitary ware to be cleaned easily.

The WWD is held internationally on 22 March every year as a means of focusing attention on the importance of water and advocating for the sustainable management of water resources. This year, WWD is celebrated islandwide with over 200 volunteers called “Friends of Water” reaching out to more than 200,000 people islandwide! Island-wide activities were held at five sites at Geylang River, Punggol Waterway, Jurong Lake, Lower Seletar Reservoir with the anchor event at Marina Barrage.

Featured school from our STAR (Sustaining Toilets As Restrooms) programme

Our featured school in this edition of our E-newsletter has, within just two years, gone from decorating its washrooms, to conducting self inspections and producing a number of educational videos and presentations about proper restroom etiquette. Since 2012 the teachers and students of this school have ambitiously sought to bring about the ideal restroom culture to its stakeholders and exercise the school’s values of Responsibility and Care with its undertaking. This school is Christ Church Secondary School.

RAS has on its visits been continuously impressed with how far the school has progressed within the STAR Programme in such a short time. With the support of its school leaders, Christ Church Secondary students and teachers have produced high quality projects that serve to effectively pass on positive messages of social responsibility and good personal hygiene. RAS is pleased to promote the Christ Church example to all its education partners as it deserves a spot in our featured schools’ segment of this E-newsletter.

Featured school projects from our STAR (Sustaining Toilets As Restrooms) programme

It is customary for a few schools to be featured for their washroom decorations. We intend to break tradition by featuring schools that have undertaken different projects that achieve similar benefits and meet the required outcomes. The projects stated here are part of a number of initiatives that RAS proposes to teachers and students which can be found on its website at http://www.toilet.org.sg/projects1_2.html#projects. The schools that we are highlighting in this segment are Swiss Cottage Secondary School, Dunman High School and Qihua Primary School.

A Secondary 4 class from Swiss Cottage, as part of its Values In Action component, invited RAS to conduct a workshop to provide training for creating surveys, decorating washrooms and conducting mystery audits. After the workshop, on the 26th of March, those students proceeded to Jurong Point Shopping Mall to conduct a mystery audit as the first of 3 project submissions to RAS. Qihua Primary students conducted self assessment checks of their school washrooms and also went to a nearby pre-school to share what they learnt within STAR to the children there. Dunman High School Year 1 students created board games, posters and other exhibition material and used them during special events to educate their peers about the importance of valuing the school washrooms. RAS certainly welcomes its school partners to consider the newer projects such as Cleaners’ Appreciation stated on its website.

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Restroom Association (Singapore)
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