The objective of the new Raffles Girls Secondary School (RGSS) campus is to set a new benchmark for modern learning and teaching. It does so by creating a green campus with student-focused facilities and versatile learning spaces. Guided by the vision of being an institution that nurtures ‘Creators of a Better Age’, the design encompasses the ideas of community-centredness; women as leaders; talent development and ‘glocalisation’.

This cheerfully designed 360sqm recreational centre is situated at the void deck of a HDB block in Marine Parade, with a communal kitchen as its nucleus. The place aims largely at reconnecting stay-alone elderly to the wider community to facilitate multi-generational exchanges. With communal experiences - mainly through cooking and dining - at the core of the facility space, senior residents will have opportunities to interact and socialise through Singapore’s rich food culture in a social setting that is all at once inclusive and yet cost-efficient to create and maintain. Due consideration was paid in the design planning to meet the emotional, psychological and social needs of the growing aged community in Singapore. The design also capitalised on the porous setting and spatial quality of the HDB void deck to create an open and fenceless compound. This experimental design shifts away from conventional gated or glazed-up elderly activity centre models to create an inviting communal space.

Comprising a Community Club, Regional Library, HDB Branch, Hawker Centre, Department of Child Development, Blood Collection Centre, Kidney Dialysis Centre and Senior Care Centre among other facilities, One Punggol is an integrated resident-centric community hub for the new Punggol district. Located at Punggol Central in adjacency to the MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) and bus stations, neighbouring residential blocks, the retail development, Waterway Point and Punggol Waterway Park, the community hub is poised to add vibrancy to the new town while elevating its sense of community. This intent is iterated in its design concept and realised through intuitive programming of spaces and pedestrian flow; which in turn, drew inspiration from its site history. In the early days, Punggol was a village where the “kampung spirit” – sense of community and culture of togetherness – pervaded. Today, as a vibrant new town with a young and urbane population, One Punggol blends the nostalgic notes of the kampung with its modern vision; bringing people together to the new ‘Heart of Punggol’ and promoting social cohesion across generations. One of the key design features of One Punggol is its central atrium, which connects all storeys and stakeholders. This main atrium not only serves as a thoroughfare that can be accessed from all parts of the development through its open planning on the ground level, but it also draws footfall towards the centre as the new Punggol Agora. Where the freedom of movement is imperative for meet-ups, interactions and chance meetings for the community, the openness of space appeals across age, social and interest groups. The combined effect of being able to route to their respective destinations within One Punggol without being detached from the atrium space – the genius loci of the development – is key to cultivating a dynamic and all-inclusive Punggol community and spirit.