Autumn is a season often associated with return to kindergarten or school. Many parents want to find a good work place in close proximity to home or work. Thus, kindergartens in offices are very helpful these days. What are their characteristics and is office actually a good place for children?
Nothing new
Kindergartens located in close proximity to work places are very popular among working parents. Such places are mainly established by companies which support their employees in the process of combining their professional and private life. In Poland, they are mainly associated with the times of the Polish People's Republic. Although it is not a nicely remembered period in the history of Poland, some of the ideas are worth remembering even today. The example is company kindergarten. After the change of law, many such places were liquidated because failing enterprises were not able to maintain kindergartens. At present, we may observe the slowing revival of the idea of company kindergarten adjusted to requirements of the modern world. They perfectly fit the trends of personal politics (family-friendly corporate culture, employee engagement, employer branding, work-life balance, or diversity management) and sometimes activities within Corporate Social Responsibility.
Where can we find such places? Everywhere where working parents are present. Nowadays, kindergartens are realized even on the area of universities, thus serving not only to employees of universities but also to studying parents. The example is the kindergarten of the University of Łódź, which is located in the 18th-century Student Dorm. Parents can be also found among employees of corporations. At present, many young people are hired in companies, the registered offices of which are located in office complexes and the authors of the idea of kindergarten in the office decided to simply meet their expectations.
Kindergartens that are closer to parents
First and foremost, many parents pay attention to location while choosing a kindergarten for their children; when one of them works 8 hours or more per day, then they rather choose a kindergarten which is located as close to their work place as possible. Every minute is precious in the morning and the crowded streets do not encourage to travel through the whole city on the route home-kindergarten and kindergarten-work. Similar situation occurs in the afternoon peak hours. However, parents choose places which are located in close proximity to their work place not only due to shortened time of delivering and picking up their children. It is important for every parent to commute to kindergarten within several minutes; it mainly concerns situations when a child suddenly suffers from fever or any other indisposition – says Magdalena Rutkowska-Dolna, Co-founder of non-public kindergarten Mały Einstein in Łużycka Plus.
Why should we locate a kindergarten in the office?
Kindergartens in corporation offices allow parents to save time and help in establishing a good image of company which rents offices in such building; it starts to introduce itself as the one which takes care of employees by allowing them to combine both professional and parental duties more easily. The co-founder of kindergarten in the office Magdalena Rutkowska-Dolna comments the choice of Łużycka Plus for the place of residence of Mały Einstein: Kindergarten in the office was established as a response to the needs of parents working in the office complex at this street. It is a specific place; no other district in Gdynia has so many different companies. Parents who decided to entrust their children to our care, chose an option of a kindergarten located in close proximity to their work place. Generally, it is exactly the idea and concept of kindergarten in the office.
Office as a part of the city structure
Nowadays, office structures combine more and more functions; there are a lot of commercial and service points which are very useful in private life of employees. The examples are gastronomic premises, departments of banks or residential developers. One of the most interesting illustrations of delivering such services is kindergarten – says Halina Gniadecka, Allcon Investment.
Modern business parks more and more frequently merge into the city structure. It is because of the presence of commercial and service premises, location in close proximity to housing estates and in the neighborhood of public communication. Therefore, office park opens itself into the surrounding, it becomes its integral element. This integration is in progress when people who are not employees of offices have a reason for benefitting from offered services, for instance, they choose a kindergarten for their children which is located there – adds Halina Gniadecka.
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