Our building is truly homelike: open plan kitchen in which to prepare nourishing meals, opportunities to join in domestic activities, just like home, quiet rooms for napping, creative indoors play, safe enclosed courtyard with tons of clean natural sand and a beautiful outdoors with woods, meadows and gardens.
A HOME AWAY FROM HOME
In 2009 we received Government funding to establish our work as a Community Developed Centre. We know how important it is to grow in a healthy, intelligent and beautiful space. We also wanted to offer the children a building that expressed the old style of rural East Clare. With the help of Solearth Ecological Architects we designed such a building and built it using modern environmental solutions. These included clay blocks, silicone free render, biological paint, varnish and wood stain, raw timber floors finished with pure wax and a heating system using wood in winter supported with a great number of solar panels.
In September 2010 we opened our doors to children and families.
INNOVATION AWARD
Our effort was acknowledged by the Clare County Council who gave the building an award under the Innovation category from the 2011 Design and Conservation Awards:
“Intended to be a home-from-home for children up to the age of 12, this architect-designed childcare centre challenges both the form and the function of a traditional crèche space, both by its non-urban location and it its layout, ethos and setting…”
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