Remodeling and Facility Improvement Completed by the End of February, Official Opening from March
‘Nemo,’ a Child-Only Space Created and Planned by a Play Planning Group Composed of Children
Reorganized into a Complex Space Including ‘Nabom,’ a Public Counseling Center for Children and Adolescents in the Area
Nowon-gu (Mayor Oh Seung-rok) announced that it has newly transformed the Nowon Child Welfare Center into a complex cultural space for children and adolescents to welcome them.
The Nowon Child Welfare Center, located in Junggye-dong, is a building with a total floor area of 912㎡, spanning from the basement to the 4th floor. Various institutions related to children and adolescents, such as a children’s library, youth hangout, and alternative education institutions, are housed here.
At the end of last year, the district office relocated the Dream Start Center and the Child Protection Agency, which previously occupied the building, into the district office itself, and carried out remodeling work to rearrange the space and renovate the aging facilities.
The most noticeable change in this remodeling is the creation of new child and adolescent-exclusive spaces, ‘Nabom’ and ‘Nemo,’ on the now-vacant 3rd and 4th floors due to the relocation of facilities.
First, on the 3rd floor, the public counseling center ‘Nabom’ was established. The counseling center’s name can be interpreted in various ways such as ‘Look at Me,’ ‘My Spring,’ and ‘Moving Forward.’ It provides free counseling for vulnerable children and adolescents in the area who are experiencing psychological difficulties.
The main counseling targets are children aged 7 to 14 years old with a household income at or below 120% of the median income, referred through schools and local institutions. It offers basic counseling and tailored services such as sandplay therapy free of charge to children in various situations and environments.
Additionally, regardless of income, adolescents aged 15 to 18 can voluntarily participate in coaching programs focused on mental health and career guidance. These programs are designed to help youth discuss and receive support from experts on various concerns including career, academics, peer relationships, and romantic issues.
On the 4th floor, the child-only space ‘Nemo’ was created. Nemo is a cultural space for children, meaning ‘A Playground Where We Want to Gather and Play Tomorrow,’ providing children with areas for play, rest, and self-directed learning.
The play planning group played a significant role in creating Nemo. This group consists of 4th to 6th-grade children residing in Nowon-gu or attending elementary schools in Nowon-gu. They were active from August to December, representing their peers by offering opinions on the design of the child welfare center’s space.
The play planning group’s discussions influenced the color of the building’s exterior walls, which affect the overall atmosphere, as well as the naming of the spaces. They also played a decisive role in selecting play items such as VR devices, game consoles, and board games that suit children’s preferences.
Besides play items, Nemo is equipped with design and drawing tablets and silhouette cutters necessary for children’s experiential learning. Using these, a 4th Industrial Revolution experience program tailored to elementary school students’ levels will also be operated.
The district plans to organize a ‘Child Operating Committee’ to allow children to participate directly in the operation of the space. Additionally, it will form a ‘Child and Adolescent Council’ to enable various institutions within the welfare center to cooperate organically and function as a complex space for education, welfare, career, and culture.
Oh Seung-rok, Mayor of Nowon-gu, said, “This remodeling of the Child Welfare Center actively reflected ideas directly proposed by children. Since the tastes of the main users, the children, are embedded in the space, I hope it becomes a complex cultural space where children and adolescents can comfortably use and relax.”
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