Warwick Junction Brook Street Child Care Facility
by Asiye eTafuleni
Durban, South Africa
Project details
Year
2024
Project year
2023
Building area
16,5 m²
Project website
Location
Team credits
project team
- Asiye eTafuleni -
Richard Dobson,
Patric Ndlovu,
Thuli Moyo,
Lihle Nyawo,
Chantal Froneman,
Priyanka Govender.
Child carers
Samkelisiwe Sibiya,
Nelisiwe Buthelezi,
Ncamisile Duma.
The Warwick Junction Brook Street Childcare Facility provides affordable and accessible childcare services to working mothers in the Warwick Junction community, which is home to over 8,000 informal workers, more than half of whom are women. Many female workers face challenges affording crèche facilities or encounter incompatible care service hours, often forcing them to bring their children to work. The conditions in Warwick Junction, characterized by exposed electrical wires, pollution, and excessive noise, make it an unsuitable environment for young children. The childcare facility offers a safe space for mothers to leave their children during working hours.
This facility is part of a grant-funded initiative aimed at addressing the urgent need for quality, affordable childcare for parents working informally in urban public spaces. Recognizing that the burden of childcare often falls disproportionately on women, the project provides a gender-sensitive response that significantly impacts their livelihoods.
Prior to construction, extensive site surveys were conducted to understand the urban challenges the community faces and to observe mothers’ strategies for keeping their children safe, as well as their own needs and activities. Careful consideration was given to the facility’s location. Positioned on Brook Street, a central part of Warwick Junction, it allows mothers easy access to their children within walking distance, enabling breastfeeding mothers to visit quickly during lunch breaks or off-hours.
The design of the facility does not obstruct the flow of the market; it occupies underutilized space between two other traders while remaining safely out of pedestrian traffic. The facility can be securely locked at the end of the day, mitigating the risk of resource theft.
Construction materials, such as plywood, draw inspiration from the practices of informal workers who use pallet wood to create storage crates. The interior features a blend of off-the-shelf kitchen units and custom fittings designed specifically for the facility. Instead of traditional roller doors, the childcare facility incorporates an operable shop front with movable sections that serve as protective awnings, providing access to the interior and enclosing the play area for safety. In an ingenious way, a part of the roof was lifted to get natural light at the backspace of the facility, which improves the atmosphere space. These adaptable features reflect the multifunctional solutions commonly seen throughout the market, enhancing the facility’s integration into the community.
Asiye eTafuleni (AeT) is a Durban-based NGO that collaborates closely with informal workers and allied professionals to develop inclusive urban spaces that support sustainable livelihoods for informal workers operating in public spaces.
AeT was founded in 2008 by Richard Dobson, an architect, and Patrick Ndlovu, a social facilitator. Both individuals are local officials in eThekwini (Durban, South Africa) who were concerned about the widening gap between the city government’s urban agenda and the realities faced by the inner-city informal workers, a large and historical community in downtown Durban. Their experience as part of a municipal urban regeneration project shaped their belief that informal workers should be actively engaged through consultative processes.
The AeT Child Care project team is dedicated to piloting practical solutions, such as establishing childcare facilities to inspire community engagement with urban issues. Their interventions focus on simplicity, using accessible materials to create clear architectural responses and build trust with local residents through an open-door policy.
By spending significant time in the streets, the team learns from the urban ecology and understands the challenges facing the predominantly female informal trader population. South Africa provides limited financial support for informally working mothers, particularly for childcare. In response, Asiye eTafuleni offers affordable childcare without the expensive infrastructure typically associated with municipal projects.
This facility provides a convenient solution for working women, reducing transportation costs while enabling them to pursue their professional aspirations. The project seeks to create public spaces that facilitate inner-city work and advocate for a radical transformation of urban environments, challenging existing regulations with innovative design proposals.
The proposed implementation plan will integrate lessons learned from the pilot, situating the new facility in a carefully selected urban public space, with maximum community participation in the design and construction process. Engaging local tradespeople and ensuring design sensitivity will reflect the surrounding urban ecology, contributing to community empowerment and child wellbeing.
The prize money will be used to replicate the pilot project, as the initial facility is already oversubscribed and there is a growing demand for such facilities.
- Information for the project text was provided by Asiye eTafuleni -
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Advisory Committee Statement
The ‘Warwick Junction Brook Street Child Care Facility’ receives the award for Local Scale for the remarkable way it has responded to the specific needs of local women working in the informal market at Warwick Junction, Durban. The facility serves as a secure space for children, seamlessly integrated into the market context. This humble and practical intervention offers a sustainable and valuable solution, addressing a significant issue: supporting the social structure of women by enabling them to work while sharing childcare responsibilities.