Songpa-gu 'Our Neighborhood Kiwoom Center Best Practice Contest' Seoul Mayor Award Winner

Songpa-gu (District Mayor Seo Gang-seok) has been selected as an excellent case of Kiwoom Center operation and will receive the Seoul Metropolitan Mayor's Award.

On the 23rd, the district announced that it was the only autonomous district to receive the honor in the ‘2024 Our Neighborhood Kiwoom Center Operation Case Contest’ (hereinafter referred to as the contest), hosted by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and organized by the Seoul Foundation of Women & Family in April.

The contest is conducted targeting Our Neighborhood Kiwoom Centers and autonomous districts within Seoul to share useful information and achievements applicable to elementary school care sites.

In its third year, a total of 129 cases were submitted in two categories: ▲child-led activities and ▲free topic. Among them, a total of 10 cases, including Songpa-gu, were selected.

The district produced a video titled “What kind of place is the Kiwoom Center?” and submitted it in the free topic category. The video vividly captured the achievements of the Kiwoom Center through various activity records and user feedback.

Children expressed satisfaction with the environment, saying, “I like the Kiwoom Center because it feels like our home” and “I am happy because there are many favorite books and toys.” Parents cited various activities beyond care as strengths of the Songpa Kiwoom Center, saying, “I feel reassured because I can trust and leave my child while working” and “It is good because there are various educational programs and activities beyond just care.”

In particular, activities linked to local historical resources, such as visits to the Hanseong Baekje Museum and experiences of Songpa Sandae Nori, received favorable evaluations among the Songpa Kiwoom Center activities.

Among the Kiwoom Centers, four centers that jointly conducted the ‘Playground Research Project’ were also selected as excellent cases in the free topic category. These centers are located in Garakbon-dong, Jangji-dong, Wirye-dong, and Wirye-dong 2nd branch, and were recognized for their active efforts focusing on ‘finding the right to play’ to promote children’s rights beyond child protection.

Currently, the district operates 19 Songpa Kiwoom Centers. Reflecting the high satisfaction on site and increasing demand, it plans to add the ‘Jangji-dong 2nd branch’ within this year, expanding to a total of 20 centers.

District Mayor Seo Gang-seok said, “We will gradually increase the Songpa Kiwoom Centers, a successful case of community care, to provide care to more children,” adding, “We will create an environment where children can grow up healthily and parents can work with peace of mind as trusted public care, responding to the ultra-low birthrate era.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.