19 Factories Opened Child Friendly Spaces in Summer 2020 to Support Parent Workers

Despite the challenges of COVID-19, 19 factories in China implemented Child Friendly Spaces (CFS) in the summer of 2020. CFS provide secure and well-equipped spaces at factories for children to learn and play while their parents work. By embracing this programme during challenging times, these factories showed themselves to be supportive, caring, and family-friendly employers. 

Four of these have previously opened the spaces and chose to continue their support to parent workers as they have seen the many benefits CFS has brought. For some of them it was the fourth or fifth year of operating the programme, a testament to the value the factory has experienced. Six of these factories were toy producers, while the others represented a gamut of industries including garment and ceramics.

The remaining five factories were new to the programme and have all demonstrated commitment to worker well-being. These factories received extensive training and support from The Centre (formerly CCR CSR). 

The news comes as a positive aspect to a year largely plagued by lockdowns, restrictions and severe disruptions to factory operations, schools and workers’ incomes. With children’s school and kindergarten severely disrupted by COVID-19, the opening of these CFS came at a crucial time. 

The factories in the CFS strictly followed all local government guidelines with COVID-19 prevention; they received thorough health and safety training by The Centre prior to opening. The Centre was in close contact with the factories and provided continuous support to them during the implementation.

2019 was our largest CFS programme to date covering 32 factories in five provinces in China to support 1,110 children and their 1200+ worker parents at factories. Although the size of the 2020 programme was reduced due to COVID-19, we are confident and expect the CFS programme, which is beneficial to all involved including workers, children, factory management, and buyers, will reach new heights in 2021. 

The Centre shared regular updates on the activities, progress and stories of these spaces over the summer via our websites and social media channels. A similar activity tracker will be again be published in 2021. 

Please read our impact and achievements from the 2020 CFS programme here.