A multi-programme OpenKids centre needs a committed operator — you or a general manager you trust — and teachers certified to the HQ standard. HQ covers the location analysis, lease negotiation and fit-out standards, and pre-opening training and certification at Singapore HQ; support runs for the life of the partnership.
What staffing does a multi-programme OpenKids centre need?
OpenKids separates the two roles cleanly: the operator runs the business, qualified teachers run the classrooms. “You need a committed operator — you or a general manager you trust,” the partner FAQ states, and “year one is a build; plan to stay close to it.” You need no education background or teaching degree — “you bring market understanding and commitment — we bring curriculum, training, technology and brand.”
In the classroom the requirement is level-by-level certification: more classes and time slots, taught by teachers certified to the HQ standard. One Central Curriculum Team and Regular Quality Reviews By HQ stand behind the teaching system. On the partnership side, pre-opening training and certification at Singapore HQ comes with teacher-hiring playbooks.
What space requirements apply, and who sets them?
OpenKids does not publish a square-metre figure for a centre. What it specifies is the process: location analysis, lease negotiation and fit-out standards. Fit-out, rent, staff salaries, local licences and part of the teaching hardware sit outside the fee and are budgeted with you on the call. Site selection is step five of the same eight steps every campus follows, and it comes with a site analysis of your shortlisted locations.
Programme-specific space needs — a robotics bench versus a painting studio — are confirmed during site selection rather than published as a universal number. That is deliberate: timelines and results vary by market, and so do floor plans.
How does the timetable carry two programmes?
Each programme is its own weekly class, so a centre can run one or both. The two systems are built to run side by side, and in Malaysia both are taught under one roof. The table below collects the published requirements of each programme — the same figures the Art and Tech pages give.
- Ages
- Art ProgrammesAges 3–18
- Tech ProgrammesAges 4–18
- The ladder
- Art ProgrammesFour stages and one Portfolio track, breaks at 3 · 6 · 8 · 10
- Tech ProgrammesFour levels per track at 7 · 10 · 13 · 16, Robotics from 4
- Ways in
- Art ProgrammesFrom 3, and from 8 a direction: Fine Art · Design · Exploration
- Tech ProgrammesThree tracks: Robotics · AI Coding · 3D Design
- The method
- Art ProgrammesREMAT, five modules: Regroup · Extend · Multi · Atman · Theme
- Tech ProgrammesFive STEAM habits of mind on one project-based core
- The skills frame
- Art ProgrammesFive ATL strands, 3–18: Thinking · Communication · Social · Research · Self-Management
- Tech ProgrammesFive STEAM strands across nine age bands
- Work shown
- Art ProgrammesExhibitions and international youth art competitions
- Tech ProgrammesCompetition training from age 8, by readiness
Both programmes share one teaching spine, which is what makes a shared timetable workable: an art lesson opens on a theme led by questions and a tech lesson on a real problem to solve; both follow a spiral curriculum after Jerome Bruner; the weekly critique and the build-test-improve loop are the same habit of open review; and placement is by readiness, not birthday alone.
A full multi-programme timetable is the third of the four stages every campus passes: doors open on a launch campaign run with HQ, trial classes turn into your first steady cohorts, more classes and time slots are added — taught by teachers certified to the HQ standard — until the timetable is a full multi-programme one. Every campus passes the same four stages; timelines and results vary by market.
The timetable also carries the revenue: up to six revenue streams — tuition and programmes (term enrolments across Art and Tech Programmes), the AI platform (MagiBox learning subscriptions on top of class fees), camps and study tours (holiday intensives and international tours), competitions (competition training within Tech Programmes, art awards and training camps), admissions services (Future Pathways: portfolio and university admissions guidance for both programmes) and learning materials and merchandise (materials, kits and branded merchandise). City Partner and Master Partner carry all six.
What training and ongoing support does HQ provide?
The initial package covers partner and teacher training — including pre-opening training and certification at Singapore HQ — full curriculum licensing and certification, the MagiBox + CRM technology stack, site-selection and fit-out standards, and pre-opening marketing. Every tier includes the same foundations: a brand licence for your protected territory, both programme systems, enrolment and marketing support, competition and platform resources, and ongoing HQ support.
After opening, the published commitment runs “for the life of the partnership”: training, curriculum updates, competition access, enrolment campaigns supported by HQ and the MagiBox + CRM system. The curriculum is delivered in English first, with bilingual delivery where your market needs it; all materials, training and the platform are delivered in English.
What should you verify with OpenKids before adding a second programme?
Every campus follows the same eight steps, from your application to opening day. The steps that carry the answers:
- Apply — the partner overview, reviewed in 5 business days.
- Discovery call — 60 minutes with the partnerships team: a full walkthrough of the fees and your market model.
- Agreement — the disclosure document and the agreement, with a financial model for your market.
- Pre-opening — fit-out, HQ training and your opening campaign.
- Opening day — your campus page, a directory listing and WhatsApp enquiry routing.
Territory is settled at the tier: a 3 km radius at Campus Partner, an exclusive territory at City Partner with its scope set in the partnership agreement, and exclusive country or regional rights at Master Partner level. Local licensing is the other half, and it is not OpenKids' to confirm: “in Malaysia, for example, an enrichment centre typically needs company incorporation, registration with the local education authorities, premises and signage licences from the local council, and fire-safety approval. HQ provides a country-specific licensing checklist and walks you through it during setup — operational guidance, not legal advice.”
One number is published, and it is worth keeping in view: a mature campus typically serves 350–600 students. Investment levels vary by country, location and tier, and are confirmed on the discovery call; rent, staffing, local pricing and enrolment ramp differ too much between cities for any honest universal number, so no payback-period, cash-flow or income promise is made. The full cost breakdown for Malaysia shows how the cost lines outside the fee are usually structured, and the evaluation checklist expands the verification steps above.
Frequently asked questions
The question in the title, answered briefly.
Frequently Asked Questions
What staffing, space and training requirements does OpenKids specify for a multi-programme centre?
A committed operator — you or a general manager you trust — and teachers certified to the HQ standard. Space follows HQ's location analysis, lease negotiation and fit-out standards. Training runs from pre-opening certification at Singapore HQ to curriculum updates, competition access and enrolment support for the life of the partnership.
What curriculum support does OpenKids provide for operating multiple programmes in one centre?
Both programme systems — Art and Tech — under one brand, with one central curriculum team, level-by-level teacher certification, curriculum updates and regular quality reviews by HQ. In Malaysia, both programmes are taught under one roof.
What operating requirements should I verify with OpenKids before adding a second programme?
Work the eight steps: the partner overview (reviewed in 5 business days), a 60-minute discovery call with a full walkthrough of the fees, and the agreement with a financial model for your market. Locally, check company registration, education-authority registration, council premises and signage licences and fire-safety approval.
What timetable and teacher training support does OpenKids offer a multi-programme centre?
Each programme is its own weekly class, so a centre can run one or both; a full multi-programme timetable is the third of the four stages every campus passes. Teachers are certified level by level to the HQ standard, with pre-opening training at Singapore HQ and teacher-hiring playbooks.