Parents left with ‘hassle’ of finding new preschools for their kids following closures

SINGAPORE – Parents of children registered at four preschools were met with a rude shock on Wednesday (Oct 4) when news broke that the schools will close from Oct 12.

The four affected preschools — Buttercups Kindergarten at Pasir Panjang, Buttercups Kindergarten at Rochester, Frobel Preschool at Woodlands and School House ByTheGarden at Ang Mo Kio – are operated by beleaguered operator Friedrich Frobel Holding, and follows from three other preschools under its management that were closed in late August and September. The company is also facing an ongoing lawsuit between its shareholders and criminal investigations by police.

Besides the inconvenience of having to search for another suitable preschool for their children, some parents expressed concern about whether they would be refunded for school fees and deposits that have already been paid.

News of the closure was all too “sudden” for Ms Andrea Ong, 33, given that she had just enrolled her 3-year-old son at the Ang Mo Kio centre only last month. “I just bought the new school uniform for him and now (this has happened) and I have to start over again and find another school for him,” she said.

Another parent Karine Eng, 40, however, has no plans to enrol her Kindergarten 2 son at another preschool, given that there are only five more weeks left till the end of the school term.

“I’m not going to put him in a new environment where he (has) to start all over again and get used to students and teachers,” she said. Although this would bring her some inconvenience, she said she will find some activities to occupy him before he enters primary school next year.

Meanwhile, another parent who only gave his name as Mr Wu, 46, was worried that the school fees for October would be deducted, and whether there is any recourse for the S$1,000 deposit he had forked out during the enrolment.

Parents who have made deposits with the school have been asked to seek help from the Small Claims Tribunal.

According to ECDA, about 200 children are affected by the upcoming closures.

In a joint statement with the Ministry of Manpower, the Singapore Police Force and the Education Services Union, the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) said it has reached out to parents of students affected by the upcoming closure and will assist them with placements at other preschools.

The ECDA said it had managed to help all the children affected by the earlier closures to find alternative placement in other nearby preschools.

“ECDA will continue to closely monitor the situation and coordinate with relevant agencies to minimise disruption to children and parents as far as possible,” the agency added.

When TODAY visited the Buttercups Kindergarten at Pasir Panjang on Wednesday afternoon, the school appeared to have closed for the day. Staff at Frobel Preschool at Woodlands declined comment.

The last preschool operated by Friedrich Frobel Holdings – Gloryland Learning Centre at Cashew – remains in operation.

Despite the recent news, staff at the centre are optimistic. One staff member who declined to be named said they have already been reassured that they were to continue operating.

Gloryland Learning Centre at Cashew has about 10 staff and close to 50 children enrolled.

“Initially we were worried, but now we are not as we’ve been given confirmation that our centre is operating as per normal.... The team morale is very good as we’re being assured on this,” she said, adding that so far no parents have withdrawn from the school after hearing the news of the closures.

“They still continue to give us the support,” she added.