NTUC to launch new kindergarten programme, 10 pre-schools this year
SINGAPORE — NTUC First Campus will be opening another 10 My First Skool pre-schools with an additional 1,200 places this year, as well as starting a new four-hour kindergarten programme from January next year.
The pre-school anchor operator said yesterday that it will open six of the new pre-schools in Jurong, Woodlands, Punggol, Sengkang, Pasir Ris and Yishun. The locations of the remaining four have yet to be confirmed.
By the end of this year, My First Skool, one of the largest childcare operators here, will have a total of 123 centres offering infant care and childcare, with a total capacity of 13,000.
The new kindergarten programme, targeted at children aged four to six, is intended to offer more options for families with different needs.
Parents can choose either the morning session from 8am to noon or the afternoon one from 1pm to 5pm. About 200 places will be available for the kindergarten programme, which will be carried out in two existing pre-schools — Blk 744 Woodlands Circle and Blk 295C Compassvale Crescent.
These two centres will be expanded. Full-day childcare programmes will continue in the existing premises while the kindergarten programme will be run in new extensions at nearby blocks.
With its own dedicated teachers and resources, the new kindergarten programme uses the same curriculum offered to children in the same age group in the full-day programme.
Monthly fees will also be lower at S$171.20 for Singaporeans before government subsidies, compared to the S$646.01 before government subsidies for the full-day programme. Eligible families will be able to apply for the Kindergarten Fee Assistance Scheme.
Mrs Adeline Tan, My First Skool’s general manager, said that the new kindergarten programme will help meet the needs of two sets of parents: Those who are working and require full-day childcare services and those who need only a half-day programme.
“With the introduction of this new (kindergarten) programme, we perhaps may see those who require half a day moving to the four-hour programme, and then freeing up some space for full-day childcare for parents who are requiring it and actually on our waitlist," she said.
