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ANXIOUS AND UNHAPPY: At the two-hour meeting with the management of EtonHouse on Tuesday night, parents questioned how hard the preschool had tried to find another site.
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PARENTS who were given short notice that their children's preschool would be closing voiced their frustrations at a fiery meeting on Tuesday night.
They were told a week or so into the new school term that their children, who had settled into the Whitley Road branch of preschool chain EtonHouse, would have to move as the building was shutting its doors by April.
Some parents have paid fees of about $3,900 for the first term, which runs for 10 weeks from January to March. The preschool takes in 70 children from 18 months to six years.
In a Jan 7 letter to parents, EtonHouse director Ng Hark Seng said the land the preschool stands on had been sold and it had been asked to move.
He said since last year, EtonHouse has been 'actively looking for another site in the area, but has not been successful'.
But this cut no ice with the 30 to 40 parents present at the two-hour meeting. They were angry that EtonHouse had not informed them earlier or given them help to transfer their children to other preschools.
The parents questioned how hard the preschool tried to find another site. Many had to scramble to get their children a place in another preschool, a task made more difficult because the academic year had already started.
Events marketing manager Evelyn Goh, 38, said she had to take time off work to find a place for her two children. As did dental surgeon Wan Chee Meng, 42, who said he closed his clinic in order to do so.
Said civil servant A.Yoganathan, 38: 'We paid a premium for our kids. Obviously, we expect better service.'
In response, Mr Ng apologised and said the school could have handled the situation better. He told parents that 43 places were available at two other EtonHouse branches.
Speaking to The Straits Times later, Mr Ng said: 'When we knew there was no chance of continuing, we gave notice straight away.'
Asked why he informed parents about the move so late, he said: 'We went back to ask (the landowners) whether they would allow us to stay.'
Mr Ng said he would discuss the possibility of compensating parents with the com- pany's other directors.
But parent Alvin Loh, 39, was still disappointed. 'There's no closure. There's nobody authorised to make decisions,' he said.
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