Parents rally to save beloved Serangoon pre-school from closing

SINGAPORE – On a quiet stretch off Li Hwan Drive, a pre-school is fighting to stay open.

Founded by Ms Loy Wee Mee in 2008, Pre-School By-The-Park @ Li Hwan has seen enrolment falling. In November 2025, it announced that it would shut its doors for good.

To stay open, the privately run centre needs 40 new pupils by April.

A group of 52 parents stepped up and convinced Ms Loy to hold an open house on Jan 24.

These “Parents By-The-Park” took it upon themselves to publicise the pre-school, creating social media videos, putting up banners and distributing fliers around the neighbourhood.

For years, the centre relied largely on word of mouth and did not advertise itself.

Ms Loy, who is in her fifties, said: “That’s how we’ve grown. We have some social media (presence), but mostly it’s been parents recommending us to other parents.”

A space for child-led learning and nurturing curiosity

One of the parents involved is Ms Low Li Ning.

Her four-year-old son enrolled at 18 months old and has been at the centre for more than two years.

The human resources professional said her son was cautious and careful but the pre-school encouraged him to be more adventurous and curious.

“He takes off his shoes at the playground now, and goes straight into sand and mud... He observes millipedes, plays with grass and leaves. He’s more attentive to nature,” added the 36-year-old mother.

She was upset when she heard about the impending closure, as she wanted her younger son to experience the same childhood his brother did.

Having discovered the pre-school through her brother, whose children were enrolled there, Ms Low said she was drawn to its set-up and environment.

Situated on a landed property, the centre has large outdoor areas, gardens and grass. These features, she said, are increasingly rare in many pre-schools.

The school also has an in-house cook, an outdoor eating space and individual classrooms for each class, unlike more open-concept centres where levels are spread out across a large room.

But what stood out to her was the school’s play-based and child-led approach, which allowed children to develop at their own pace.

“They’re learning in a fun way, without realising they’re learning,” she said.

The school’s “mess-and-make” programme and emphasis on outdoor play, she added, helps younger children expend energy before settling down to better focus in class.

This sentiment was echoed by Ms Cai Pei Si, 40, a human resources director in finance, whose two sons have studied at the centre.

She said the school’s child-led learning approach focuses on developmental milestones and allowing children to explore and find their own answers.

The teachers help children to develop their unique interests and strengths beyond academic achievements, she said.

“My younger son has been very good at building things since a young age... And that’s something the teachers have observed and nurtured, because the children are given that time to play around and explore different things,” said Ms Cai.

Since the closure was announced, Ms Low has visited more than six pre-schools to search for an alternative, but none “tick all the boxes” in comparison with Pre-School By-The-Park @ Li Hwan.

“The classrooms are smaller. There are lots of enrichment programmes, but you see children spend a lot of time sitting and waiting,” she said.

Competing with government-funded pre-schools a challenge

The Li Hwan centre is one of four branches under the Pre-School By-The-Park brand.

At its peak, it had more than 70 children enrolled at the playgroup, nursery and kindergarten levels. Monthly fees for the full-day programme are $1,655, while half-day fees are $1,238.

The other three branches, which are located in Bukit Timah, are not under threat of closure, said its founder. At present, they have a combined total of about 250 children.

A former corporate professional who worked in business development, Ms Loy entered the pre-school industry in 2000, when she set up her first centre in Shelford Road.

The centre in Li Hwan was the second to open in 2008. The other two in Dunearn Road and Evans Road were opened in 2015 and 2016 respectively.

Slowing birth rates and structural disadvantages facing private pre-schools have made survival increasingly difficult, Ms Loy said.

“Government-funded schemes like partner operator (POP) centres are heavily supported. For private centres like us, we’re really on our own, and that’s where comparisons start,” she said.

Under the POP and anchor operator schemes, pre-schools get government funding to keep fees low and have to adhere to a fee cap.

From January 2026, POP centres can charge up to $650 in monthly fees for full-day childcare services.

The centre applied to join the POP scheme in 2025 but was unsuccessful. That led to the decision to close the centre in April.

“We are not competing on a level playing field right now... With heavily funded centres in neighbourhoods, it’s very hard to compete,” said Ms Loy.

She added that with a growing trend of private operators closing down, long-term viability remains a challenge for operators that do not participate in the anchor or partner operator scheme.

Still, she has been deeply moved by how parents banded together to help the centre stay open.

With involved parents who appreciate the school’s efforts to cater to children’s curiosity, the school becomes a community, she said.

“It’s really not rocket science. We build care around the child, and activities and experiences are created by teachers based on what they observe.”

Hope still remains

With the parents’ efforts, 39 interested families visited the centre’s open house on Jan 24.

Of these, 16 families have registered their interest and are actively considering the school, with 12 more having confirmed enrolment.

Ms Jasmine Lin, 36, a homemaker and one of the parents who organised the open house, said some families are awaiting clarity on the school’s continuation.

She and a group of parents will be hosting additional school tours throughout the week for families who were unable to attend the open house.

Though the future of the school is still uncertain, Ms Loy said she is in awe and humbled by the parents’ dedication to save the school.

She attributes it to the culture at the heart of the school – built around family, shared experiences and growing together.

“To see the impact we’ve had, and the experiences we’ve created, it really warms my heart,” she said.