We were balloted out of Bukit Timah Primary school - 12 spots available for the 51 children who registered in phase 3.

I just found out my daughter got placed at Sengkang Green Primary (a new school in the east). It looks like a lovely school but we live in the west (Bukit Batok) and our commute would be over an hour each way. Just wondering if there are any children who live in the east who got placed at Westwood (I know this is unlikely as Westwood went to balloting, but I am desperate). If so, perhaps we could arrange some kind of switch. I tried to arrange a transfer with the ministry, but they said I need to approach schools myself and see if they have room/if I can be put on a waiting list. I haven’t found a school near us with openings so far, but I will continue searching.

Thanks for the suggestions. I did start calling schools closer to us. So far, the ones I called (which were ones that still had room at the beginning of phase 3 registration) are all full. So I am just putting my daughter’s name on a bunch of waiting lists. I know that Westwood Primary went to balloting, but I did e-mail the principal asking if we could be placed on a waiting list. Westwood Primary would be a perfect location as it is on the way to my husband’s work. I am going to see if there is a family who lives in the east who got placed there and see if we can arrange some kind of switch (not sure if the ministry would allow this, but worth trying). I also heard back from the vice principal of Sengkang Green saying that they will look into bus options for students living in the West based on interest. He said I can fill out a form when I go to register my daughter on Tuesday.

Good to know I’m not the only one with a terribly far placement. We live in Bukit Batok (Hong Kah would have been so close to us), but they placed my daughter in a brand new school in Sengkang! The school looks great, but the commute would be over an hour long!! I called the ministry and the man I spoke with said I should start going directly to my local schools to see if she can be transfered/put on a waiting list. He said I must be sure to accept my current placement so I will go to register her next week and then start looking into schools that are closer to us. Good luck to you all and keep me posted if you have any insights as you muddle through this process like me.

I have been investigating the private bus option further. I called the ministry, but because it is a new school they didn’t have any bus information. The man I spoke with at the ministry said that I can ask the staff at Fernvale Primary (our registration centre) about bus information when I go to register my daughter next week. However, I have learned that even if we can arrange a private bus, my daughter’s commute will still be really long as she will hit rush hour. So, I called the ministry back to see if we could be placed at another school that is closer by and the man said they cannot switch her. Instead he suggested I accept the offer at the current school and then start visiting schools closer to my home to see if they have spaces available. I asked if he could provide me with the names of schools in my area that still had spaces available, but he said he could not provide me with this information. If I go to a school that is already filled up for P1, he said I can ask to be placed on their waiting list. That is what I am going to do. Fingers crossed. Good luck thinkingskills!

I have been investigating the private bus option further. I called the ministry, but because it is a new school they didn’t have any bus information. The man I spoke with at the ministry said that I can ask the staff at Fernvale Primary (our registration centre) about bus information when I go to register my daughter next week. However, I have learned that even if we can arrange a private bus, my daughter’s commute will still be really long as she will hit rush hour. So, I called the ministry back to see if we could be placed at another school that is closer by and the man said they cannot switch her. Instead he suggested I accept the offer at the current school and then start visiting schools closer to my home to see if they have spaces available. I asked if he could provide me with the names of schools in my area that still had spaces available, but he said he could not provide me with this information. If I go to a school that is already filled up for P1, he said I can ask to be placed on their waiting list. That is what I am going to do. Fingers crossed. Good luck thinkingskills!

I have been investigating the private bus option further. I called the ministry, but because it is a new school they didn’t have any bus information. The man I spoke with at the ministry said that I can ask the staff at Fernvale Primary (our registration centre) about bus information when I go to register my daughter next week. However, I have learned that even if we can arrange a private bus, my daughter’s commute will still be really long as she will hit rush hour. So, I called the ministry back to see if we could be placed at another school that is closer by and the man said they cannot switch her. Instead he suggested I accept the offer at the current school and then start visiting schools closer to my home to see if they have spaces available. I asked if he could provide me with the names of schools in my area that still had spaces available, but he said he could not provide me with this information. If I go to a school that is already filled up for P1, he said I can ask to be placed on their waiting list. That is what I am going to do. Fingers crossed. Good luck thinkingskills!

We moved to Singapore in July and just found out that the Ministry of Education placed our daughter at Sengkang Green (we were phase 3 and didn’t get into the school we applied to). It looks like a great school but it is very far from us - we live in Bukit Batok. Anyone know about private bus options?


For those of you who went to the roadshow, what was your impression of the principal? I really liked her message on the website.