Lower fees at more pre-schools from Jan 2026 as more centres join partner scheme

More parents can expect to pay lower preschool fees from January 2026 as more centres join a government-funded scheme to keep early childhood education affordable.

- Shermaine Ang

Under the partner operator scheme, preschools get government funding to keep fees low and have to adhere to a fee cap.

More than 34,000 Singaporean children are expected to benefit from this scheme in 2026, compared with 27,000 in the current term.

Partner operators under the scheme’s new term can charge up to $650 in monthly fee for full-day childcare service, down from $680 currently.

Five new operators will be added: Buddhist Compassion Relief Tzu-Chi Foundation (Singapore), Eshkol Valley, Global EduHub Singapore, Little Dolphins & Greenery, and Little Kinder Montessori.

A total of 380 preschool centres run by 33 operators have been appointed to the new five-year partner operator term that runs from Jan 1, 2026, to Dec 31, 2030.

This is an increase of 49 centres from the current term, with more centres meeting the quality benchmarks for appointment, said the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) on Oct 31.

The agency said it is expanding the number of partner operator centres for the new term to increase access to affordable and quality preschools. ECDA added that the operators comprise a mix of commercial and not-for-profit types with centres in various locations.

The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) had previously announced lower childcare fees from January 2026.