SINGAPORE – In an inflationary economy, a pre-school in Lengkok Bahru has instead slashed its fees by 50 per cent to draw more pupils.

Monthly fees at Kindle Garden – Singapore’s first inclusive pre-school – used to be up to $1,800 before subsidies. Since March, fees have been capped at $900.

At the pre-school, which started in 2016, children with special needs such as autism and cerebral palsy play side by side with neurotypical peers.

In an April interview with The Straits Times, Mr J.R. Karthikeyan, chief executive of AWWA, the social service agency which runs Kindle Garden, said candidly that yearly enrolment has dropped from about 70 to 50 children.

Though the pre-school operated at a deficit in the 2024/2025 financial year, according to AWWA’s annual report, it is not the bottom line that he is concerned about.

Kindle Garden maintains a 70:30 ratio of typically developing children to those with special needs. Fewer enrolments overall mean fewer places available for children with disabilities, even as the pre-school gets inquiries for over 100 such children annually.

Mr Karthikeyan hopes lower fees will attract more typically developing children so the pre-school can admit more of those with disabilities – even if it means a dent in profits.