Stay away from this school!

As a concerned parent and a big supporter of child safety and well-being, I feel compelled to share my personal experience with Dibber International Fairlands Preschool, which has been disappointing and worrisome on multiple levels. This school underwent a change in management after Dibber International took over from Montessori. The new management has proven to be utterly disappointing, displaying a lack of integrity and neglecting crucial aspects of child safety and parent communication. Dibber Fairlands displayed a disregard for financial transparency with parents when concerns were raised about their financial planning, management, and the perceived impact it had on children’s quality of education and care. This disregard for financial transparency eroded my trust in the institution and left me questioning their overall integrity. Furthermore, the preschool increased its annual fees by 15% without providing any reasonable explanation to parents. Such a significant change in financial obligations should be accompanied by a transparent justification to maintain trust and allow parents to make informed decisions about their child’s education. After objections raised by parents, the increase was changed to 10%, again without any explanation which underscores the lack of transparency towards parents. Even more distressing is the management’s disregard for the physical safety of the children. Despite being alerted to a wall in the children’s play area that was on the verge of collapsing, they displayed a shocking lack of concern and urgency to fix it. This negligence is simply unacceptable, as it puts the well-being of innocent children at risk. The wall had to be replaced with the parents getting involved and hiring someone to knock it down (which was done with a simple push by hand) and rebuild it. Ironically, this school was later quick to point out an unfortunate and tragic safety incident that happened at a different school. Another concerning issue is the installation of WIFI cloud-enabled cameras without obtaining parental consent. Privacy is a fundamental right, and parents should have been given the opportunity to provide informed consent for such surveillance measures. This breach of trust further highlights the management’s disregard for open and honest communication with parents. Understandably the lovely teachers we have at this school have almost lost their joy in their teaching. The management mistreatment of parents and even of their own teachers not only affects the well-being of the teachers but also impacts the quality of care and education they can provide the children.

The management of the school have recently decided that there will be a delay in providing term reports in good time, advising parents of this decision only 4 days before the end of the school term and instructing us to wait until the next term before we receive the progress reports. This not only emphasises their poor management and poor communication, but it takes away the opportunity for parents to put corrective actions in place over the school break in order to assist children that may be struggling.

The school management also finds it professional to unjustly label parents as “difficult” simply because they have the courage to raise valid concerns and advocate for their children and teachers’ wellbeing. Perhaps most disappointing of all is the lacklustre approach from the international management team when confronted with parents’ legitimate concerns. Ignoring the continued outcry from parents, demonstrates their lack of accountability and empathy, which is deeply concerning when it comes to the overall welfare and educational experience of our children. These are only a handful of issues I can write about to convince you to stay away from this school. My experience with this preschool under new management has been deeply unsatisfactory. Their only saving grace have been the loving teachers who have remained in the school. The numerous issues, including questionable honesty, neglect of safety concerns, privacy breaches, unexplained price increases, and the dismissive response from key management personnel, make it clear that the preschool has failed to prioritize the best interests of the children and their families. I strongly advise parents to carefully consider alternative options that prioritize transparency, safety, and open communication.