A mother has taken her son’s preschool to court for alleged negligence after the boy was pushed off an indoor slide twice by another child and injured.
The trial opened at the State Courts on Monday, 7 September, over an incident that happened on 12 July 2024.
The woman claims teachers in the play area failed to notice several interactions involving her son because they were using their mobile phones or chatting. She also alleges that there were no safety mats beneath the roughly 75cm-high slide.
She is seeking an unspecified amount in damages from the preschool.
A gag order prevents the publication of the identities of the mother and her son, as well as the preschool’s name and address. The boy is now six years old.
Mother Played Videos of What Happened
The mother presented four video clips from the day of the incident to the court.
In one clip, she pointed out a girl standing at the top of the slide while the teachers were seated some distance away. The mother argued that the child was not being supervised and could have been injured if she fell, particularly as there was allegedly no safety mat below.
Another clip showed a different child hitting her head against a wall while playing behind the teachers.
According to the mother, both teachers had been looking at their phones and did not realise what had happened until the child cried loudly.
The other clips involved her son and another boy.
The mother said the two children first collided head-on, after which her son could be heard saying that he was in pain. She claimed the teachers did not notice the incident.
She said the other boy later pushed her son off the slide twice.
After the first push, her son fell before getting up again. When he tried to climb the slide once more, the other boy, who was at the top, allegedly pushed him off again.
This time, the boy fell from the top step and used his hand to break his fall. He also narrowly avoided a tricycle being ridden by another child nearby.
He then ran towards the teachers and showed them his hand.
The boy was injured, although the extent of his injuries was not disclosed in court. His parents became emotional while watching the footage during the hearing.
Mother Questions Lack of Safety Mats
The mother told the court that she had made notes identifying moments in the videos when she believed supervision was or was not taking place.
She stressed that she was not expecting teachers to notice every interaction between children. As an educator herself, she said she understood the practical limits teachers faced.
However, she argued that teachers should be paying particular attention to areas that could pose greater risks, such as the slide.
She also questioned why safety mats were allegedly absent.
Court documents obtained by CNA showed that photographs of the preschool’s play area from 2017 had shock-absorbing mats around the slide, according to the mother’s case. The mats were allegedly not in place on the day her son fell.
Preschool’s Lawyer Challenges Mother’s Claims
During cross-examination, lawyer Ling Vey Hong, representing the preschool, questioned the mother’s description of the teachers as providing “no effective supervision”.
He asked whether the Early Childhood Development Agency’s regulations made a distinction between supervision and “effective supervision”, and challenged her understanding of the requirements.
The lawyer also showed her photographs of her son that the preschool had regularly sent her and asked whether she had noticed if safety mats were visible in them.
She said she generally focused on her son’s face and did not examine the surrounding play area because she trusted the preschool to provide a safe environment.
The mother also said she believed teachers should have been positioned nearer the slide.
The hearing is continuing at the State Courts. The preschool’s lawyer has begun challenging parts of the mother’s case, but the trial has not concluded and the court has made no finding that the preschool was negligent.
