Special Education
Approach
Rainbow Centre special education schools nurture children and youth with disabilities (aged 7–18) into adults who enjoy learning, strive for independence, and develop strong ties to their communities. Our outcomes-based functional curriculum enables them to build a Good Life, where they are safe, healthy, connected, engaged, independent, included, and heard.
Programme
Curriculum
RC schools follow the MOE school schedule for primary and secondary schools. We offer a robust curriculum designed to meet students’ changing learning needs at different life stages:
- Junior Programme (7–10 years old)
- Middle Programme (11–14 years old)
- Senior Programme (15–18 years old)
Learning goals are focused on these six domains:
- Daily Living
- Social Emotional Learning
- Language and Communication
- Numeracy
- Physical Development
- Vocational Development
Each student gets an Individualised Education Plan – a customised learning roadmap. Integrating co-curricular activities, therapy services, the use of technology and character and citizenship education, our students experience a well-rounded education experience.
We also offer Co-Curricular Activities (CCAs) and In-Curricula Enrichment (ICE) to expose our students to numerous leisure options and interest groups, including student leadership, sports, the arts and information and communications technology. These enable our students to explore and discover their interests and strengths, and teach values to guide them to become active, contributing members of society.
Good Life Planning
We enable our students to transition from school to community through early, person-centric, holistic transition planning.
This planning process, which starts when students turn 15, involves students and their families in building a shared vision to maximise the students’ independence and productivity, and enable them to lead a Good Life. RC also connects the families to existing resources as well as partners with the community, so that they are able to access resources that they need.
Enrolment
More information
01 – Eligibility
Rainbow Centre schools serve children and youths between 7–18 years old, with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and/or multiple disabilities.
Applicants to SPED should:
- Have a formal diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) or multiple disabilities (MD) by a psychologist, psychiatrist or medical doctor, as appropriate.
- Undergo an admissions assessment to determine if they will benefit from Rainbow Centre’s programmes, and if the school can support their learning needs.
- Be evaluated on a case-by-case basis should they have significant medical conditions
A place in one of the Rainbow Centre schools will be offered to eligible applicants based on:
- Admissions assessment
- Residential address of the applicant in relation to the catchment area of the campuses
- Availability of places in each of the campuses.
Under the Compulsory Education Act, all Singapore Citizens born on or after 2 Jan 2012, with special education needs and eligible for entry into Primary 1 in 2019 onwards, are to enrol in and regularly attend government-funded special education schools. Parents must seek an exemption if they want to place their child outside the national school system.
02 – Admission
Rainbow Centre schools operate from three campuses and admit students through a centralised admission process.
- Margaret Drive School (For children with ASD and multiple disabilities)
- Yishun Park School (For children with ASD)
- Admiral Hill School (For children with ASD)
Understand our Admission Process
Priority for Admission
- Priority is given to Singapore Citizens at all phases of admission.
- During Phase 1, Singapore Citizens who are students of the Rainbow Centre Early Intervention Programme (RCEIP) are given priority.
- Children who are Singapore Permanent Residents (SPR) and International Students (IS) will be considered for admission under Rolling Admissions (after Phase 2) if there is still available vacancies, and after all Singaporean applicants have been offered or no Singaporean applicants on the waitlist. SPR/IS applications will be placed under Processing List.
- SPR will be given priority over IS.
- SPR and IS students of RCEIP will be given priority over SPR and IS applicants who are not.
Junior 1 Admissions (For children born in 2020)
- Applications for enrolment in the following year begin on 1 Feb.
- Applications must be received by Rainbow Centre by 31 Mar for the child to start school in the first week of January the following year.
- Applications received after 31 Mar will be processed to start school after the first week of January.
Admission Offer Process for Junior 1
More details in this PDF.
Admissions for children for Junior 2 and above
Application is accepted under Rolling Admissions. Enrolment will be advised based on availability of vacancies.
Admission Agreement
For parents whose children are new to Rainbow Centre, an admission agreement will be handed to you upon admission and explained in person. An online version can be accessed here. Please retrieve the username and password from the school administration team.
03 – Fees
For SPED:
| Programme | Fees for Singapore Citizen (SC) | Fees for Permanent Resident (PR) |
| Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) | $85 | $285 |
| Multiple Disabilities (MD) | $60 | $210 |
Financial assistance is available for eligible students.
Goods and services tax (GST) is absorbed by the Ministry of Education.
04 – Transport
Rainbow Centre works with bus vendors to offer transport for those residing within the respective catchment areas of the campuses. Parents should liaise with the vendors to make arrangements and payment for transport to and from school.
05 – Updated Policies
Transfer from Mainstream School to SPED School
With effect from 10 Oct 2022, applications for a transfer from a mainstream school to a SPED school must be facilitated through the student’s mainstream school. Please approach the mainstream school Principal to apply for the transfer.
Direct applications from parents/legal guardians, private professionals, and hospitals will not be accepted. For more information, please visit https://www.moe.gov.sg/special-educational-needs/apply.
Waitlisting in SPED Schools for Primary 1 / Junior 1 Placement
With effect from 1 January 2023, a child applying for placement in Primary 1 / Junior 1 in a government-funded SPED school can only be placed on the waitlist if the child has first been placed in another government-funded SPED school1 which serves the same primary diagnosed condition. Please refer to this link for the list of SPED schools categorised by the primary diagnosed conditions.
A child placed in a mainstream school will not be eligible to be on the waitlists for SPED schools. Should there be interest to transfer the child to a SPED school, please refer to the “Transfers from Mainstream Schools to SPED schools” section for more details.
How to Apply
All applications must be submitted through MOE’s Common SPED School Application Form with the relevant supporting documents. Applications across various SPED schools are processed centrally.
- Please submit your child’s application using the digitised Special Education (SPED) school application form.
- Send any pending supporting documents to:
school.admission@rainbowcentre.org.sg
Application submission and enquiries can be made from Mondays to Fridays, 8.30am to 5pm (excluding public holidays). Application outcomes are released according to the admission phase for which the child qualifies. Read more about the application process here.
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