Montessori Early Learning Centre - Pearce Road

As a parent of twins who attended This Centre for nearly three years, including through the challenging times of COVID-19, I feel it’s important to share our experience to help other parents make informed choices. Throughout the pandemic, we made a conscious decision to support the center by keeping our children enrolled, understanding the difficulties many childcare services were facing. Our relationship with the centre took an unexpected turn after our children’s enrollment ended and we had received our bond refund. Nearly four months after end of enrolment , an unexpected withdrawal of approximately $600 was made from my account by the centre. Initially believing it to be a scam, it was only after contacting my bank and investigating further that I discovered the charge indeed came from This Centre. The reason provided was a belated realization on their part that they had not received the childcare subsidy for our children, a situation we were never informed about until after the funds were taken. The management’s failure to communicate effectively was a significant issue. Despite knowing that my boys would not attend the last two days of their enrolment, the management did not inform me about the critical importance of avoiding absence on these days to prevent full charges. This oversight resulted in an unexpected financial burden, particularly challenging for our family as it involved fees for twins. I had expected, given their extensive experience, that they would proactively share such crucial information with parents. My primary advice to other parents based on this experience is to avoid setting up direct debit payments with childcare providers. Opt instead for manual payments to retain control over transactions and avoid unauthorized or unexpected charges. Management Response: When approached about these issues, the management’s response was unsatisfactory. The importance of clear, upfront communication was downplayed, and the rationale provided for the lack of notification on key policies was that I had been advised not to take my children to a vacation care program at their new school in January but to keep them at the centre instead—a suggestion unrelated to the core issues we faced. While the support and care provided to our children during their time at This Centre were appreciated, the post-enrollment experiences, especially subsequent unexpected charge, have left us disappointed. The lack of transparent communication and the handling of financial matters were significant concerns. We hope this review will encourage This Centre to improve their practices and assist other parents in making decisions that best suit their family’s needs.