SINGAPORE, Feb 2 — A father is suing a childcare centre for alleged negligence after his four-year-old daughter fractured her skull when she fell from a slide at the pre-school’s indoor playground, according to court documents seen by The Straits Times.

The girl, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, suffered a concussion, a skull fracture and a brain contusion after the incident on March 13 last year. 

She was hospitalised for more than a week, from March 13 to 21. An MRI later showed no “obvious” aneurysm.

The lawsuit, filed in the district court, seeks general and special damages amounting to at least S$56,000 (RM175,000) in medical-related costs. 

A pre-trial hearing is scheduled for Friday.

In his claim, the father alleges the centre failed to ensure a safe play environment, citing the removal of safety mats for washing on the day of the fall. 

He further claims the childcare centre attempted to conceal information by releasing edited CCTV footage only seven hours after the incident.

The centre has denied negligence. 

It maintains that its existing flooring is designed to cushion toddler falls and that the presence of mats did not mean they were “necessary”. 

It said the footage provided was edited to comply with Early Childhood Development Agency rules safeguarding the privacy of other children and staff, adding that unedited footage was initially offered for in-person viewing.

According to the father, two staff members were not paying attention at the time his daughter fell from the top of the slide, which stands about a metre high. 

The centre said the staff’s attention had been momentarily diverted by a commotion but insisted that they responded immediately by checking the girl, applying an ice pack and compression, and assessing her mobility. 

It also said a video was taken of her walking after her mother asked if she was steady on her feet.

The father alleges the initial account he received was incomplete. 

Around 11.30am, a staff member reportedly told the girl’s mother that the child had landed on her arm. 

The mother was also told the girl had vomited, which staff attributed to the class being instructed to drink water before playtime. 

It was only after the girl was picked up at 12.40pm that her mother noticed a bump on her head, prompting the trip to Mount Elizabeth Novena Hospital.

The girl vomited again at about 2pm, after which a CT scan revealed a 33mm skull fracture. 

The doctor asked the parents to obtain more details from the centre to inform the medical prognosis.

The centre said its principal was only able to review the CCTV footage at around 1.10pm, and that she had offered to show the unedited video at the hospital but the father declined. 

It maintains that privacy considerations were the sole reason for releasing blurred screenshots before later sending edited footage.

The father is represented by WongPartnership lawyers Melanie Ho and Jolyn Khoo, while the centre is represented by Allen & Gledhill partner Daniel Seow.