MOE's Two-Track P1 Scheme and the Schools Near Newton MRT: What Changes for a Peck Hay Road Family From 2027

The usual case for a family buying near Newton rests on one idea: live within 1 km of a sought-after primary school and you move up the queue in Primary One registration. On 10 September 2026, MOE announced changes, starting with the 2027 P1 Registration Exercise, that alter that idea for three of the four schools we list near Peck Hay Road. The 2026 exercise has already run, so any child registering from this address will register in 2027 or later, under the new rules. Below is what changed, what didn't, and what to check before you choose a unit with schooling in mind.

The four schools, and which ones the new scheme covers

School	Indicative band from the site	On MOE's Two-Track Scheme list from 2027?
Anglo-Chinese School (Junior)	Within 1 km	Yes
Anglo-Chinese School (Primary)	Within 1 km	Yes
Singapore Chinese Girls' Primary School	Within 1-2 km	Yes
St. Joseph's Institution Junior	Within 2 km	No

The distance bands are indicative and are not MOE determinations. MOE's list names 12 schools in total. The four above are the ones we track near the development.

What the Two-Track Scheme changes

MOE is using the scheme at schools where public housing makes up less than 40% of homes within 2 km. At those schools, Phase 2C places are split equally between two tracks:

• Phase 2C (≤2km): for children living within 2 km of the school.
• Phase 2C (>2km): for children living beyond 2 km.

Within each track there is no home-school distance priority. Singapore Citizens are still admitted before Permanent Residents across both tracks. If a track has more citizen applicants than places, MOE holds a ballot. Places left over in one track go to citizen applicants in the other.

For a Peck Hay Road family, this is the key change. In Phase 2C at ACS (Junior), ACS (Primary) and SCGS, living within 1 km no longer ranks you ahead of a family living 1.5 km away, because both are in the same ≤2 km track and neither gets distance priority. Living within 2 km still decides which track you are in. It just no longer separates applicants inside that track.

What has not changed

• At these schools, families eligible for the earlier Phases 2A and 2B still get admission priority ahead of Phase 2C applicants, MOE says. The two-track split applies only to Phase 2C.
• From the 2027 exercise, 60 places will be reserved in Phase 2C, up from 40. This applies at all schools except those with a P1 intake below 180.
• At schools outside the scheme, including St. Joseph's Institution Junior on the list above, the standard order still applies: citizens within 1 km, then 1-2 km, then beyond 2 km, followed by Permanent Residents in the same distance order.
• MOE says it will review the list periodically as housing around schools changes, though it does not expect frequent changes.

Timing rules that matter for a new launch

Distance is measured from the building outline. MOE measures home-school distance from the building outline in the building plan submitted by the development's Qualified Person to the nearest point on the school boundary. This can change from year to year, so MOE tells parents to check the OneMap School Query service in the year of registration. For a project without final building plans, any band, including ours, is only a guide.

A new property's address can be used, with conditions. MOE lets parents who have bought a new property use its address if they meet the conditions set out on its address page. Read those conditions against your expected completion date, which has not been announced yet.

The 30-month stay starts at move-in. A child admitted through distance priority must live at the registered address for at least 30 months. For a new property, that period starts when the family moves in.

The MRT half of the decision

School runs are one daily trip. Work commutes are the other. The site is about 210 m, roughly a three-minute walk, from Newton MRT. Newton is an interchange for the North-South Line (NS21, between Novena and Orchard) and the Downtown Line (DT11, between Stevens and Little India). The two platforms are not linked inside the station. Commuters switching lines walk a 56-metre underpass along Scotts Road, and the switch counts as a transfer if done within 15 minutes. For a household with two commutes in different directions, both lines being within walking distance is useful whatever happens with school admissions.

Questions to settle before you book a unit for schooling

1. Which phase is your child realistically eligible for (2A, 2B or 2C) at each school?
2. For ACS (Junior), ACS (Primary) or SCGS in Phase 2C, are you inside the ≤2 km track? Being within 1 km no longer ranks you higher in that phase.
3. Will you move in early enough for the address to be usable, and can you stay the 30 months?
4. Have you checked the OneMap School Query result in the registration year?

Unit sizes and the unit mix have not been announced yet on the floor plans page, and there is no developer price yet on the price page. To get the official plans when they are released, register on the showflat page. For how the street's area labels differ from school distances, see our note on whether Peck Hay Road is Newton or Cairnhill.

School admission rules summarised as published by MOE on and after 10 September 2026. Distance bands are indicative. Confirm with MOE and OneMap before relying on them. This is general information, not legal or property advice.