Nearly 140 children of Sri Lankans parents in Qatar have been denied admission to Grade One at Stafford Sri Lankan School – Doha (SSLSD).
In a letter to newly elected President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Sri Lankan parents in Qatar have urgently called for intervention. They cite financial constraints and other limitations that hinder their ability to find alternative schooling options for their children.
Stafford Sri Lankan School Doha (SSLSD) is the only school in Qatar approved by Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Education. It serves the educational needs of Sri Lankan expatriate workers in the country.
Parents of the affected children expressed frustration, saying their children had already completed pre-school education at SSLSD, only to have their applications for Grade 1 rejected.
The admission issues have arisen due to the excess in student numbers, exceeding the limits set by Qatar’s Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MOEHE).
Qatar’s MOEHE has since penalized SSLSD and instructed the school to remove the excess unregistered students and halt new admissions.
Parents allege that the school’s management and Board of Directors failed to address capacity warnings, leading to the current situation.
In April 2024, the school had communicated to parents of its decision to suspend new admissions, urging parents to seek alternative schools for their children for the academic year of 2024/25.
In a letter addressed to Sri Lanka’s former Minister of Foreign Employment, the parents expressed their dissatisfaction, citing the closure of the school’s Matar Qadeem branch as a missed warning.
This has left parents of 142 Upper Reception students, along with 385 other unregistered students, in a difficult position, as they scramble to find alternatives for their children’s education.(Newswire)