24 Yew Siang Road

Former Pasir Panjang English School

The History

Pasir Panjang English School was one of the earliest schools established by the colonial government  to serve the growing rural population at the fringe of the city. It accepted the first batch of male students in January 1933.

In 1936, the School was selected to test the concept of co-education. The newspapers at the time reported that the experiment was a success.

Before the outbreak of World War II, the school was used as a  centre  to register inhabitants in rural areas for evacuation to Government camps in case of emergency.

After the end of the War, there were numerous appeals calling for reconstruction as the school was badly damaged. The School was reinstated to the exact same plan as the original building in March 1948.

The School ceased operations in 1986 and was utilised as a halfway house from 1991 to 2024.

The Building

The conserved main school building consists of a largely intact U-shaped 2-storey classroom block with a corridor around an open courtyard.

The 1st storey has simple concrete columns and beams, while the whole 2nd storey including the floor, wall and roof structure is constructed fully in timber. The double-pitched tile roof has unusually wide overhanging eaves of 1.7m.

Both 1st and 2nd storey facades feature timber casement windows and transoms, topped with ventilation grilles to improve airflow within the classrooms, exemplifying early tropical architecture.

The School remains a strong identity marker for the area and represents a rare example of a standard school building constructed extensively with timber by the Public Works Department in the 1930s.

The Legacy

The School is planned for future residential use to leverage the proximity to the Pasir Panjang MRT station.

Sensitive interventions are expected in order to adapt the hybrid timber building for suitable uses that give it a fresh lease of life.

Guidelines and Procedures

All proposed works will need to comply with the Conservation Guidelines and the Specific Restoration Guidelines (SRG). Conservation Permission is required before all additions & alteration works and operations of new use can begin.

Residential Fronts are characterised by timber casement windows flanking a double-leafed timber door. All buildings with residential front which is existing and/or identified in the 'Specific Restoration Guidelines', regardless of land use zoning, shall be retained and restored.

• Any proposed additions and alterations to this conserved building are subject to evaluation. Please submit your proposal for URA's review.

• Apply for Specific Restoration Guidelines (SRG) (opens in new tab)

• Submission Process for Works

Gallery

The conserved Pasir Panjang English School today.

The building’s verandahs are typical of early tropical architecture, with timber construction as seen in the building’s structure, casement windows and transoms.

Speech and Prize Giving Day in 1972. Source: Pasir Panjang English School Collection, courtesy of National Archives of Singapore

Sports Day in 1976. Source: National Archives of Singapore

Explore Street View

The building can be found at this street.