Committee of Supply – Head I (Ministry of Social and Family Development)

1.25 pm

The Chairman: Head I, Ministry of Social and Family Development. Mr Melvin Yong.

Strengthening Our Social Compact

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye (Radin Mas): Chairman, I beg to move, "That the total sum to be allocated for Head I of the Estimates be reduced by $100".

In my Budget debate speech, I spoke about how this term of Government will see the Ministry of Social and Family Development's (MSF's) budget increase by about 18%, from $3.9 billion in FY2020, to an estimated $4.6 billion in FY2024. Why is this significant? Singapore's economic structure is now closer to that of a mature economy. Resource constraints are starting to bite. It, therefore, speaks volumes about the caring nature of the People's Action Party (PAP) Government that, despite harder-to-achieve growth, significant additional resources have been provided consistently to MSF – to build strong families, foster a caring society and build resilience among Singaporeans.

MSF has done much with the additional resources provided. We have enhanced the Baby Bonus Cash Gift, Child Development Account (CDA) First Step Grant and the Government CDA co-matching. We have expanded ComLink nationwide to cover 14,000 families with children living in rental housing to sustain social mobility. And we have expanded KidSTART, which provides support in the development of children from low-income families up to age six.

MSF, indeed, has its work cut out. In the past, Singaporeans could progress up the socio-economic ladder by working hard. Today, economic growth is modest and climbing the social mobility ladder has become more challenging.

The Forward Singapore (Forward SG) report found that rising inequality and slowing social mobility could fracture social cohesion. We must prevent this from happening. How does MSF intend to tackle social mobility challenges, so that we can continue to foster a society where no one is left behind? How will MSF improve its suite of assistance schemes, beyond adjusting for inflation, so that they remain adequate in helping lower-income families?

ComLink is a good programme, but we need to move beyond assistance to empowerment. We need to address service gaps brought about by siloed programmes and move from being programme-centric to be more client-centric. Can MSF share more information about how will the new ComLink+ better support lower-income families in their efforts towards improving their life outcomes and building a better future for themselves? How can we incentivise lower-income families to take on careers that have a long-term wage growth trajectory, rather than defaulting to gig work?

The success of ComLink can be attributed to the many men and women who work tirelessly behind the scenes to bring comfort, support and hope to those facing difficult circumstances. Our social workers are the backbone of our community, providing essential services to those who are struggling with poverty, homelessness, abuse, mental health issues and more. It takes a special kind of person to do this demanding and often emotionally draining work and I would like to take this opportunity to pay tribute to all our social workers out there in the frontline. Thank you very much for the work that you do.

Beyond assistance programmes, we must continue to promote active volunteerism and generous giving. Members here would know of countless dedicated grassroots volunteers who work hard, delivering food and daily essentials to seniors, serving as befrienders and giving to local social assistance programmes.

As the Chinese saying goes, "有钱出钱, 有力出力". Loosely translated, it means that, "we can all contribute in ways that we can, be it in terms of time, talent or treasures". In this regard, corporate donors and patrons also play important roles in volunteerism. They provide the valuable resources, fundings that enable volunteers to deliver aid to vulnerable families. We can do more to deepen philanthropy by corporates.

1.30 pm

According to various surveys conducted throughout the years, volunteerism rates in Singapore has gone through ups and downs. Some 20 years ago, less than 10% of Singaporeans volunteered. Volunteerism rates peaked in 2016 at 35%, before coming down to about 22% in 2023. What is the MSF's plan to encourage all segments of society to play their part in building a kinder, more generous Singapore?

The Forward SG report found that Singaporeans want a resilient and united Singapore. As we forge our shared future together, we must strengthen our social compact, so that we can ride through the inevitable challenges that will come our way, challenges that can impact, threaten our unity. Together with the 4G team, I am confident that we can continue to make Singapore our best home for our children and our children's children.

Question proposed.

Strengthening Families

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: Chairman, I have spoken in this House on numerous occasions on how families are the bedrock of our society. Families are our first lines of support, providing us love, care and refuge when we need them the most.

How does MSF intend to expand the Families for Life Movement and galvanise whole-of-society effort towards strengthening families in Singapore? In addition to providing marriage and parenting resources for families, we can do more to promote marriage and reduce divorces. What is the take-up rate for the free marital counselling offered by our Family Service Centres (FSCs)? Can we improve access to such counselling, by offering them, for example, at every community centre?

Every year, the Families for Life Council, Registry of Marriages (ROM) and Registry of Muslim Marriages (ROMM) jointly organise a Golden Jubilee Wedding Celebration event, for couples celebrating at least 50 years of marriage. This is a great event to celebrate marriages. Can we organise more of such events to celebrate periodic marriage milestones, such as 10 years, 20 years, 30 years?

For our most vulnerable families, FSCs play a critical role in helping them deal with social and emotional issues. The work that our social work practitioners do at the FSC often goes unseen, but they are vital, nonetheless. What are MSF's plans to enhance the FSCs, so that they can better support the vulnerable families in our community?

Restorative Justice

Ms Hazel Poa (Non-Constituency Member): Mr Chairman, restorative justice is a process of healing from the harm caused by another person's actions. This process brings together everyone who were affected to dialogue, problem solve and rebuild their lives and relationships. Based on the premise that every individual has worth and needs to be regarded with dignity, it aims to establish social equality in relationships.

When spousal violence happens, it violates the intimate relationship, resulting in harm to self and others. Counselling for spousal violence normally involves the spouses. But spousal violence does not affect the spouses alone. It also has negative impact on the well-being of the children and other family members. Therefore, there is a need to address spousal violence in the context of needs of affected parties arising from the violence and to identify the obligations required by the different stakeholders to address the issue. The restorative justice approach, therefore, involves children and other family members in the counselling process.

Restorative justice seeks to restore victims, perpetrators, and families by addressing the harm caused by violence and seeking accountability and support to foster healing.

Numerous countries have adopted restorative approaches, including Canada, the United Kingdom (UK), Australia, New Zealand, Norway, United States (US) and Japan. I understand that in Singapore this approach is also adopted with respect to juvenile offenders.

Is the restorative justice process currently adopted in counselling sessions involving cases of spousal violence? If not, would the Minister consider offering this as an option?

Building a Family-friendly Singapore

Ms Ng Ling Ling (Ang Mo Kio): Chairman, as we work towards fostering a family-friendly Singapore, it is important to leverage a whole-of-society approach to nurture and strengthen our family support systems. One of the key themes in the Forward SG conversation and Budget 2024 is also about doing more to help support families through every stage of life.

I know that the Family for Life movement led by MSF is yielding promising results in activating a supportive community environment for family bonding. I am also glad to know that the Family for Life at Community will be expanded to 24 towns nationwide by 2025.

A holistic approach is indeed crucial to strengthen family resilience, especially in the early marriages stage, as statistics show that Singapore has the highest proportion of divorces occurring in the first five to 10 years of marriage. At the same time, we also need to be inclusive of different family structures, such as single-parent families, blended families and families with special needs.

In this regard, I would like to ask how MSF will tailor the Family for Life initiative to also cater for the unique challenges of these different family structures.

The Chairman: Mr Keith Chua.

Buidling Up a Dedicated Team

Mr Keith Chua (Nominated Member): Mr Chairman, I am so appreciative and thankful for the many individuals who have given their best to work in the social service sector. For over 30 years, I have engaged with the many who serve with passion and dedication. In the spectrum of services, the work is often very challenging.

The needs of today as we embark on our new social compact will require additional people with commitment, care and compassion.

We also need to take care of those already serving in the social services whether in their early, mid or late career stages. Remuneration needs to keep pace with other sectors. Career progression, recognising and acknowledging talent will contribute to ensuring everyone can give their best.

May I ask the Minister how well we are doing in bringing in fresh graduates, social work professionals and also mid-career entrants into our social services? May I also ask how successful we are in retaining talent in this vital sector?

Early Childhood Education

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: Chairman, I am happy to learn that children enrolled in Government-supported preschools will enjoy lower fees from 2025. Lower-income families with non-working mothers will also receive higher preschool subsidies, on par with subsidies enjoyed by working mothers.

MSF has done much to improve accessibility of preschools. In this term of Government, monthly fees for anchor operators would have come down significantly from $800 in 2019 to $640 in 2025, before Goods and Services Tax (GST). This is a welcome move for young couples, who are often financially sandwiched, as they care for their children and elderly parents.

One segment that I am particularly concerned about are children from lower-income households. According to MSF, the 2021 preschool participation rate of Singaporean children aged three to four years residing in public rental flats was about 80%, lower than the national average of about 88%. Can MSF update whether we have narrowed this gap? Beyond financial subsidies, what are MSF's plans to work with the community and social service agencies to support lower-income families in enrolling their children in preschool?

The demands on our early childhood educators continue to be challenging. Can MSF provide an update on the number of preschool teachers recruited in the past three years? Have we seen an increase, or has attrition outpaced recruitment? How does MSF intend to improve the working conditions of early childhood educators, step up recruitment and training of new educators, and reduce attrition? A quality early childhood sector must be underpinned by quality educators.

Licensed Childminding Services

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song (Aljunied): Sir, parents who are engaged in shift work often require childminding support outside of childcare centres' operating hours, which are typically from 7.00 am to 7.00 pm. Many of these parents are from the lower-income groups, for whom shift work is more common. The Forward SG report said that childminding service options will be expanded.

Could the Minister share further updates on this programme, including how many families have benefited from it so far? Can MSF look into subsidising wages for childminders in order to attract more to join the scheme? In order to scale up the service to benefit more parents, could MSF take the lead to roll out this programme nationwide? What are the current efforts in promoting this service to parents, and can it be integrated into KidSTART, ComLink and other related programmes for the low-income?

Infant Care

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: Chairman, I was dismayed to hear that Singapore's total fertility rate (TFR) fell to a historic low of 0.97 in 2023. We must do all we can to alleviate the anxieties and worries that couples face, when considering whether to have children.

The availability of infant care has been a perennial issue for young couples. Can MSF provide an update on the current supply of infant care in Singapore? How does MSF plan to grow affordable, safe, and reliable infant childminding services as a further option for young parents?

Infant care services at institutional Anchor and Partner Operators are currently subsidised by the Government. Can MSF consider extending similar subsidies to those providing home-based infant care to bring the costs to parents comparable to out-of-pocket expense for infant care at Anchor Operators? Can we consider allowing parents to tap on the CDA to further defray cost?

Beyond affordability, we need to ensure the quality of home-based infant care. Will MSF be mandating certain requirements for the childminders and operators, such as care ratio, mandatory training and background checks on childminders? Will there be a requirement for home-based childminders to report incidents involving infants under their care?

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) currently has a Household Services Scheme (HSS) that allows companies to recruit migrant workers for basic childminding. This scheme excludes infant care. Will MSF consider extending the HSS to include infant care so as to supplement supply?

Vouchers for Preschool Education

Assoc Prof Jamus Jerome Lim (Sengkang): There is vast literature on the importance of early childhood education. The economic case for doing so is compelling; the reason is straightforward, as Nobel Prize-winning economist Jim Heckman explained. Early childhood development entails building the necessary foundation for all subsequent human capital development. Without solid roots deeply planted, one's ability to absorb anything else that follows becomes compromised.

Hence, the returns to human capital investment tend to be highest during early childhood. These investments include engaged, supporting parents and teachers, learning cognitive and language skills, promoting social engagements and interactions, as well as improved health and nutrition.

The need to promote such investments almost certainly informed the decision to create the Early Childhood Development Agency (ECDA) in 2013.

But despite its clear importance and the fact that returns are the highest in these early stages, the costs of sending a child for early childhood education are still higher on average than sending them to higher levels, like primary and secondary school. This is well known to Singaporeans. Many parents look forward to the day when they can finally send their kids to primary school, where fees drop to just $13 a month, compared to hundreds of dollars, especially in the earliest years.

But to be clear, there are a slate of subsidies available which alter this calculus. If you are a working mother, and if you earn a lower income, the total amount of subsidies available may be sufficient to fully offset fees. If your child were to attend a typical childcare or kindergarten, there are also special dispensations for higher subsidy support, such as those under ComCare assistance, or if they are non-parent caregivers supporting the child, or if a parent becomes incarcerated.

But there are still families who fall through the cracks. If a couple decides that the mother would not work, perhaps because they wish to spend more time on homemaking, or because the economics no longer works out when they have a sufficiently large number of children, then fees can quickly become burdensome.

The statistics bear this out. In 2021, 88% of children aged three to four were not enrolled in preschool. And perhaps more worryingly, this drops to 78% among lower-income families. The gap persists for those aged five to six, where enrolment rates are 95% to 93%, respectively. Yet, it is this specific group, children from low-income households, that will benefit the most from early childhood interventions.

1.45 pm

That is why I believe that support for early childhood education should be made much more universal. One strategy is to simply eliminate the distinction between subsidies made available to families with a working mother versus those without, for lower-income households. This distinction, which may be motivated by a desire to ensure that mothers who are able to return to work do so, ends up inadvertently disadvantaging the child which, in turn, diminishes their future prospects for breaking out of poverty.

Another approach is to provide lower-income households with vouchers that can be applied to preschools. This is not dissimilar to subsidies in practice but has one added advantage. It also sends a clear signal to underperforming preschools that they need to buck up or they will be relieved of Government financial support.

Expanding Help for Infant Care Services

Ms Ng Ling Ling: Sir, the shortage of infant care places in the neighbourhood often poses significant stress on young parents, many of whom have to work full-time. During my Meet-the-People sessions, I often receive requests from parents to help in seeking infant care options nearest their homes. I am grateful to ECDA for their very prompt actions to help to match to vacancies as soon as possible.

In cases where the young parents cannot wait, many of them share that they have resorted to informal childminding arrangements with family members or neighbours willing to help them in the caregiving. However, these informal arrangements do not qualify them for the same subsidies as formal infant care services do. As part of the Forward SG report, I understand the Government intends to introduce affordable, safe and reliable childminding services as an additional infant care option for families.

I would like to ask MSF, how does it intend to formalise and subsidise such informal childminding arrangements and ensure that they meet quality and safety standards? How does MSF plan to pilot and scale such a programme to cover diverse family needs and geographical areas, ensuring that every family that needs such an arrangement can access the alternative infant care solutions?

Reliable and Affordable Care

Ms Tin Pei Ling (MacPherson): Parents today are under tremendous stress as they juggle careers and providing quality care for their children and elderly parents, in some instances, trying to be good parents, sons and daughters. Hence, reliable, safe and affordable care services are imperative.

Specific to infant and childcare, abuse and ill-management cases reported in recent times are of great concern. These include the Kinderland cases last year, which was debated in this House; and another one, most recently involving a preschool at Seletar reported in the media just last week. These would have spooked many prospective parents and parents with young children. Hence, how is MSF going to continue to strengthen governance and at the same time, maintain quality, yet ensure costs are not passed on to parents excessively?

Affordability of Preschools

Ms Yeo Wan Ling (Pasir Ris-Punggol): Preschool education is highly encouraged for all children as it can help them achieve important learning goals, such as building confidence, learning social skills and developing a good foundation in literacy and numeracy. A trusted preschool can also allow mothers to return to the workplace with a peace of mind. With the rising demand for preschool places over the years and the cost-of-living issues, what is MSF doing to further improve the affordability and quality of preschools for all families in Singapore? How will MSF, too, look into more financial support at preschools for families with special needs children?

The Chairman: Ms Carrie Tan.

Enlivening Preschool Education

Ms Carrie Tan (Nee Soon): SPARK certification was meant to raise the quality of preschools and it did help to ensure some standardisation and processes are in place. But are there now some side effects? Only 37.7% of preschools here are SPARK-certified. Some early childhood educators find being uncertified more beneficial as they have greater flexibility to do more for the children.

Increasing salaries in the sector has not been enough to solve the high turnover problem. The annual attrition rate of early childhood educators was five times higher than the general Ministry of Education (MOE) attrition rate. The problem is no longer about remuneration but whether the work is realistically feasible for each person to shoulder. Thirty years ago, Kindergarten 2 teachers could integrate Mother Tongue, English, art and music in creative manners to help children enjoy learning. Each class had 42 children and the kids grew up fine. I am one of them.

Now, despite class sizes being cut to 25 kids, teachers still struggle because of the sheer amount of documentation they need to submit. Lesson plans, curriculum, personal portfolio of each child, sometimes doubling up for the cooking or cleaning aunty if she is on medical leave. Changing diapers or clothes for kids who soil their pants, pulling kids apart when they are fighting and giving more attention to children with special needs. All these while making sure no child gets a scratch or a bruise, or bump their knees, which could then invite very anxious calls by parents for more accountability and more surveillance.

This cannot do. We must ensure that the sector is as much teacher-centric as it is child-centric for quality education to be sustainable. I suggest that we make SPARK Developmental Visits more frequent and random, than only once in three years; and assessors should visit centres more often to observe the classroom interactions rather than rely on a paper audit exercise. This will ensure that teachers' attention is on the children and not on completing paperwork meticulously. I also suggest that we partner teachers, whose main job is to teach and nurture children, with a Child Development Specialist that specialises in the documentation and observation work.

Helping Lower-income Families

Ms Ng Ling Ling: Mr Chairman, as part of the Forward SG report, MSF put forth plans to uplift our lower-income families toward sustained progress by enhancing support through ComLink+ package, where families will be provided with dedicated family coaches, additional preschool subsidies, employment and home ownership support.

In my Jalan Kayu (JK) Constituency, we started a JK Care Network to encourage companies and community partners in our neighbourhood to join hands in broadening support for our ComLink families. However, some partners have given feedback that there is a need for continuous and one-to-one family coaching to help some parents in ComLink families to better understand opportunities and priorities that can give their younger generation a better future.

As such, I support the enhancements to provide closer family coaching in ComLink+ to facilitate ComLink families' decision-making and prioritisation of choices, thereby providing more social mobility for their children.

I would like to ask MSF the following questions. One, what will be the family coaches-to-ComLink families ratio as the enhancements are rolled out? Two, how frequently can we expect the family coaches to be interacting with the ComLink families? Three, and lastly, what measures will be put in place to assess the effectiveness of family coaching within ComLink+ and how will the assessments help shape future enhancements to the programme?

ComLink

Mr Muhamad Faisal Bin Abdul Manap (Aljunied): Sir, at the Budget Statement a fortnight ago, the roll-out of a number of enhancements to ComLink, dubbed ComLink+, was announced. I welcome moves to provide additional assistance and support and empower low-income households. This can go a long way.

One feature of ComLink+ is having family coaches and voluntary befrienders working directly with beneficiaries' families, providing custom support. This is indeed a fundamental aspect in facilitating and empowering families towards achieving their goals. For households who are facing life challenges: mentorship, facilitation and, at times, handholding, are crucial. Financial and other tangible forms of assistance will not be effective without this human aspect.

In 2022, I have highlighted the importance of a good interpersonal relationship between the beneficiaries and the case worker in order to optimise the effectiveness of the assistance and support rendered. I would like to reiterate this crucial point. I recommend that MSF maintain a low beneficiaries-to-coach and befrienders ratio. This will not only ensure that beneficiaries' families get adequate support from their coach and befrienders, it can also help reduce burnout and stress on the coaches and befrienders.

I also welcome the introduction of assistance with debt repayment to licensed moneylending companies and organisations that are trackable and verifiable. Nonetheless, there are and will be cases where low-income households turn to unlicensed moneylenders. I would like to ask MSF if any assistance will be offered to low-income households in such a predicament. I suggest that MSF could also explore working together with organisations focused on debt counselling, such as Adullam Life Counselling.

Additionally, Sir, I would recommend that MSF and MOE explore integrating basic financial literacy into the curriculum for secondary school students. I have made numerous calls for the adoption of the social protection framework developed by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the introduction of an annual social protection report, which tracks the effectiveness and efficacy of our social policies meant to uplift society. I would like to propose piloting the ILO's social protection framework and social protection report for the ComLink+ scheme.

ComLink+

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng (Jalan Besar): Sir, I commend MSF's efforts to support families living in public rental flats with young children through ComLink+. As Mayor of Central, I am privileged to serve these families with some excellent ComLink SSOs and Family Service Centre officers, especially in the Jalan Besar and Ang Mo Kio towns.

ComLink+, piloted and now to be scaled, provides for family coaches and also financial incentives for families who actively uplift themselves in these four areas: preschool education, employment, financial stability and saving for home ownership.

However, my first-hand experience with assisting challenged families reveals complexities beyond what is initially apparent. For example, it is not always easy to secure a preferred location for a family of eight living in a 2-room flat. Timely school attendance then becomes a struggle when a single bathroom must accommodate the entire family in the mornings.

For example, a sole breadwinner relying on cash-based, flexible employment as a platform worker will find difficulties in foregoing his job to pursue higher education for a better future job. In addition, despite MSF's efforts, there are still many well-meaning donors and volunteers who are unaware of or prefer to do their own thing, leading to numerous uncoordinated touch points; conflicting advice or support; service overlaps and hindering a family's ability to follow a coherent uplift plan.

I seek an update from MSF now regarding: one, the progress, including the number of families served and the impact of the ComLink+ pilot to date; two, lessons learned from the pilot, including challenges and the resources required; three, strategies to address the issue of multiple points of contact so the family coach can be more effective; and four, measures to ensure that volunteers recruited to assist ComLink families are suitable, reliable and committed and do not just walk in and out of the lives of these families.

Mr Xie Yao Quan (Jurong): Chairman, poverty, inequality and social mobility are related but distinct concepts.

Poverty is about whether one has enough or not. To use an analogy of an escalator: whether one is above or below a certain rung on the escalator. Inequality is about the spread: how far apart folks are at various levels on the escalator.

For mobility, there are actually two concepts – absolute and relative. Absolute mobility is about how much one progresses over time or how much better one does compared to his or her parents. It is about how much the escalator is moving people upwards. Whereas relative mobility is about how a person does relative to his or her peers, compared against how his or her parents did relative to their peers. It is about how much folks swap positions on the escalator over time. In other words, social fluidity.

I believe we must keep relative mobility strong. Keep our society fluid and avoid permanent strata. Because this gives hope and this holds our society together.

Yet, relative mobility tends to slow as we continue succeeding as absolute mobility continues benefiting everyone. Therefore, how do we keep relative mobility alive for those at the bottom, even as we keep absolute mobility going for all? This will be our defining social challenge, more than poverty and inequality.

We keep absolute mobility going, keep the escalator moving for all, with macroeconomic policies. But to keep relative mobility alive for those at the bottom and keep possible that swapping of positions on the escalator, we will need to go well beyond economics. We will need to mitigate unequal opportunities at birth; indeed, before birth and through life, dealing with the hand that folks are dealt by life. It will take all of us on the escalator to move others up the escalator. It is complex work.

This is why ComLink+ is so important. Essentially, nudging families in rental housing to send their kids to preschool, stay in good jobs and build savings, positive behaviours that help equalise opportunities for their children. And having coaches and volunteers journey with these families.

If ComCare is assistance to meet today's needs, ComLink+ is empowerment to build tomorrow. If ComCare is a safety net by the state, ComLink+ is a trampoline formed by all of us.

To keep relative mobility alive, we need ComLink+ to work. To this end, how does MSF plan to develop the manpower needed and galvanise society to come forward and contribute? And ultimately, how will MSF measure impact?

2.00 pm

Engaging the Role of the Community

Ms Ng Ling Ling: Chairman, I appreciate the efforts of MSF in launching innovative new models like the Enabling Service Hub in August last year, which offer closer community support for persons with disabilities and their caregivers, closer to their home and bring partnership into the community to conduct more social activities and learning courses for persons with disabilities, befriending and caregiving support services, as well as outreach and reference to services that they need.

More of such hubs all around Singapore will certainly ease the access of such services for persons with disabilities and their caregivers and enable them to live and participate in the community more actively. Nonetheless, as we expand and build on such infrastructure, we must also make continuous efforts to involve the community, be it corporate, community, or grassroots partners, in different ways to provide different opportunities.

With more involvement of the community, more coordination will also be needed to optimise each partner's contribution. In this aspect, I would like to ask MSF the following two questions.

One, how will you better coordinate and spread out corporate and community partners to ensure adequate resources across various parts of Singapore? And two, how can we be more intentional in attracting young corporate executives to be on the boards of social service agencies to inject new ideas and activism to solve dynamic social issues?

Whole-of-society Approach

Mr Keith Chua: Mr Chairman, it is encouraging that our society is increasingly engaged in support of the social service sector.

We see this in volunteering. We see this in the sharing of skills and also in the area philanthropic initiatives. We see this in individuals across all age groups, large businesses alongside the smaller and medium industries. We see this among faith-based groups, community organisations – everyone coming together.

Today, Community Development Council (CDC) Vouchers can also be donated to charities.

We have been engaging Singaporeans in caring for our community from school days with the hope this will continue through adult life. As we chart our new social compact, we need to encourage active engagement across all strata of our society. May I therefore ask the Minister what more will we do to deepen this continuum of engagement? How can we best convey information on the areas with most immediate needs?

Galvanising the Community for Good

Ms Yeo Wan Ling: It takes a whole-of-community effort for spreading positivity, for doing good, for doing well. It was a welcome move in 2023 to celebrate social service partners and to remind everyone the important role corporate partners and agencies play in Singapore's new social compact.

As we celebrate the Year of Social Service Volunteers in 2024, we remind ourselves that individuals, you and I, together with our families, friends and loved ones, have much to offer to the rest of society. Can the Ministry update plans they have put in place to inspire and mobilise more individuals to step up, to lead and volunteer? How will the Ministry continue to further galvanise different parts of our society to contribute to a caring and involved social compact?

Enabling Masterplan for the Disabled

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng: Sir, in the Parliamentary Adjournment Motion I filed in 2020, I advocated some key changes to better the lives of persons with disabilities, or PwDs. I asked for changes to address significant gaps in provisions for living, learning and working, to alter societal perceptions of PwDs, to improve the policy-making and service structure for better collaboration amongst PwDs, their families and disability agencies and the Government, and to include the voices of PwDs.

I am grateful that many of these calls have been heeded. For instance, updates on the Enabling Masterplan 2030, or EMP 2030, are accessible now on the MSF website though they require navigating through quite a few pages before one can find them. So, I call upon MSF to proactively push out this information so that affected stakeholders are assured of progress.

I also want to propose four areas for further improvement today.

First, on reporting beyond activities. Current EMP 2030 reports are primarily activity-based. They should also link these outputs to outcomes. This approach would then offer insights into the health conditions of PwDs, for example, their readiness when they leave formal schooling, caregiver confidence in obtaining information and assistance, and the level of public awareness and acceptance of PwDs. Although challenging to connect outputs to outcomes and, like Mr Xie Yao Quan said, to have even impact, I think that is even more difficult, it is crucial for the EMP 2030 implementation team to begin this analysis to support further informed contributions by other stakeholders.

Second, on relevance of the plan. With rapid changes in society and technology, the eight-year EMP 2030 will become obsolete, outdated; not totally, but quite a bit will be outdated.

You see, the Singapore Government, for instance, has rolled out Healthier SG, Community Care Apartments, new Build-To-Order (BTO) towns, Active Ageing Centres, SkillsFuture upgrades, many, many exciting developments that I feel strongly can include the disability community. I therefore earnestly urge MSF to consciously conduct a formal yearly review, not just report, to update EMP 2030 so that it stays relevant and tap on these important, exciting developments.

Next, on unaddressed gaps. Certain critical areas not covered in EMP 2030 need attention, including inclusive insurance, criminal justice system for our special needs community, and the inclusion of mental health and neurodiversity conditions such as ADHD and dyslexia, all needed for a comprehensive support system for PwDs.

On inclusive insurance, I am deeply appreciative of the strong support from the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the Life Insurance Association. They have collaborated with charities such as the Autism Resource Centre to develop a guide to raise awareness of disabilities and enhance transparency of insurance risk assessment approach towards health insurance undertaking.

I thank advocates like Wesley Low, his Member of Parliament Chong Kee Hiong and others for their feedback in this space. There are still significant challenges that need further study.

For example, insurance companies often hesitate to cover individuals with disabilities who disclose their medication use, failing to recognise that those who follow their prescribed medication regimens are likely to maintain or improve their health status.

On criminal justice, I repeat my call for a review by MSF and the Ministry of Law (MinLaw) of the appropriate adult scheme to enhance police investigations. There is also a pressing need to explore a facility or programme ensuring that persons with disabilities who are incarcerated are placed in appropriate physical facilities and suitable rehab programmes.

For my last point today, on funding models for essential services. The funding model for these services, for example, day activity centres and residential homes with moderate or severe disabilities, should be re-evaluated.

We should seriously look into a hybrid funding model comprising a universal base funding and means-tested funding quantum to address the core issue of insufficient funding for these essential services. I seek MSF's considered and favourable responses to the four points I made.

The Chairman: Ms Ng Ling Ling.

Employment Support for PwDs

Ms Ng Ling Ling: Chairman, it is encouraging to know that the Government is continuing to make significant efforts to promote inclusive employment, including the upcoming Workplace Fairness Legislation (WFL) to promote more employment opportunities for PwDs and the Enhanced Enabling Employment Credit (EEC) to increase the support level employers will get when hiring PwDs. In the Enabling Master Plan 2030, efforts have also been put to track employment rate of PwDs, with an aspirational target employing of resident PwDs at 40%.

All these efforts are important and steps in the right direction to meet our inclusive employment goals as a fair and inclusive nation. Notwithstanding these commendable efforts, with the changing nature of work, it is also important to track more granular employment data so that we are aware of the effectiveness of various strategies and areas to expand resources in to keep the relevance and sustainability of PwD's employment.

In this regard, I would like to ask MSF: one, what are the jobs that our PwDs are being employed in; two, whether the number of employers has been steadily increasing over the years and which sectors are these employers from; three, if there are some dominant sectors that our PwDs are employed in, are they facing market changes that will make the job roles of our PwDs more vulnerable? Lastly, whether the income level of the PwDs will enable them to sustain independent living till retirement age like the rest of the workforce, especially when their parents are ageing and finding more difficulties in caring for them?

The Chairman: Mr Ong Hua Han, you can take your three cuts together.

Sheltered Workshop

Mr Ong Hua Han (Nominated Member): Mr Chairman, while the Government has through Budget 2024 underscored its commitment to expand sheltered workshop spaces going forward, I would like to stress that we need to focus on empowering as many PwDs as possible to take up open employment roles. Therefore, the success of the Sheltered Workshop to Work Programme is critical.

I would like to ask MSF for more details about this programme. One, what is the number of PwDs entering the Sheltered Workshop to Work Programme annually in the last three years? Two, how many PwDs return to sheltered workshops after transitioning to open employment? And three, could MSF also share what is being done to equip PwDs with the skills and support necessary to transition into open employment settings?

Support for Caregivers – Post-18 Space

Sir, I truly believe that the Government recognises the importance of the post-18 space in the lives of PwDs.

Last Friday, Minister Chan said that he wanted special education (SPED) students to have pathways integrated with their post-18 work, life and care arrangements. While we look out for PwDs in the post-18 space, we must also remember that their parents continue to play a vital role in their well-being and care.

Some PwDs depend on parental support in their adult years. Others need parental support while transitioning into independent living, and the rest need support on a long-term basis. May I ask MSF what additional measures are being considered to support parents looking after PwDs in the post-18 space in our inclusive Forward SG roadmap?

I know – and a few of us in this House know, this intimately, too – parents who give up their career or make significant sacrifices to look after their children with disabilities. They are growing older, and their own medical expenses are also rising. They continue to support their children with disabilities every day. They incur additional expenses on a daily basis.

In light of our rising cost of living, could MSF consider increasing the monthly payout for caregiving parents under the Home Caregiving Grant? There is no break from caregiving for many parents. Caregiver stress is very real. Therefore, I urge MSF to put in place robust support mechanisms to ease both their financial and emotional burden. By doing so, we can empower parents to continue providing care while safeguarding their own health and well-being.

Improving Means Testing Approach

Mr Chairman, on means testing, I raise two key suggestions today. One, that the income threshold of means-tested schemes should be recalibrated to at least align with current median household per capita income figures; and two, that our means testing framework should be improved to take into account actual costs borne by families with PwDs.

These are points I had raised before in my maiden speech in Parliament. I am concerned about the accessibility of existing support schemes, such as the Assistive Technology Fund (ATF), Enabling Transport Subsidy (ETS), or the Disabled Person Scheme (DPS).

Access to the ATF remains limited due to stringent eligibility criteria based on household income. To qualify, gross monthly per capita household income (PCHI) must strictly fall below $2,000. Similarly, access to the ETS is not available if gross monthly PCHI exceeds $2,800 for Singaporeans. As for the DPS, if the combined income of a four-member household exceeds $6,500, that works out to a PCHI of $1,625, the PwD cannot benefit from the scheme.

This is despite them being certified as permanently disabled and incapable of taking public transport. The number of DPS applications has declined from 93 in 2015 to 20 in 2023. Could this be because access to the scheme is too limited? According to SingStat, median monthly PCHI from work has risen to almost $3,300 in 2022.

Yet, the three schemes I have just listed all have means-tested income criteria inconsistent with each other and also fall below median income levels. To the end-user people in need of these schemes, it is difficult to understand why this is so.

Mr Chairman, it does not look like we are short on policies or support schemes. What we need to do is to recalibrate our means-testing criteria. If we can improve our existing support mechanisms, we will already do a lot to ensure that our policies effectively serve those in need.

Special Needs Trust Company

Mr Murali Pillai (Bukit Batok): Sir, this year, it will be 15 years since the Special Needs Trust Company (SNTC) launched its trust services in October 2009 to help with the financial security of persons with special needs on a low cost basis. It has been doing very good work in plugging a gap in the local disability services landscape. To date, it has developed over 1,000 trusts and developed more than 3,000 care plans. We owe the board members of SNTC, past and present, a debt of gratitude.

2.15 pm

The Government, particularly MSF, has played a crucial role in making trust services accessible by providing between 90% to 100% subsidies for the costs involved in the set-up, pre-activation, activation and post-activation of the trust accounts. Without the Government absorbing the costs, I believe the take-up rate amongst Singaporeans, particularly our lower-income families, would be much lower. As at 2022, 65% of trusts created were by families in Housing and Development Board flats.

It is clear however that more Singaporean households can benefit from subscribing to such services. Our rapidly ageing population and shrinking household sizes contribute two drivers to the thinning of caregiver support within families with persons with special needs.

I have three questions. First, I wish to ask what steps can be taken to increase the take-up rate of trust services amongst eligible families, especially amongst low-income families. In this context, I wish to suggest that MSF agencies, social service and grassroots organisations work together to proactively identify families that can benefit so that SNTC can educate them on the benefits of trust services.

Next, I note that SNTC evolved to provide, not just trust services, but other offerings such as subsidised insurance term plans. So, my second question is, what other plans does SNTC have to ensure the financial security of such persons?

Finally, how does SNTC plan to equip itself with sufficient resources and bandwidth to ensure that its services can be scaled up to meet the larger demand anticipated for its services?

Children with Development Needs

Mr Gan Thiam Poh (Ang Mo Kio): Families with children with development needs require additional support and resources to help them manage. How is the Government helping the parents of these children?

Parenting is a skill. While every child is different, there are general principles and broad strategies which parents can learn and adopt for their own use at home. Hence, courses and training can be helpful, all the more so for parents of children with development needs. Would the Ministry share with House what training and advisories are provided to this group of parents?

Progress of SG Enable and Future Plans

Ms Rahayu Mahzam (Jurong): Chairman, SG Enable was formed with the noble vision of being the focal agency for disability and inclusion in Singapore and it has been critical in the implementation of the Enabling Masterplans. Individuals with special needs and their families, see SG Enable as a one-stop centre, where they can seek support and resources to address the issues they may face. Over the years, various infrastructure and programmes for the special needs community had been developed under the auspices of SG Enable. This includes the job placement programme and the caregiver support programme as well as the Enabling Services Hub in Tampines and the Enabling Business Hub in Jurong. It is very heartening to see these endeavours.

The needs of the special needs community are, however, very diverse. Understandably, it would be challenging to fulfil and address all requests and issues. I can imagine there are various situations that come to the attention of SG Enable including requests for financial support for assistive devices, requests for placements in SPED schools or programmes, or requests for support with caregiving arrangements. Could I understand if there are limitations or challenges the agency faces in supporting the families especially if the resources are not available within the ecosystem? Further, has there been an assessment of the sufficiency of support provided to the special needs community and the effectiveness of the services and programmes offered by SG Enable? I believe it would be imperative to understand the gaps to be able to further enhance its services.

SG Enable has also been working with many different partners to come up with a myriad of services. What more can be done to strengthen these relationships to be able to support the work done by the agency?

I heard with interest when Member Ms Denise Phua spoke about fostering a more robust ecosystem of partnership in her speech during the Budget debate a few weeks ago. This is very much in line with the spirit of Budget 2024, to build our shared future together. She shared about a grounds-up effort in her Kampung Glam division known as Purple Hearts, a special needs family network, where volunteers reach out to the families and seek to match the needs with resources in different agencies.

I will certainly take up the offer to learn from her and see how I can replicate this in Bukit Batok East. In Bukit Batok East, we have our BBE Inclusive Family Day, where we bring together different agencies and partners to showcase their services and support to the special needs community and use that platform to edify the larger community about our friends who are differently abled. I believe strongly that it is important to nurture partnerships and understanding within our local communities in the heartlands. We should create more opportunities to build these ground networks as part of SG Enable's larger vision to support inclusiveness.

In Member Denise Phua's speech, she also made a strong call for the Government to take a better lead in bringing partners together to amongst other things, understand the gaps in the landscape and facilitate more meaningful allocation of resources and effective contribution. This resonated with me.

I would like to draw inspiration from her sharing and seek an understanding from the Ministry if there have been efforts in place to take stock of and review the existing structures and frameworks within the special needs ecosystem. As SG Enable continues in its efforts in the future, could it consider how best to leverage on partnerships and better utilise resources within the community to close the gaps?

Integrating Persons with Special Needs

Ms Carrie Tan: Beyond income, work raises confidence, self-esteem, provides identity, structure and purpose to one's life. It can also provide persons with special needs with a community of support at the workplace. Persons with special needs are physically and neurologically diverse. They are not a monolithic group of helpless or disabled care recipients. The framing of persons with special needs labels them as needy. The framing of neurodiversity as a problem labels people who have them as problematic. It is time to change that. Instead of being fixated on their limitations, we can shift our lenses to focus instead on their unique strengths. They are examples of successful employers who have observed their productivity to be often higher than normal employees.

UOB is one such company, reaping the inclusion reward since they started the initiative in 2013. They saw decreased turnover rate from 50% to 5%, and an improvement in productivity of 101% in their ScanHub department that utilises the methodical focus of persons with autism for repetitive tasks.

We need to adopt a strength-based approach by seeing divergence as an asset and not a problem. The culture of acceptance and awareness from co-workers, as well as the parents' or caregivers' mindsets, is essential for employment to be successful and sustained. We need to change the mindset of the whole of society and not just employers. We can just as easily see persons with special needs as specially able or specially gifted if we start focusing on their strengths.

GCHK, UK's national security and intelligence agency, promotes itself as a neurodiverse employer to attract applicants such as persons with dyslexia, whom they find to have good visual awareness and better at spotting visual patterns that other people miss. Gran Estación, a mall in Colombia, has persons with special needs making up roughly half of their 120-strong workforce. People in wheelchairs are hired as security guards as they have better visibility at pocket height and are also able to move faster on a chase than people on foot.

We can improve public awareness of what neurodiversity is and start to recognise the supernormal attributes that specially abled persons have if we only saw them as such. For example, autism, currently classified as a disability, is also known as a neurodiverse condition, amongst others such as obsessive compulsive disorder, dyslexia and ADHD. What great leaps might we make in the future if we started to approach and excavate the special gifts of these children? More than 5,500 since 2018 per year are found to have autism and this number is increasing.

If we adopt the approach much like Professor X in the Marvel series to nurture them, such as the X-Men, and hone their special abilities for good, it is the limitation of society's imagination and resourcefulness that renders them as disabled. Let us bust the stigma of neurodiversity and the myths that employing them require more supervision, are costly to hire or that they are unsuitable for skilled jobs.

I suggest that the Government invest in a "kick-ass" public communications campaign that takes a strengths-based and gift-based approach to the portrayal of these talents in our midst. I urge MSF to set a goal to leapfrog employment success by shifting this lens of special needs to specially abled for our friends in this community.

The Chairman: Minister Masagos Zulkifli.

The Minister for Social and Family Development (Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M): Mr Chairman, I thank Members for their suggestions. As a country, we have been able to weather storms and emerge stronger because we have strong families and a strong social compact. Forward SG reaffirmed that Singaporeans continue to value the importance of the family. There was also strong consensus to be a society where all families have the opportunity to succeed.

I will touch on three key approaches to achieve this mission. First, working together to support families through every stage of life, strengthening marriages, supporting parents from their children's early years and caring for our seniors. Second, we will move beyond assistance to empowering families in need. We have started this through ComLink+ and will go further to uplift children from lower-income families. Third, the Government will come alongside the social service sector, corporates and Singaporeans to strengthen families, uplift those in need and reinforce their efforts to ensure sustained impact. We invite more to volunteer and contribute their time, their talent and their treasures. Together, we will build a caring and inclusive society and sustain social mobility in Singapore.

Let me elaborate. Today, couples are staying together longer and recent cohorts show a lower proportion of marriages dissolving before the 10th anniversary. I am heartened that more couples recognise the importance of continuing to invest in their marriage. They proactively look for marriage and parenting resources rather than seeking help only when the relationship is on the rocks.

We affirm society's commitment to families and will continue to strengthen families, our anchor in years to come. We do this by supporting families throughout their lives. As I shared in the Ministry of Health (MOH) Committee of Supply, we are enhancing support for couples in their journey through pregnancy and parenthood.

The early years of our children are critical and for new parents, possibly the most challenging time too. Over the years, parents have greater access to affordable and quality preschools. We will continue to enhance these efforts. We are also helping working parents balance work responsibilities and infant caregiving. The Government is tackling this in several ways, which Minister of State Sun Xueling will elaborate on.

We recently enhanced the Government-Paid Paternity Leave. We encourage eligible fathers to use the paternity leave and work is in progress to allow more fathers to benefit from the additional two weeks of leave. But we do not stop at the early years. We are making programmes and resources even more accessible to support the range of family relationships.

The Families for Life (FFL) movement, led by the FFL Council, brings together various partners to offer marriage and parenting programmes in the community. Currently in nine towns, I am pleased to share that this will be expanded to 18 towns by the end of this year. We have also recently partnered Anchor Operators to offer FFL parenting programmes to parents of preschoolers in their neighbourhoods. Ms Ng Ling Ling will be happy to note that the Council will roll out more parenting resources to better support families with teenagers.

We have also launched a new self-help tool, Our Marriage Journey Quiz, last month, to help couples assess their relationship well-being akin to physical health checks.

2.30 pm

Mr Melvin Yong and Ms Ng Ling Ling referred to the collective effort by everyone in society to build a Singapore Made for Families. I agree. That is why the Council is also looking to work with employers, who play a crucial role in fostering a family-friendly environment, to offer marriage and parenting resources or talks at their workplaces. Community partners and volunteers are equally critical in supporting our mission to build strong families.

It is wonderful to see the FFL movement growing steadily. Last year, over 150 corporate and community partners, such as CapitaLand Malls and Singapore Heart Foundation, alongside 400 volunteers, came together to support the National Family Week.

We will continue to grow this movement. From this year, the FFL Council will expand the event to a month-long National Family Festival. I encourage all families to make use of the FFL resources and participate in the National Family Festival, which will start from 25 May, when the school holidays begin. We look forward, too, to collaborating with more partners to offer families an engaging experience.

With the effort of many, we build a Singapore Made for Families.

Mr Melvin Yong asked how we can foster a society where no one is left behind. Our goal is for every Singaporean family to be a strong and stable family. This includes lower-income families.

Lower-income families often face additional challenges, as Ms Denise Phua observed. Social assistance alone may not be enough. For example, families may have to stretch their limited finances to meet different needs while also balancing their work, caregiving and rest. This can lead to "bandwidth tax", where families are focused on the day-to-day and not be able to plan for the long-term. Beyond providing social assistance, we want to partner families as they work towards their aspirations and reinforce their strengths to build better lives for themselves and their children. In other words, we want to move beyond assistance to empowerment.

That is why we introduced ComLink+ as part of Forward SG. ComLink+ families now have a dedicated family coach who coaches, motivates and journeys with them as they work towards their longer-term goals. Ms Denise Phua will be pleased to hear that of the approximately 10,000 ComLink+ families that have agreed to work with us, 97% are receiving family coach support as at end-2023. This includes families supported by Family Service Centres (FSCs), whose case workers perform the family coach function.

As families take active steps towards their goals, they can receive financial top-ups from ComLink+ Progress Packages to multiply the impact of their efforts and help them better focus on achieving their goals. Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua will elaborate.

These enhancements to ComLink+ and partnerships with FSCs show how we place family-centricity at the heart of everything we do. As Mr Melvin Yong observed, besides lower-income families, FSCs also serve other families. Like general practitioner (GP) clinics providing healthcare in the community, FSCs are community-based agencies that provide casework expertise to support families with social and emotional needs. For over 30 years, FSCs have evolved their practice to serve changing needs of clients to help them achieve the "3S"s – Self-reliance, Stability and Social mobility.

Today, the landscape of family services has grown and FSCs work alongside many other agencies to support families. A family with complex needs, apart from receiving support from an FSC, may also receive support from other social service agencies (SSAs) for domestic violence, family counselling or youth programmes for their children. While SSAs put in effort to coordinate with one another, the family may still find it tedious to interface with multiple partners. Another concern is that we may not always be addressing the underlying issues, as each partner is focused on tackling the issue at hand.

In the next decade, we will also face more demographic challenges. We will become a super-aged society and household structures may change.

But as our society changes, there are opportunities for us to adapt to meet the emerging needs and support families in an even more coordinated manner. Our vision is for families in need to receive support through a single primary touchpoint for family services, who can address the needs of different family members in a holistic and more coordinated manner to achieve better outcomes for the entire family.

I am pleased to announce that MSF will be establishing a review committee on the Family Services Landscape. In line with the spirit of Forward SG, we will engage and co-create the future landscape with the sector. The committee will be chaired by Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua and will comprise representatives from sector partners. We will share more details when ready.

Mr Chairman, we have been concerted in our efforts to support lower-income families towards achieving social mobility. A key aspect of our strategy to sustain social mobility in Singapore is to uplift children and for all children to have a good start in life regardless of their background.

While preschool enrolment rates of children from lower-income families have increased, these remain lower than the national average. About eight in 10 children aged three to four from lower-income families are enrolled in preschool, compared to the national average of nine in 10. This could be due to a variety of factors. Parents may have concerns about being able to afford preschool fees, be less aware of the benefits of preschool, or may have to juggle work and family commitments with fewer resources. We will be rolling out several measures to help children from lower-income families reap the benefits of our investments in the early years.

First, we will provide greater assurance to lower-income families that they can afford to send their children to preschool. All families on ComCare assistance or residing in public rental flats already automatically qualify for maximum childcare subsidies. As Deputy Prime Minister Wong announced in the Budget speech, we will extend similar support to more lower-income families. All lower-income families with a monthly household income of $6,000 and below will qualify for the maximum amount of childcare subsidies for their income tier. Up to 17,000 additional children stand to benefit when we introduce this move from the fourth quarter of 2024.

Second, we will expand proactive outreach to all lower-income families from the third quarter of 2024 to encourage them to enrol their children in preschools. Preschool outreach workers and ComLink+ family coaches will work with parents to help them understand the importance of preschool and to enrol their child in a suitable preschool. As part of the ComLink+ Packages, ComLink+ families can benefit from financial top-ups when they enrol their children early and send them to preschool regularly.

Third, we will support families in maximising the benefits of quality preschool education. We recognise that children from lower-income families may require more support even after they enrol in preschools. On average, among children who are enrolled in Anchor Operator preschools, children from lower-income families have a monthly attendance rate of about 72%, lower than the 79% attendance rate of their middle-income peers. Their families may also have less resources to support their learning at home.

From the second quarter of this year, we will provide more resources to selected Anchor Operator preschools to equip them in providing effective and timely support to the children under their care. Anchor Operators will co-fund this targeted support and use the additional resources to support the children, such as providing dedicated small group learning lessons and addressing the challenges that families face in sending their children to preschool regularly. As Minister Maliki shared, MOE will also similarly strengthen initiatives in MOE Kindergartens to support children from lower-income families.

Taken together, these measures will help address the challenges that lower-income families face and enable their children to learn, play and develop holistically alongside their peers.

Even as we step up these efforts, we cannot overlook the importance of the home environment and parents' role in shaping their children's development. This is why KidSTART, which has supported more than 8,500 children to date, focuses on equipping parents with the knowledge and skills to nurture their children. In partnership with the FFL Council, we will increase the accessibility of parenting resources for lower-income families.

In this way, the efforts of parents and preschool educators complement each other and lay a strong foundation for the children to flourish.

Our efforts to strengthen families are made possible by a strong social service ecosystem. This comprises a group of deeply committed partners, professionals and volunteers. The different groups of partners, our SSAs, academics and Institutes of Higher Learning (IHLs) and corporates, come together to support those in need.

To meet the evolving needs of our society, the social service sector needs 2,000 more professionals over the next five years. Mr Keith Chua asked about our plans to attract, recruit and retain professionals. The Government and partners, including SSAs, must work together to make the social service sector a career of choice.

One key aspect is to ensure that the salaries in the sector are commensurate with the hard work and skillsets of our professionals. Last year, we reviewed the Social Service Sector Salary Guidelines to ensure salaries are competitive with comparable roles in competing markets. MSF and National Council of Social Service (NCSS) also adjusted funding to ensure professionals supporting our funded programmes can be paid within the guidelines. Currently, around 80% of employees in the sector are paid within the salary guidelines. We expect our funded providers to adhere to and pay employees within the guidelines over the next three years. We will work closely with SSAs that require additional support, including providing targeted consultancy support.

The social service sector is a people-oriented sector. All the more, we need to care for our people, so that they can better care for our beneficiaries. Apart from a range of NCSS' resources on self-care and wellness that our professionals can access, the SkillsFuture Tripartite Taskforce also promotes emotional and mental wellness at work through the Joy@Social Services movement.

MSF and NCSS will continue creating pathways for more to enter the sector and progress in their career. For instance, we are working with IHLs to engage students. We are also attracting mid-career entrants through the Career Conversion Programmes and these professionals can benefit from the new SkillsFuture Level-Up Programme announced by Deputy Prime Minister Wong in the Budget Statement. Together with SSAs, we are improving the value proposition of roles through job redesign, strengthening their organisational capabilities and working on talent retention measures. To support the development of our professionals, we have the Skills Framework for Social Service. We are also working with relevant professional associations and providers to monitor the standards, qualification and training required for the different professions. Together, we will build a stronger social service sector.

Our ecosystem is made of another important group of people: our volunteers. Last year, we celebrated the partnerships with our social service partners. This year, we build on these partnerships and have dedicated 2024 as the Year of Celebrating Volunteers. Anyone, and everyone, can be a volunteer. Volunteers are people who give generously their time, talent and treasures to support others.

First, our volunteers give generously their time. We see these in the individuals that make up our MSFCare Network. They work with MSF in initiatives, such as ComLink+. Miss Susan Lim is one such volunteer. Since October 2022, she has been befriending Mdm Marlina and her son.

And as any parent would know, the transition into primary school is an exciting but hectic one. When Mdm Marlina had difficulty buying school materials needed for her son at Primary 1 due to her financial situation, Susan guided them through the MOE Financial Assistance Scheme application. Her son managed to start primary school with all his books and school uniform needed.

Today, Susan continues offering the family a listening ear and assisting them in meeting their needs. For instance, Susan and the family coach explained the importance of getting Mdm Marlina's son glasses as soon as possible when he was found to need them. Susan found community support to make the glasses more affordable and later accompanied them to make a pair. We thank volunteers like Susan for their dedication and partnership.

2.45 pm

Second, our volunteers give generously, by contributing their talent and skills. For example, employees of SP Group regularly volunteer with SSAs. Some are seasoned volunteers who are familiar with the challenges faced by vulnerable families, so they contribute their insights and co-curate programmes with SSAs. Others tap on their own areas of expertise to contribute.

Ms Tay Xin Ci and her engineer colleagues run classes to teach children from vulnerable families how to build solar powered toy cars. The children learn not only about solar power but are inspired by these "big brothers and sisters". Xin Ci is also part of the SP Heart Workers committee, which spearheads volunteering activities for SP Group throughout the year. When individuals with different skills come forward, families benefit from the opportunities and range of support offered.

Third, many give generously their treasures. They contribute their resources and give in different ways. One way is through donations to the Community Chest, or ComChest, which go towards supporting services for vulnerable groups. I will talk about two ComChest initiatives – SHARE and Change for Charity.

SHARE reminds us that sustained giving, even in small amounts, can add up and lead to meaningful impact over time. Many donors put in a few dollars to SHARE each month. Collectively, these individual donations amass an average of $16 million per year. Through SHARE, we also see how acts of caring often start from young. This year is the 40th Anniversary of our iconic mascot, Sharity, who will continue engaging students in schools to inculcate the values of caring and sharing.

Mr Gerald Rodrigues is part of the pioneer batch of donors on SHARE and a former Police officer. His interactions with lower-income families ignited a desire to help those with less, as he empathised with the hardships they faced. Gerald started donating through his monthly payroll. It has been 39 years. And he continues to donate regularly through SHARE. Donors like Gerald inspire us to care for others. To encourage more to give, the Government will continue to match new and incremental donations to SHARE. We will do so for another two years till Financial Year 2025.

More recently, we introduced Change for Charity to amplify giving through a whole-of-society effort. City Developments Limited (CDL) is one of the businesses that has implemented Change for Charity. At Millennium Hotels and Resorts, a subsidiary group of CDL with six hotels in Singapore, they make it convenient for customers to donate.

Mr Andy Tan led his team in brainstorming ideas to weave giving mechanisms in their business model and pushing for the implementation. They place donation boxes at the check-in counters and food and beverage (F&B) outlets, to make giving more accessible to their customers. Customers can also donate when they are paying their bills or by redeeming membership reward points. With the customers' spending and contributions as the starting point, the amount is multiplied as the hotel donates a dollar for every dinner buffet cover. The Government further multiplies the contributions by matching 50 cents to every dollar donated by customers, and another 50 cents to every dollar if businesses match their customer's donation. We will extend this matching till Financial Year 2027.

Through this, we hope to create a multiplier effect that amplifies giving in our society. Mr Chairman, we are strengthening touchpoints with Singaporeans at every stage of their lives to encourage them to contribute to the society – their time, talent, their treasure. To the questions raised by Ms Yeo Wan Ling, Mr Keith Chua and Ms Ng Ling Ling – this is how we will galvanise the community, from young to old, from one generation to the next. We will continue to work with our partners, from corporates to SSAs, to rally more to contribute. Corporates have shown growing interest in being more strategic in their corporate social responsibility effort. We are making progress in developing the Sustainable Philanthropy Framework to guide them in benchmarking and articulating their social impact. NCSS has been engaging leaders across diverse sectors to better shape the framework.

This month, we will be extending our reach by holding consultations with the wider business community. We are also enhancing the capabilities of volunteer managers in SSAs. Volunteer managers can access resources from the NCSS Volunteer Resource Hub to guide them in tapping the creativity and expertise of volunteers to address social issues and to better attract and retain them. Together, we create opportunities for more to give and build a society that cares for one another. Chairman, allow me to continue in Malay.

(In Malay): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Chairman, families are the foundation of our society. The Government will continue strengthening our support to enable families to grow and thrive through every stage of life. In line with Forward SG plans, the Government will strengthen support for lower-income families by focusing on social empowerment through the ComLink+.

Volunteers play a pivotal role in uplifting families in need. I am heartened by their contribution. For instance, under Project DIAN@M³, volunteers have assisted 250 Malay ComLink+ families. They build trust with these families. These volunteers also check in with them regularly and address immediate concerns by connecting them to available support schemes.

Moving forward, volunteers will continue to work closely with ComLink+ officers to provide more comprehensive support for ComLink+ families. I am confident that with the help of volunteers, we will work towards helping these families to achieve stability, self-reliance and social mobility.

(In English): Chairperson, carrying forth the spirit of Forward SG, let us work together to build a caring and inclusive society, a brighter and better Singapore for all families.

The Chairman: Minister of State Sun Xueling.

The Minister of State for Social and Family Development (Ms Sun Xueling): Mr Chairman, I thank Members for their views.

The Government is committed to providing every child with a good start in life. Preschools play an important role in supporting our children's development while meeting parents' caregiving needs. This is an important part of our vision in realising a Singapore Made for Families.

Ms Yeo Wan Ling and Assoc Prof Jamus Lim asked how we will make preschools accessible and affordable for families. The Government provides funding to Anchor and Partner Operators to ensure that they keep within fee caps, while investing in quality improvements. The Government also provides all parents with basic subsidies, as well as additional subsidies for eligible families. Currently, lower-income families can pay as low as $3 per month for childcare in an Anchor Operator preschool. This comprehensive approach to preschool affordability, where we keep fees charged for Government-supported preschools low and provide childcare subsidies to parents, is more effective than giving vouchers.

We will further enhance preschool affordability in the coming years. As announced by Deputy Prime Minister Wong in his Budget speech, we will further reduce childcare fee caps at Anchor and Partner Operators by $40 in 2025. After subsidies, a middle-income working household with monthly income of $8,000, will pay $208 for full-day childcare at an Anchor Operator preschool from 2025, around 18% less from what they pay today.

We will make a final reduction in 2026. This will help us to achieve our 2019 National Day Rally commitment where families enrolled in Anchor Operators pay similar expenses to that of primary school and after-school student care, before means-tested subsidies. We are also on track to increasing the number of Government-supported preschool places so that 80% of preschoolers can have a place in a Government-supported preschool by around 2025, up from over 65% today.

Mr Melvin Yong asked how we will continue to attract and retain early childhood educators to support the sector. The well-being of our educators is important to us. Our educators dedicate themselves to the nurturing of our children and play a critical role in driving the quality of care and education for our young children.

ECDA has been enhancing the career proposition of early childhood educators. We announced the Continuing Professional Development Roadmap in 2021 and the Leadership Development Framework as well as salary improvements in 2022. We will continue to monitor and review to ensure educators' salaries remain competitive.

We are also improving the working conditions and well-being of educators. From 2024, similar to Primary Schools, Teacher's Day and Children's Day will be designated as preschool holidays. The existing six days of preschool closure have also been repositioned as "Development Days" to give educators dedicated time to focus on their individual and team development. From 2025, childcare centres are no longer required to operate on Saturdays. With this, preschool teachers will have an additional half-day of rest every week.

To attract more Singaporeans to the sector, ECDA is relaunching the "Shape Our Tomorrow" campaign in 2024 to strengthen the public's understanding of the early childhood (EC) sector and recognise EC educators as a respected profession. Since its launch in 2018, the number of EC educators has increased by more than 30% to 25,000.

Ms Carrie Tan also suggested the SPARK certification process be reviewed to reduce educators' workload. SPARK is an accreditation framework to guide preschools in raising their quality, such as in the areas of teaching and learning and administration and management of centres. The number of SPARK-certified preschools has been growing over the years and stands at 1,000 preschools or 58% of the sector today.

ECDA is reviewing SPARK and plans to roll out the refreshed SPARK certification in 2025 to set the next bound of quality for our preschools. To reduce workload on educators, we are exploring various ways to keep the work required for SPARK certification manageable, such as streamlining requirements and tapping on technology to reduce the documentation and administraton work involved.

Ms Tin Pei Ling touched on child safety in preschools. Preschools must be a safe and nurturing environment for our children. ECDA ensures that our educators have the necessary qualifications and skills to effectively and safely care for and educate children. Besides basic screening requirements and health declarations, all educators must meet the academic, professional and language requirements before they can be certified by ECDA and deployed in our preschools. As part of these requirements, educators must undergo training programmes where they learn classroom management strategies.

ECDA also regularly updates the training curriculum of the teachers. We have recently made it clearer with more specific examples on what constitutes inappropriate behaviour to guide our educators. There are also regular sector-wide briefings and circulars to update educators on the latest research and teaching pedagogies.

Where there is negligence from operators, ECDA will take them to task with regulatory fines and levers. Where individual teachers have committed offences, they will be charged by the Police and punished under the Children and Young Persons Act and/or the Penal Code. ECDA's powers are enforced through the Early Childhood Development Centres Act. ECDA will review enforcement levers and fines currently stipulated through the ECDC Act and will not hesitate to enhance the levers through legislative changes to take errant operators to task. We are working on this right now even as I speak.

3.00 pm

We give our assurance to parents that where there is evidence that operators and/or educators have been errant, ECDA and the Police will commence investigations immediately, suspend educators who are in a position to harm children and take them to justice. Parents who suspect that their child has been subjected to child mismanagement should report to ECDA and the Police, so that investigations can be swiftly carried out, investigations are not compromised and due process can be taken.

During the Forward SG engagements, we also have heard many Singaporeans share their love and aspirations for their children. At the same time, some have also shared about the struggles and anxieties that they faced in raising their children – especially from parents of infants and parents of children with developmental needs. Many parents explained that the most challenging period was during the first 18 months, as parents are adapting to a new phase of life to care for an infant while juggling work responsibilities.

As mentioned by Minister Masagos, for children aged three and above, preschools can be the best option to meet parents' caregiving needs while supporting the child's holistic development. For children below three years, what is important is for them to build nurturing relationships with significant caregivers and for caregivers to be responsive towards their needs.

Today, most Singaporean parents prefer to play this role and care for infants themselves or rely on the help of family members. Mr Melvin Yong and Ms Ng Ling Ling have asked how we can better support parents in caring for their infants. As mentioned in the Forward SG report, the Government will consider how paid parental leave can be further increased. Currently, around one in five infants are enrolled in infant care centres. We will continue to ramp up centre-based infant care.

Currently, around one in five infants are enrolled in these infant care centres and we plan to increase centre-based infant care places by about 70%, or 9,000 more places by 2030 so that more parents can rely on this care option. To complement these efforts, the Government will work with service providers to launch a three-year pilot in the second half of 2024 to provide affordable and reliable infant childminding services. This will be yet another caregiving option for parents.

Childminders, some of us may know them as "nannies" are not a new concept. They were more common in Singapore in the 1970s and 1980s. Some childminders look after a few children in their own homes while others travel to a family's home to look after the child. They are less common today, as parents may be unsure of where to look for trusted childminders or they may find childminding relatively more expensive as compared to other caregiving options, such as infant care centres.

Last year, in a work visit to Denmark, France and the UK, I learnt that these countries have put in place requirements, such as background checks on the childminders and financial support to parents, such as subsidies, to make childminding more accessible to parents. Parents can then have greater flexibility to choose what is best for them in terms of their caregiving needs and preferences. For example, parents may prefer a more structured setting during working hours. They may then opt for infant care centres for their infants. Those who prefer more flexible hours or more individualised care in a home-setting may for opt for infant childminding.

We will thus launch a pilot and appoint childminding operators and work with them to expand infant childminding services in Singapore. Under the pilot, each childminder will be allowed to care for up to three infants at any one time, at their homes or at a community space. Community spaces, such as community centres, will be in areas of high infant care demand so that parents can conveniently access childminding services. Parents also have more flexibility to discuss their care preferences and requirements with the childminder.

To ensure that infant childminding services are affordable to families, ECDA will provide funding to appointed operators to keep the out-of-pocket expenses affordable for parents who use the service for their infants during typical working hours on weekdays. We aim to make parents' expenses for childminding services similar to what a middle-income family pays for infant care at their Anchor Operator. We will also extend the usage of CDA to further defray the cost of childminding under the pilot.

We understand that the safety is a key consideration for parents when deciding the care arrangements for their infants. To give parents more assurance under this pilot, ECDA will conduct background checks on operators and childminders and require operators to meet certain service requirements. These service requirements include: (a) assessing the suitability and homes of the childminders; (b) putting in place guidelines for child-safe practices and responsibilities of childminders; (c) disclosing childminders' profile to parents; (d) establishing processes for incident management; and (e) ensuring that childminders undergo required training in areas, such as basic infant care, first aid training and food safety and hygiene.

ECDA will also work with operators to co-develop industry standards. This includes laying out what constitutes a safe childminding environment and the respective responsibilities of operators and childminders. This will ensure baseline service standards across the appointed operators and help to uplift the childminding sector in general.

The pilot will allow us to assess the receptiveness of parents to infant childminding. As this is a new pilot, we have engaged parents, childminders and childminding operators to hear their views to help us refine the parameters. We will continue such engagements and announce more details in the second-half of 2024.

Mr Gan Thiam Poh asked how we will support parents of children with developmental needs to help their child reach their full potential.

Children with developmental challenges have diverse and unique needs and require different types of support. Some can be supported in their preschools, while others may require more specialised interventions at centres providing Early Intervention Programme for Infants and Children (EIPIC).

International studies have also shown that parents are in the best position to embed intervention related to social and emotional skills in their children's daily lives. For parents to do this well, they will need to be equipped with the skills to provide early intervention support at home. This is why we will be introducing an EIPIC-Care pilot, a training programme for caregivers of two- to three-year-olds with developmental needs. During the six-month programme, caregivers will learn from professionals through group workshops and individual coaching sessions on how to support their child's development at home.

ECDA plans to launch the EIPIC-Care pilot in the second half of 2024. For children who require more support, we have been increasing the number of Government-funded places for children requiring medium to high levels of early intervention support. In 2023, we launched 13 EIPIC-P centres, which are operated by private providers; and two EIPIC centres, to increase our capacity by 1,200 places. This is a 26% increase from 2022.

In 2024, we will launch four more early intervention centres and increase our capacity by 1,500 places. We will continue to expand our Government-funded places to serve 80% of children requiring medium to high levels of early intervention by 2027, up from 60% in 2022. This will help to reduce overall wait times for enrolment into an early intervention centre so that children with developmental needs can receive timely support.

To provide stronger financial support for families of older children with special needs, Deputy Prime Minister Wong announced in his Budget speech that we will make Special Education (SPED) Schools and Special Student Care Centres (SSCC) more affordable for families. We will reduce the fees paid to bring the proportion of household income paid for out-of-pocket expenses closer to that of their typically developing peers. To illustrate, families with a monthly household income of $6,000 will see one-third decrease in their out-of-pocket expenses paid for SSCC, from $500 to around $340.

Ms Hazel Poa asked on the use of restorative justice in cases of spousal violence. As families navigate various milestones in their life journey, we want to build strong families and ensure parents are equipped to build safe havens for their children.

Unfortunately, some families are not safe when violence happens at home. To strengthen protection for survivors of violence, we moved the Family Violence (Amendment) Bill in Parliament last year. These provisions also strengthen powers for the Government to rehabilitate perpetrators, which is crucial to helping families reconcile once protection and safety for survivors have been achieved.

Our social service practitioners also support families at risk of harm or who are experiencing violence to address the root causes for the use of violence and work with the survivor and perpetrator to heal and restore relationships where possible. Support for these families would include counselling. Family members, including children, may attend these counselling sessions to achieve healing and restoration of family relationships where it is safe to do so.

However, we will not hesitate to take firm measures when such restoration is not possible in the immediate term. This includes exercising the full powers of the law to take the perpetrators to task and to ensure the safety and protection of the survivors. Mr Chairman, in Mandarin, please.

(In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Families are the bedrock of our society. We want to give parents and parents-to-be greater assurance in the caregiving of their children. We want to provide every child with a good start in life. This is an important part of our vision in realising a Singapore Made For Families.

We will continue to make preschools more accessible and affordable for families. We will further reduce childcare fee caps at Anchor and Partner Operators by $40 in 2025. We will make a final reduction in 2026. We will also increase the number of Government-supported preschool places, so that 80% of preschoolers can have a place in a Government-supported preschool by 2025. We will continue to maintain this 80% from 2025 to 2030.

We have also heard from parents that the most challenging period was during their child's infancy. To better support parents in the care of infants, the Government will work with service providers to launch an infant childminding service to provide another caregiving option for parents. We will provide funding to keep the childminding service affordable for parents. To ensure that the infants are well cared for, ECDA will conduct background checks and require operators to meet service requirements to ensure safety of the infants. ECDA will also work with operators to co-develop industry standards. This includes laying out what constitutes a safe childminding environment and the respective responsibilities of operators and childminders.

Parents of children with development needs also require greater support to help their child reach their full potential. For parents to do this well, they will need to be equipped with the skills to provide early intervention support at home. This is why we will be introducing an EIPIC-Care pilot, a training programme for caregivers of two- to three-year-olds with developmental needs. For children with higher needs, we will continue to increase the number of Government-funded places for children requiring medium- to high levels of early intervention support.

(In English): As Minister Masagos shared, all of us must play our part to realise our vision of a family-friendly society and a Singapore Made for Families.

We have seen many volunteers who have worked alongside professionals to support our families in need. Ms Marsha Hernatasha and Ms Qistina Mohamed Nasir are friends who are volunteers together for KidSTART Garden Wonders. As volunteers, they welcome KidSTART families, pack and distribute goody bags and engage the children during the storytelling sessions. Ms Marsha and Ms Qistina sees volunteering as an opportunity to do something good and give back to families with young children. As we dedicate 2024 as the Year of Celebrating Volunteers, let us appreciate and recognise the contributions, effort and sacrifice of our volunteers.

We are committed in supporting our parents and parents-to-be, so that they are assured that every child can have a good start in life in Singapore and that they have fair access to opportunities to progress in life.

3.15 pm

The Chairman: Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua.

The Senior Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Social and Family Development (Mr Eric Chua): Chairman, talking to Singaporeans from all walks of life, one topic that often comes up is, "What would Singapore in the future look like?" Will we be a more caring and inclusive society? Can Singapore be a place made for all families, one where lower-income families have a fair chance to achieve their aspirations, and one where persons with disabilities can fulfil their true potential? MSF is working hard with families and communities to make these statements a reality.

I recently met Ms Aini and Mr Wali, a young couple who welcomed their first child Laila in 2022. They are currently living in a public rental flat and they hope to purchase their first BTO flat soon. Aini is looking to return to a cabin crew job, while Wali is striving to turn his passion for stand-up paddling into a full-time business.

The couple is working hard to realise their dreams: to achieve their career goals, buy a home and provide a good future for young Laila. But they are unsure how they can get there.

This is where MSF's ComLink+ family coaches, like Mr Zeke, come in. Our family coaches journey with ComLink+ families and support their aspirations. The family coach considers the family's unique circumstances, needs and strengths and co-develops an action plan with the family to help the family achieve its goals, one step at a time.

Through discussions with Zeke, Aini and Wali agreed that an important and immediate goal for the family was to secure stable employment. This would enable them to repay their loans and save for their BTO flat. With Aini on board with the action plan, Zeke then connected her with a career coach at Workforce Singapore. Zeke also provided helpful perspectives and suggestions on balancing work with parenting responsibilities. After some consideration, Aini and Wali decided that Wali could take care of Laila when Aini needs to fly for work. With care arrangements sorted out, she can now look for a cabin crew job with peace of mind.

As the family coach, Zeke is providing Aini and Wali with the sort of structured approach Ms Ng Ling Ling talked about, to achieve stability and make better decisions for the future. The nationwide rollout of ComLink started in 2021. Ms Denise Phua would be pleased to know that our Social Service Offices (SSOs) and Family Service Centres (FSCs) now serve 10,000 families with children in public rental flats in all 21 towns.

And we are now ready to proceed with ComLink+. Mr Xie Yao Quan would also be pleased to know that with ComLink+, we will have integrated support across multiple programmes, including KidSTART, UPLIFT Community Network and Project Dian@M3. We will continue to strengthen the leadership role of the family coach to coordinate support across programmes and services, so that ComLink+ families can enjoy comprehensive, coordinated and convenient support. MSF currently has about 120 family coaches and we plan to recruit 200 more. We have also recruited and trained about 1,600 volunteer befrienders working alongside our family coaches. All in, each family coach, aided by volunteer befrienders, is expected to support between 25 and 35 families and meet with them at least one to two times a month at the beginning. [Please see clarification later in the debate.]

In a shift from social assistance to empowerment, we will provide financial top-ups through ComLink+ Progress Packages to recognise and supplement ComLink+ families' efforts in working towards stable employment, financial stability, home ownership and giving their children a good start in education.

The first ComLink+ Package for Preschool will be launched in the second half of this year and we will roll out the rest of the ComLink+ Packages subsequently.

The early years are crucial for a child's learning and development. Enrolling in preschool by age three and attending preschool regularly will give Laila a good start in life and better prepare her for Primary 1. This is why the ComLink+ Package for Preschool will recognise parents' efforts to prioritise their children' preschool education. This is how it will work: every child between ages three and six in a ComLink+ family who enrols in and attends preschool regularly, can receive up to $3,700 in their CDA. This includes a one-time CDA top-up of $500 when the child is enrolled in preschool in the year that he or she turns three, and $200 for each quarter that the child achieves at least 75% attendance in the preschool. These top-ups are funded by one of our ComLink+ anchor partners, DBS. The Government will also match these CDA top-ups as part of the Baby Bonus Scheme, so that the child can get as much as $7,400 in total in their CDA. I would like to emphasise that the parents do not need to make any monetary contribution. All they need to do is to enrol and send their child to preschool regularly.

As Laila continues her preschool education, Aini will also benefit from the preschool subsidies given to lower-income households. Mr Gerald Giam will be pleased to know that full-day childcare fees for children from all lower-income families at Anchor Operator preschools cost as low as $3 monthly.

If Laila regularly attends a Government-supported preschool until six, not only will the ComLink+ CDA top-ups fully pay for her preschool fees, there will also be ample balance remaining in her CDA that can be used for her healthcare and other primary school expenses.

Since the nationwide scale-up of ComLink, we have been encouraged by the good response from the families, many of whom have agreed to work with us. And we are now ready to embark on our next move: to provide ComLink+ support to families beyond those in public rental housing. From this month onwards, and over the next three years, we will expand ComLink+ to cover another 3,000 lower-income families who are not in public rental housing and are eligible for KidSTART or UPLIFT Community Network. These families face similar challenges as our ComLink+ families and would also benefit from family coach support and the ComLink+ Progress Packages.

ComLink+ embodies our refreshed approach to support our lower-income families, something Mr Melvin Yong touched upon.

First, our approach has to be family-centric. Our family coaches recognise each family's unique aspirations, strengths and circumstances and work with them to chart their next steps. They also take the lead to coordinate and integrate support for the families they serve, giving families more headspace to plan for their own future and achieve their goals.

Second, our shift from social assistance to social empowerment, where we help families move forward as they work towards a better future. ComLink+ aims to empower families to achieve the "3S"s outcomes of stability, self-reliance and, eventually, social mobility over the long term. This is distinct from social assistance that serves immediate needs but may have less direct and sustained impact on longer-term outcomes.

Third, our greatest support comes from partnerships: our volunteers and our partners. Our ComLink+ partners across the people, private and public sectors contribute what they can to support others in need.

Our anchor partners, DBS, Singapore Pools and, most recently, The Ngee Ann Kongsi, fund some of the ComLink+ Progress Packages. DBS, for instance, has made a contribution of over $30 million to the ComLink+ Packages for Preschool and Home Ownership.

Many DBS staff have also stepped forward as Befrienders, while Singapore Pools staff are also volunteering at various ComLink+ programmes. Students like Ansel Lim and Adele Koo from NUS, whom I have also met recently, are Aini's Befrienders. They play with Laila and organise outings with the families and in this Year of Celebrating Volunteers, I want to express my heartfelt thanks to our ComLink+ volunteers for devoting your time and energy to journey alongside these families.

We welcome community partners to work alongside ComLink+ to offer complementary programmes where there is a need, such as debt counselling, financial literacy, homework supervision and sports programmes. In this way, everyone contributes to uplifting our lower-income families.

Looking ahead, we hope that ComLink+ will support families' pursuit of long-term aspirations. Going forward, we will track ComLink+ families' progress towards the "3S"s outcomes and work with local academics to evaluate the efficacy of the ComLink+ Progress Packages.

Aini's challenges are not unique. In every society, there will be those who struggle from time to time. However, what really reflects our moral fibre as a society is how we work together to make sure that no one is permanently stranded at the bottom of the barrel. As our lower-income families work hard to build a better tomorrow for themselves, let us support and journey alongside them.

I now move on to enabling persons with disabilities. I would like to assure Ms Denise Phua and Ms Rahayu Mahzam that we are working hard and making good progress on implementing our EMP 2030. SG Enable plays a key role in galvanising an extensive range of partners towards our EMP 2030 goals. Members can refer to MSF's website for more detailed updates – as Ms Denise Phua mentioned, you might have to do a few clicks but you can find all the details there – but today, let me share some key efforts and progress.

First, we want to empower persons with disabilities to pursue their work aspirations: to get a job and to stay employed. To do this, we adopt a person-centric approach, providing a range of employment support programmes to cater to various needs and capabilities.

SG Enable piloted the Place-and-Train programme in 2021, where employers receive salary support of up to 90% while they train persons with disabilities placed with them. Through Place-and-Train, 131 employers have hired more than 330 persons with disabilities. We will extend the programme for two more years and place and train another 200 persons with disabilities by 2026.

Last December, SG Enable launched the first Enabling Business Hub at Jurong, (EBH@Jurong), partnering employers, training providers and social service agencies, to bring job opportunities in the logistics sector closer to persons with disabilities in the West. The onsite team at EBH@Jurong also provides enhanced employment support for up to 24 months at a higher intensity, to support those with higher job support needs.

For some, the road to employment is a longer journey. I recently met Lek Wei and his parents. Lek Wei is autistic and often had meltdowns. After graduation, he enrolled as a Sheltered Workshop trainee with the Knead with Love bakery at the THK Pan-Disability Centre@Eunos.

The team provided a structured environment with routines, made efforts to understand how Lek Wei received instructions and gave him time and space when he was overwhelmed. He picked up skills like weighing ingredients and rolling dough and found joy in making delicious bread for others.

3.30 pm

Gradually, Lek Wei could regulate his emotions better and made such good progress that he secured a job trial at Boon Café@ITE College Central. During this trial period, the Sheltered Workshop and Job Coaches guided Boon Café in job redesigning. For example, Boon Café personalised Lek Wei's workstation by labelling the ingredients and colour coding the steps to his recipes. The Café employees also learned how to communicate with him. They speak to him slowly, with simple words. Through all these efforts, Lek Wei assimilated well and a few months later, Boon Café offered Lek Wei full-time employment. Lek Wei was Boon Cafe's first employee with disability and he opened the door for the hiring of three more at the cafe. I also tasted some of the pastry that he made, I must say they were "yummilicious".

Mr Ong Hua Han will be interested to know that our Sheltered Workshops provide a structured learning and training environment, with support from allied health professionals and training officers. As shown through Lek Wei, such environments enable those with higher needs to learn and develop at their own pace and hopefully, eventually enter open employment.

As demand for Sheltered Workshop spaces remain high, we will increase capacity by 500 spaces, from the current 1,700 to 2,200 by 2030. We will add 100 spaces to APSN's Centre for Adults this year, with the rest added progressively over the next few years. Because of the good uptake of the range of work opportunities, we raised the employment rate of resident persons with disabilities aged 15 to 64 from about 28% in 2018 to 2019, to 33% in 2022 to 2023, and we will press on towards our aspirational employment target of 40% by 2030.

I am heartened, as Ms Carrie Tan and Ms Ng Ling Ling would be too, that more employers like Boon Café are hiring inclusively. These employers are accredited with the Enabling Mark. Based on the Comprehensive Labour Force Survey for 2022 and 2023, close to half of persons with disabilities were employed in community, social and personal services, manufacturing and F&B services. To expand the jobs available, SG Enable is reaching out to employers in emerging sectors, such as transport and storage, including logistics; and financial and insurance services. We call upon more employers to be inclusive hirers, so that more people like Lek Wei can pursue their work aspirations.

Beyond employers, the community plays a key role in enabling our persons with disabilities to live independently and feel valued. In the Enabling Masterplan, we committed to provide a continuum of support services that enable persons with disabilities to live in the community.

For those unable to work, our Day Activity Centres (DACs) help to equip them with essential daily and community living skills. We will add 500 DAC spaces, from the current 1,800 to 2,300 by 2030. We will add 50 spaces to the MINDS Jurong Training and Development Centre by 2025, with the rest added progressively in the next few years.

SG Enable launched the first Enabling Services Hub (ESH) in Tampines last August. The ESH complements current support services by bringing services and programmes closer to homes of persons with disabilities. Through working with community partners, we hope to create inclusive neighbourhoods and strengthen support for adults with disabilities and their caregivers, especially for those no longer actively receiving services.

Take Irfan and his mother Mdm Sheriffa whom I met recently as well, for example. Irfan was not suitable for work after graduation and was staying at home. Thankfully, Sheriffa was connected to the ESH, which engaged Irfan in various activities close to where they stayed. One activity Irfan enjoys is volunteer book-shelving at the Tampines Regional Library. He volunteers every Thursday. So every Wednesday night, he hangs up his blue volunteer t-shirt, looking forward to volunteering the very next day. Irfan also enjoys community fitness activities at Tampines West Community Club, including inclusive floorball activities. These activities have brought Irfan out of isolation and into the community.

Mdm Sheriffa works night shifts at a fast-food restaurant and takes care of Irfan in the day. Irfan's engagement in activities allows Mdm Sheriffa to run errands or to have a much-needed respite before work. Sherrifa has also made friends with fellow caregivers through ESH activities and knows she is not alone. To date, the first ESH has supported more than 140 persons with disabilities and caregivers living in Tampines and Bedok. Riding on this encouraging progress, we will launch the second and third ESH in 2025 – one in the North-East covering Punggol, Hougang, Sengkang and Serangoon; and one in the West focusing on Jurong West.

We hope that the ESHs will support more persons with disabilities like Irfan and very importantly, provide respite for caregivers like Mdm Sheriffa too. I agree wholeheartedly with Mr Ong Hua Han that we need to support our caregivers, who play an indispensable role. In fact, it is also a point that I made in my speech in the debate on the Budget statement just a week ago. CaringSG will collaborate with the ESH and other communities to strengthen community and peer support.

To support persons with disabilities and their caregivers with long-term financial and care planning, more than 1,200 trust accounts have been set up with the Special Needs Trust Company, or SNTC. We share Mr Murali Pillai's hope that more families will set up trust accounts and tap on the Special Needs Saving Scheme (SNSS) to set aside Central Provident Fund (CPF) savings for long-term care. SNTC works with key partners, including SG Enable, SPED schools and social service agencies to reach out to families.

The Government is also strengthening support on caregiving costs. For those who require point-to-point transport to commute to SPED schools and community-based programmes, we will increase the Enabling Transport Subsidy (ETS) from 1 April 2024 to alleviate the cost of transport services. Currently, about 5,400 beneficiaries are receiving the ETS. With this increase, about 40% of families currently receiving the ETS can expect a reduction in their out-of-pocket transport fees by 10% or more.

Also, Deputy Prime Minister Wong announced that we will update the per capita household income threshold for means-tested subsidies so that more families can benefit from subsidies like the ETS. Valid means-test results can also be shared across schemes, so that beneficiaries need not undergo repeated means-testing within a period of time. This will help ensure that our schemes and subsidies remain accessible to those who need them.

Lastly, the EMP commits to improving accessibility and inclusiveness in our social and physical environments. We have extensively improved the accessibility of our public transport and public spaces; all public buses and train stations and almost all public sector buildings are wheelchair-accessible.

You and I can play our part through small but impactful actions, such as looking out for those who need a hand, smiling more, staring less at unusual behaviour and focusing on their abilities and not limitations; because together, we can build a caring and inclusive society. Chair, in Mandarin, please.

(In Mandarin): [Please refer to Vernacular Speech.] Many citizens share similar aspirations for Singapore to be an inclusive and caring society, where everyone is empowered to pursue their own aspirations. Today, let me share on how we are going to support lower-income families and PwDs to reach their full potential.

First, ComLink+ reflects our philosophy in empowering lower-income families by encouraging action and progress. Our family coaches journey with ComLink+ families through a family-centric approach. The family coach will consider the family's circumstances, needs and strengths to co-develop an action plan with the family to achieve its goals. ComLink+ Progress Package recognises and supplements ComLink+ families' efforts in working towards stable employment, financial stability, home ownership and giving their children a good start in education. We will launch the first ComLink+ package for preschool this year to encourage early enrolment and regular attendance.

Besides the volunteers that Minister mentioned, ComLink+ partners come from across the people, public and private sectors. Our anchor partners, DBS, Singapore Pools and the Ngee Ann Kongsi have contributed generously towards supporting ComLink+ families.

In this year of Celebrating Volunteers, I would like to thank ComLink+ befrienders for devoting your time and energy to journey with the families.

We also continue to support PwDs, by providing different employment support programmes catering to varying needs and capabilities. This includes extending the Place-and-Train Programme and increasing capacity for Sheltered Workshops.

Aside from employment, we support PwDs to live independently and better integrate into the community. We will increase the number of Day Activity Centres spaces and launch two new Enabling Services Hub in the North-East and West later this year, providing more opportunities for PwDs to engage in social activities and learn new skills.

Lower-income families and PwDs are often too saddled by today's burdens as they work towards achieving their aspirations. The Government and social service partners adopt a person-centric and/or family-centric approach by providing a range of services and programmes to accommodate their various needs, capabilities and empower them to fulfil their potential. Together, as a society, I hope that we can work together to create an inclusive and caring Singapore.

(In English): Sir, I started my speech asking whether Singapore can be a caring and inclusive place for all families, including our lower-income families and those with persons with disabilities. Aini, Lek Wei and Irfran have shown us, we can. We can, when families do their best to achieve their aspirations. We can, when our social service partners and professionals journey alongside these families. We can, when employers hire inclusively. We can, when our volunteers take time and energy to befriend our families and PwDs. And we can, when you and I look out for those amongst us in need.

This is our refreshed social compact that we set out under Forward Singapore. Together, we can create a caring and inclusive Singapore. One where everyone can progress, fulfil their potential and achieve their aspirations. A Singapore made for all Singapore families.

The Chairman: Ms Denise Phua.

Ms Denise Phua Lay Peng: Thank you Minister, Minister of State and Senior Parliamentary Secretary for your comprehensive and caring responses. I have two supplementary questions, mostly for Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua.

3.45 pm

The first one has to do with ComLink+. I hear an almost picture-perfect narrative of what has happened. But I know and am sure the Senior Parliamentary Secretary also goes through quite a lot of this every day, that it is not picture-perfect and there are lots of challenges actually serving our families. And I just want to reiterate what I asked in my cut. How did the pilot go? What were the challenges? And how do we intend to solve this? And how do the rest of us, including the Government, plan to work at it together? That is my first supplementary question.

The second one has to do with the EMP for persons with disabilities. Again, I want to ask from my cut. First is that it is great and I am very thankful for the report that was made. A lot of these reports pertain to the outputs, activities, and that is a really good start as well. But we need to link it to outputs. At the same time, we also want to make sure that it is not outdated. Eight-year master plans are like really major things. Even in this time and age, a lot of things, shelf lives are very short. So, I really think that eight-year master plans in the social service sector definitely have to be updated. So, can I ask for a structured official review each year so that we can ensure that these plans are updated? Also include what I shared about the need to include hot topics like inclusive insurance, criminal justice, review and strengthen the appropriate adult scheme and also to include ADHD and dyslexia, such neurodiverse conditions into our master plan.

And also, the hot button issues, which are really the financial subsidies for essential services, such as daily activity centres for those with moderate to severe disabilities. I think we really need to consider a hybrid model of funding just like what we did many years ago, I think under Minister Vivian for MSF, where there is a universal core base and then you tap on, you add on, top up with means-tested subsidies so that at least the fundamental core expenses for such models can be covered.

Mr Eric Chua: I thank Ms Denise Phua for two very extensive clarifications. I will take the first clarification first. I am afraid I will not be able to give a very detailed reply.

I agree with the Member that in terms of implementation, in fact, oftentimes, we meet a lot of implementation roadblocks, especially where we need partners to work together, especially where we need perhaps to push for maybe some flexibility at the edges of our current day policies. But rest assured that there is a very intentional view right from the social service officers on the ground, the SSOs' general managers, as well as each of the SSO officers that are in touch with the ComLink+ families, the family coaches, right up to the senior public servants, as well as myself. We do take a very keen interest in what is going on on the ground. So, while I cannot — well, I can, but I would definitely use up all the clarification time going through all the details of the various implementation bumps that we have encountered.

But you have my commitment in this Chamber that MSF and our officers, right down the line to the SSOs on the ground, will commit to helping every single ComLink+ families that we are serving today. So, that is a very broad answer to Ms Denise Phua's first question.

To the second question, I want to thank her for being a very passionate advocate in this space. And I assure the Member that we are not simply looking at output in the EMP. Some of the indicators that we look at pertains specifically to outcomes. So, for instance, in terms of employment, getting to 40% employment, and that translates, from when we first started in 2022, when the EMP 2030 was launched, we were at about 30%, 31%. And to make that leap from 30% to 40%, that translates to about 10,000 job placements. And we are talking about going way beyond placements, because we do want persons with disabilities to keep their jobs, to sustain employment. Because employment is not simply about having a job, having somewhere to go nine to six every day. It is also about personal empowerment. It is also about self-actualisation in many instances. So, that is but one example of how outcomes are also being attended to.

Other outcomes that we look at, NCSS conducts a quality of life survey of persons with disabilities and this is called the Disability and Inclusion Panel Study. And this is conducted once every two years. This is also one of those proxy reports that we refer to, to see how the needles are shifting in this space. And I really want to behoove Ms Denise Phua that the EMP 2030 is not a dead plan. In fact, it is a very live plan. It does not mean that what we have said in 2022 is truth with a capital "T". We are open to evolving some of the strategies; we are open to evolving some of the methods. In fact, we have stated in the Masterplan itself that we understand that things are changing, particularly in terms of, say, assistive technology. And we acknowledge that and we welcome any suggestions along the way as we get to 2030. And if I can add, 2030 is most definitely not a full stop. To me, it is the figurative comma in our journey towards making Singapore a more inclusive society. So, I hope that is sufficient assurance for the Member.

The Chairman: Mr Melvin Yong.

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: Thank you, Chairman. I have two questions. My first question is for Minister Masagos. I am very happy to hear that the National Family Week will now be extended to a month-long festival. This will certainly allow for more families to participate and also for more family-oriented programmes to be included. My question is really regarding the lower-income families. How does MSF plan to encourage, to facilitate lower-income families, in particular, families with children living in rental flats, to participate in the family month activities? Perhaps, the FFL can work with SSA, family coaches, even the People's Association, to maybe bring the ComLink+ families to participate in these activities.

My second question is for Minister of State Sun Xueling. Given the recent spate of incidents involving the preschool sector, what can MSF and ECDA do to assure parents on the safety and standards of our preschools? Were these incidents a result of insufficient resources deployed by the preschools? If so, what can ECDA do to ensure that all our preschools are adequately resourced?

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: Thank you, Mr Yong, for that opportunity for me to call for even more participation from all my colleagues here. And I hope that when we do the National Family Festival, it is not something that is top-down, something that FFL does or MSF does, but also for grassroots organisations, corporates to participate, whether or not they get reported in media or otherwise, because I think when this festivity goes on throughout Singapore, and then, like what Mr Yong was mentioning just now, get everyone involved, whether they are disabled or from a needy family, I think this will augur well for what Singapore is about, an inclusive and caring society. But we do have to get a ground-up initiative. We want to have ideas, what can be done.

Just to give Members an example I tried in my own Community Club where we have a simple two-hour sit-down family chillax. Just everyone can come and we just charge $5. I have a little surplus in my Community Club, I say let us spend and give families a good time. But for the families which are living in rentals, who we know are in the ComLink+ or other programmes, we get the befrienders as well as SSOs to tell us who they are, invite them and charge them maybe just $1. Because they have to show they have a ticket. And I do not think free is always good, to show that they will be committed to come. But when they came, we did not know, we did not identify so-and-so was needy, so-and-so was disabled. Everyone was just sitting around having a chill time and it was a great atmosphere. So, it does not have to be very structured. Just have a band play for them from five to seven, food truck, free flow of food, that kind of festivity I think will be very welcomed. So, I hope that corporates, whether you do it on-site or as a family day outing, extend this to other families who may be needy, as part of corporate responsibility, too.

Ms Sun Xueling: I thank the Member, Mr Melvin Yong, for his second question. I would like to highlight our findings from the Kinderland case. And this has also been published before. What we have found was that there was inadequate supervision by centre leaders and that there was oversight by the employees. So, this is a learning point. And we have shortened the tenure for the Kinderland centres. We are also actively monitoring, going down on-site to supervise what is happening in the preschool.

So, I do not see it as a general insufficient resourcing in the sector as a whole because MSF has very strict requirements on teacher and student ratios. And we have not observed that these were contravened. Rather, these were lapses in the centre. And I think it is a strong reminder to the industry that teachers need to be accountable for their actions. They need to know that they will be swiftly taken to task if they are found to be errant or negligent and that centre leaders have to be responsible and that they have to supervise.

The last point I would like to add is that, as I mentioned in my speech earlier, the current levers that ECDA has is limited by our current set of legislation in place. We are reviewing those legislation and we will enhance those levers. It could take the form of enhanced financial penalties so that there is a very clear signal to the industry that we do not take such abuse lightly.

The Chairman: Ms Ng Ling Ling.

Ms Ng Ling Ling: Thank you, Chairman. I have just two clarifications, one for Minister of State Sun Xueling and one for Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua. For the pilot infant childminding services, can the Minister of State share more about which part of Singapore will the pilot be implemented? What are the fees that young parents can expect? Will the subsidy be the same as the current infant care for licensed centres? Also, how will the quality and safety standards be checked, especially if they are not done on centre-based?

For Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua, the question is on the family coaches for ComLink+. I think it is an excellent idea to roll out this initiative. I would like to know more about the qualification, training and experience of the family coaches and how we are supporting them because we know that a lot of them deal with very complex issues for the families. How do we help them, especially if the caseload can be about 25 to 35 families for each family coach?

Ms Sun Xueling: I thank the Member for her questions. First and foremost, this is a pilot nationwide. So, we are not specific about where the pilot locations are. But that said, we are currently engaging operators. It depends on which operators see it as a viable business model and the operators may also have their own geographical focus areas. So, what I would like to say is that it is not intentional from MSF as to where the pilots would be. But depending on who are the operators who are interested in working with MSF on this, we could see a situation whereby we could start in certain locations first rather than others, but it is a function of which are the interested operators.

4.00 pm

Where fees are concerned, I shared that we aim to make parents' expenses for childminding services similar to what a medium-income family pays for infant care at Anchor Operators. So, the potential out-of-pocket expenses could be about $700 thereabouts. We just want to make sure that this is affordable and is seen as a flexible childminding option for parents.

The last question that she had was with regard to standards. I shared that we would have established processes for incident management because we understand from parents, that safety is very important to them should they wish to consider this option and we will also ensure that childminders undergo basic training in areas, such as basic infant care, first aid training, food safety and hygiene.

Mr Eric Chua: I thank Ms Ng for the clarifications she is making. Indeed, we do need the right type for a family coach and basically, we look for a few things.

One, is a person somebody who really is passionate and really genuine and authentic about helping people from lower-income families.

Two, somebody who can display empathy and have good, strong communication and interpersonal skills because that will be helpful when communicating some of the action plans or things that the families need to work on.

And three, really, individuals with good analytical planning, as well as problem-solving skills. So, we are also open to having mid-career switchers join us because we do understand that mid-career switchers, they have more working and family experience and a lot of time this will come in useful. Because we are talking about life experiences that the family coach could potentially share with the families that they work with.

But in addition to the type of candidates that we are looking for our family coaches, we also provide a comprehensive suite of training. There is a structured training programme for family coaches before they are deployed and at various milestone stages and this will include frameworks that they can use to assess the family's strengths and needs for action planning and also engagement-related training. So, things like basic counselling, motivational interviewing, cultural competency as well as coaching techniques; and also working effectively with stakeholders. Because it is not about just bringing a goodie bag or a bag of different schemes to the families. It is about connecting the family to other agencies, other organisations on the ground, so there needs to be a good sense of who these partners are going to be and a good team spirit or team player-ship, if you will, in working with the partners on the ground.

So, these are all the qualities that we look at and try to nurture and imbue in our family coaches.

The Chairman: Mr Ong Hua Han.

Mr Ong Hua Han: I have a clarification for Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua. I thank the Senior Parliamentary Secretary for those encouraging stories and an inspiring call to action in your speech.

Does MSF or SG Enable actively track and engage those who successfully graduate from the Sheltered Workshop-to-Work Programme, say after one or two years, to ensure that they do not fall back into unemployment or sheltered workshops a few years post-transition? I ask this because I do share your concern and perhaps those of other Members as well, that we might become too fixated on the EMP 2030 target of 40% employment and inadvertently neglect stability of open employment of PwDs.

Mr Eric Chua: I thank Mr Ong for his clarification. I think a quick point to note is that with the launch of the Enabling Business Hub in Jurong last year, we have facilitated an increase of job support services that is provided to PwDs from one year to two years and the intensity of job support services is actually increased, where needed. So, I do not have the numbers on hand as to how many of PwDs drop out after one year and at the different milestone times, but rest assured that the passion as well as the appetite to really look at helping a PwD, not just land the job, but to really sustain and remain in employment is there.

The Chairman: Ms Carrie Tan.

Ms Carrie Tan: Thank you, Mr Chairman. I would like to address my clarification to Minister of State Sun Xueling regarding the EIPIC programme. To clarify whether I heard correctly that, she mentioned there will be some training provided for parents under the EIPIC programme if they have children with advanced or high developmental needs? Could she elaborate more on what this is?

And secondly, the point on capacity building, because I understand that right now the waiting time for children with high needs to be enrolled into an EIPIC centre can be several months and it is a bit ironic because we are looking at early intervention in a very critical few years in their lives. So, will the Ministry be looking into shoring up in immediate-term manpower in this sector by, perhaps, attracting talents and well-trained professionals from abroad to shore up our local capacity and then to look into capability building in the next three to five years to quickly tap on local talents to make sure that the EIPIC provisions and services can be ramped up in an accelerated manner?

Ms Sun Xueling: I thank the Member for her questions. Firstly, yes, I had mentioned that we will be introducing an EIPIC-Care pilot and that this is a training programme for caregivers of two to three-year-olds with developmental needs. And the reason why we want to do so is that the international studies have shown that parents, they are the early educators, early role models in their children's lives and they are in the best position to embed intervention related to social, emotional skills. And this happens, this can happen at home. So, that is the intent. This will be a six-month programme and the caregivers will be learning from professionals through group workshops and individual coaching sessions on how to support their child's development at home.

On her second question, I had shared that we are launching more places when it comes to EIPIC, by increasing our capacity by 1,200 places. This was in 2023 and this was already a 26% increase from 2022. And in 2024, we will launch four more early intervention centres and increase our capacity by 1,500 places. These numbers are not small.

And if you look at it in terms of percentage, we are expanding our Government-funded places to serve the children from 60% of children who require medium to high levels of early intervention moving from 60% coverage to 80% coverage. So, just think about it in terms of percentage terms, this is already a very, very large increase.

And what that means, obviously, is that we have to bring in more professionals into the space; but we are also extremely mindful that these professionals will obviously have to be adequately-trained and they would also have to be aware of the norms that we have in our society. And very importantly, to be able to work with our parents; the parents of these children with developmental needs.

So, where there are specific specialisations, for instance, it could be speech therapy, could be play therapy. Where possible, we would look at bringing in international staff to cope with and to be helpful. But I think we would like to keep a core group of educators in Singapore and we will definitely be training more of these educators because it is important that we are able to take care of these children with developmental needs, with educators who are trained in Singapore and who are trusted by our parents here in Singapore.

The Chairman: I know Mr Giam you have raised your hands several times. I had given priority to those who had filed cuts first. You can have the floor now.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: Thank you, Sir. I did file a cut on this. I am very glad to hear that MSF is planning to professionalise and subsidise childminding services.

So, my question for Minister of State Sun Xueling is, can I ask how this will affect existing informal childminders? I have residents who look after their neighbours' infants and kids after school and these are usually older women who are not highly educated and may not be prepared to be formally employed by childminding operators. So, they may have difficulties completing formal courses and passing written tests. So, how will these informal childminders and the parents who engage their services, be able to tap on the subsidies that MSF is offering under this programme?

Ms Sun Xueling: I thank the Member for his question. Our intent is to have more options for parents, which means that if there is an existing arrangement between a nanny or an infant childminder in the community with a parent, we are not going to go in there and change the arrangements. The informal arrangements can continue.

But because we are launching a pilot and when we launch a pilot, we do hope that the results from that pilot will guide us in being able to have it more as a permanent programme. So, we have to make sure then that the parameters are such that it is sustainable and, therefore, we will need to have certain standards in place.

So, what I would say is: in the situation that you mentioned, whatever is an informal arrangement right now – if it is something that they are happy with and there is something ongoing, it is something that they have been doing for a long time between the parent and the infant childminder, they can just go ahead with whatever it is that they have right now. But if they should want to be able to be part of this pilot so that the parent is able to make use of the subsidies that the Government is providing, then we would require the childminder to adhere to the standards that I have shared earlier. This is also so that MSF is responsible for the pilot and then we know what are the parameters that would make this work.

The Chairman: Mr Faisal Manap.

Mr Muhamad Faisal Bin Abdul Manap: Thank you, Sir. I have one clarification for Minister Masagos.

I believe Minister Masagos mentioned earlier that the ComLink+ family coaches are actually social workers from the FSCs and I believe the Minister is aware of the already heavy workload of FSCs' social workers. So, I would like to ask whether MSF will actually be able to provide additional resources and funding to FSCs, so that FSCs are sufficiently equipped?

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: The families who live in rental homes who have children, part of them are already under the FSC. So, they have a relationship with the FSC social worker and this is not an additional job for them. It is to let them do their work even better because we give them more tools to incentivise their families to achieve their lifelong goals, in addition to resolving issues like divorce or family violence and so forth. So, I do not see this as an additional burden to them but actually they would very much welcome that now they have more tools to enable them to achieve the objectives that they want for these families.

The Chairman: Mr Giam.

Mr Gerald Giam Yean Song: Just to clarify with the Minister of State, can existing individual childminders join the programme or do they have to be employed by a childminding operator?

Ms Sun Xueling: We are currently engaging the operators. Based on the engagements so far, the intent is for the operators to engage the childminders and be responsible for the childminders, because it would be very difficult for MSF to be regulating each and every childminder. So, the short answer to your question is, yes.

The Chairman: Ms Carrie Tan.

Ms Carrie Tan: I would like to address this query to Minister Masagos regarding the funding model of FSCs.

Firstly, I would like to commend that I think the funding model for ComLink+ is very progressive in that it rewards and has an outcome-based model. But I would like to ask if the Ministry would consider reviewing the current funding model of FSCs to transition towards an outcomes-based funding for those FSCs that work on social mobility outcomes, rather than the current model which is based on the caseload funding?

4.15 pm

Mr Masagos Zulkifli B M M: As I had mentioned in my speech, Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua is now leading a task force to conduct an overall review of the FSC landscape and certainly, the area our Member mentioned just now will be one of the areas that he will be looking at.

The Chairman: Any other clarifications? Yes, Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua.

Mr Eric Chua: I just want to make a clarification to my main speech earlier. In my excitement, I said that the family coaches would visit the families at the beginning, once or twice every month. Actually, it is once, every one to two months.

The Chairman: Any other clarifications from any Member? If not, can I invite Mr Melvin Yong, if you like, to withdraw your amendment?

Mr Melvin Yong Yik Chye: Thank you, Chairman. I would like to thank Minister Masagos Zulkifli, Minister of State Sun Xueling, Senior Parliamentary Secretary Eric Chua and the MSF team working very hard behind the scenes now, for addressing the wide range of issues that Members raised.

Social and family issues are deeply complex. What manifests on the surface is often the result of layers upon layers of varied issues. We have learned that there can never be a silver bullet that would resolve the overlapping problems that distress family faces, but I am heartened that MSF and the social service sector are doing their best to support and to help vulnerable Singaporeans and foster a caring society. Their work is often unseen but crucial and commendable. Chairman, with that, I beg leave to withdraw my amendment.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

The sum of $4,565,896,900 for Head I ordered to stand part of the Main Estimates.

The sum of $124,079,000 for Head I ordered to stand part of the Development Estimates.

The Chairman: Order. I propose to take a break now.

Thereupon Mr Speaker left the Chair of the Committee and took the Chair of the House.

Mr Speaker: Order. I propose to take a break now. I suspend the Sitting and will take the Chair at 4.40 pm.

Sitting accordingly suspended

at 4.17 pm until 4.40 pm.

Sitting resumed at 4.40 pm.

[Deputy Speaker (Mr Christopher de Souza) in the Chair]