Sembawang to get social service centre next year

A new social service office to be set up in Sembawang will bring the total number of such centres to 24 by next year.

The original target was to have 20 such offices across the island. The Government revised that figure in July.

Social service offices, together with over 40 family service centres, are part of a network to put help within 2km of where 95 per cent of needy residents live or work.

Minister for Social and Family Development Chan Chun Sing, who announced the new social service office yesterday, said: "The current office at Woodlands straddles the work from Marsiling to Woodlands to Sembawang... (Setting up the Sembawang office) will help to spread the load."

Also, more families are expected to move into Sembawang new town, he added.

The Woodlands office now serves about 321,000 residents. The Sembawang office will serve about 73,000 residents.

Mr Chan was speaking to reporters at the official opening of the social service office in Queenstown.

It started operations in June and is the 15th such office.

Besides disbursing financial aid, these offices work with voluntary welfare organisations and community partners to better coordinate the social services they offer.

"We recognise that each agency cannot work on a case on its own," said Ms Chin Tong Mui, the office's general manager.

"We want to tap the expertise of the family service centres and social workers, and the ground knowledge of the grassroots leaders... to help the families holistically."

This article was first published on Nov 12, 2014.
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