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The Director of Social Welfare, Mr Patrick Nip, visited the Kowloon City Integrated Family Service Centre (IFSC) today (April 5) to see the latest development in family services. To further enhance support for individuals and families, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) will set up three more IFSCs in Kowloon and the New Territories in 2013.
During the visit, Mr Nip was briefed by the IFSC's supervisor and other staff on the operation of their services, including drop-in and enquiry services, various groups and programmes as well as counselling and referral services. He also met the participants of a women's mutual help group and was pleased to learn that, through the support of the IFSC's services, they had strengthened their capabilities and self-confidence and the harmony in their families. The services have also facilitated the building of a community support network and fostered the spirit of mutual help.
At present, there are 62 IFSCs throughout the territory, comprising 40 operated by SWD and 22 by nine non-governmental organisations (NGOs). With the guiding principles of accessibility, early identification, integration and partnership, and under the service direction of "child-centred, family-focused and community-based", IFSCs are set up to provide a spectrum of preventive, supportive and remedial services through their Family Resource Units, Family Support Units and Family Counselling Units.
Since the formation of IFSCs through re-engineering family service resources in 2004-05, the services have proven effective. Based on the findings of the report on "Review on the Implementation of the IFSC Service Mode" released by the University of Hong Kong (HKU) in 2010, the IFSC service mode has received general support from IFSC management and frontline workers, stakeholders and service users as meaningful and appropriate in directing and delivering family services in contemporary Hong Kong. HKU recommends that the IFSC service mode should continue to be adopted for publicly funded family services in Hong Kong.
Mr Nip said that subsequent to the setting up of an NGO-run IFSC in Sham Shui Po District in December 2011, SWD had decided to establish three more IFSCs to further enhance its support services for individuals and families in need. The one to be set up in Kowloon City and Yau Tsim Mong District will be operated by SWD, whereas the other two in Kwun Tong District and Yuen Long District respectively will be run by NGOs. The new IFSCs are expected to come into operation in the first quarter of 2013.
"With the setting up of the three new IFSCs, the total number of IFSCs in Hong Kong will increase from 62 to 65. This development will provide more effective support to individuals and families in preparing themselves for various challenges and overcoming their problems," Mr Nip added.
In deciding the locations of the three new IFSCs, SWD has taken into consideration a number of social indicators and the service demand of individual districts, such as projected population growth and population profiles, and the current workload of individual IFSCs.
Apart from increasing the number of IFSCs, SWD will continue to promote IFSCs' communication and collaboration with relevant government departments and community organisations, with a view to providing better services for residents of the localities.
Ends/Thursday, April 5, 2012
Issued at HKT 18:07
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