LCQ12: Staffing establishment of non-governmental organisations receiving lump sum grant subvention
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Question:
The Lump Sum Grant Subvention System (LSGSS) has been implemented for many years, with the original intention of allowing non-governmental organisations (NGOs) receiving lump sum grant subvention to use public funds more flexibly and efficiently, and to provide quality services in a timely manner. In the face of an ageing population, increasingly complex cases and evolving service demands, the sector expects the authorities to continuously review the establishment, as well as the supervisory and supporting staffing ratios of NGOs in a pragmatic manner, so as to better meet service needs. In this connection, will the Government inform this Council:
(1) whether, in the light of circumstances such as an ageing population, an increase in dementia patients, and a rise in the number of children with special educational needs, the authorities have adjusted or planned to adjust the proposed establishment and supervisory and supporting staffing ratios of NGOs providing the relevant services; if so, of the details; if not, the reasons for that; how the authorities will ensure that the existing subvention benchmarks can support NGOs in employing sufficient manpower to cope with future service needs; and
(2) given that NGOs enjoy autonomy in the flexible utilisation of public funds under the existing LSGSS, of the measures the Social Welfare Department has put in place to monitor and support NGOs, so as to facilitate the reasonable deployment of supervisory staff and staff for various types of services within NGOs?
Reply:
President,
The reply to the Hon Grace Chan's question is provided as follows:
Under the Lump Sum Grant Subvention System, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) devises the notional staffing establishment (including staff of different functions and grades) of individual Agreement Service Unit as a reference for calculating subvention. Subject to their compliance with the requirements of the Funding and Service Agreements (FSAs) and the relevant statutory staffing requirements, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) operating subvented welfare services may flexibly deploy resources and employ staff (including supervisory and supporting staff) in accordance with their operational needs and human resource policies to achieve the required service outputs and outcomes.
In response to social developments and evolving service needs, the SWD reviews various types of welfare services from time to time and allocates additional resources as appropriate to enhance service delivery and strengthen manpower, thereby ensuring that the services cater for the ever-changing needs. Recent measures include: (i) providing additional resources to strengthen manpower deployment in Small Group Homes from 2024-25 to enhance care and support for children in care; (ii) providing additional resources to Hostels for Severely and Moderately Mentally Handicapped Persons, District Elderly Community Centres, Neighbourhood Elderly Centres, and District Support Centres for Persons with Disabilities in 2026-27 to strengthen support for service users and carers; and (iii) providing additional funding from the 2026/27 school year to provide bridging and support services for children with special needs receiving On-site Pre-school Rehabilitation Services who are about to enter primary school. Furthermore, on the funding basis of each new service unit, the SWD provides an additional five per cent of recurrent subvention for administrative support, enabling NGOs to deploy the subvention flexibly in strengthening management capacity and staff supervisory support as well as providing supporting staff.
To provide further support to NGOs, the SWD launched a Dedicated Fund of $500 million in 2024-25 to help them meet their development needs. NGOs may use the Dedicated Fund to arrange various training programmes to enhance staff capabilities at management or supervisory level and staff members' professional knowledge and skills for meeting the ever-changing service needs; as well as to implement system enhancement and strengthen the application of information technology so as to improve operational efficiency and streamline human resources. In addition, the Dedicated Fund can also be used to subsidise NGOs to arrange their staff to participate in Mainland exchange tours, in order to enhance their understanding of national affairs (particularly on the development of social welfare services) and national security awareness.
Since 2025-26, the SWD has implemented a range of supporting measures with a view to dismantling barriers and loosening restrictions. These measures include relaxing the utilisation of NGOs' various reserves, streamlining cost apportionment procedures and various workflows, as well as refining the FSAs and Service Quality Standards. The aim is to enhance NGOs' financial flexibility, reduce administrative work, and encourage NGOs to improve operational efficiency.
When flexibly making use of resources, the NGOs must strictly comply with the requirements of the FSAs and the Social Welfare Services Lump Sum Grant Subvention Manual in delivering service and deploying subvention resources. The SWD closely reviews the operation of various services, and monitors the compliance and performance of NGOs in service delivery through various means (including surprise assessment visits). In the event of non-compliance, the SWD will immediately require the NGO concerned to implement rectification. If the SWD receives complaints regarding subvented services, it will handle the cases rigorously and take appropriate follow-up actions in order to safeguard the well-being of service users and ensure that public funds are used properly.
Ends/Wednesday, October 21, 2026
Issued at HKT 11:26
Issued at HKT 11:26
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