Latest News of Oct 2024

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) announced today (October 22) that seven additional residential care homes for the elderly (RCHEs) (among which five are operated by Mainland organisations; and two are operated under the partnership formed by Hong Kong organisations and Mainland elderly service operators), located in Guangzhou, Foshan and Zhongshan respectively, will become Recognised Service Providers under the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong (the Scheme) starting from November 1 to provide subsidised care and attention places for elderly persons joining the Scheme.

Taking into account of the two RCHEs in Shenzhen, one in Foshan and one in Zhaoqing, the total number of RCHEs registered under the Scheme will increase to 11 in five Mainland cities in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) to provide more choices for the elderly who are interested in retiring in the Mainland cities in the GBA.

For the details of the Scheme, you may click here.

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) has earlier invited eligible non-governmental organisations to submit proposals to operate a new Neighbourhood Elderly Centre (NEC) at LG3/F, Ching Lung House, Ching Fu Court, 18 Tsing Yi Road, Tsing Yi, New Territories, and a Vetting Committee (VC) was set up to conduct assessment of all the proposals received.  Upon the recommendation of the VC, SWD has selected Po Leung Kuk (Key applicant organisation) and Food Angel (Joint applicant organisation) to operate the NEC.

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) has launched a new tranche of the Scheme on Living Allowance for Carers of Elderly Persons from Low-income Families and the Scheme on Living Allowance for Low-income Carers of Persons with Disabilities (the carer allowance schemes).

The SWD will issue letters to the relevant elderly persons/persons with disabilities in batches for inviting their eligible carers to submit applications. For those elderly persons/persons with disabilities who received the invitation letters last year, their carers may also apply. Applicants should complete the application form and return it together with supporting documents to the Carer Allowances and Subsidies Team (CAST) of the SWD (Address: Room 404, 4th floor, Lady Trench Training Centre, 44 Oi Kwan Road, Wan Chai, Hong Kong). The SWD will inform applicants of the results upon completion of the assessment.

Besides the two carer allowance schemes, the Special Care Subsidy Scheme for Persons with Severe Disabilities and the Scheme on Providing Subsidy for Higher Disability Allowance Recipients in Paid Employment to Hire Carers were also regularised last year, which aims to provide carers of elderly persons/persons with disabilities from low-income families or persons with disabilities with a living allowance to help supplement their living expenses as well as to assist elderly persons/persons with disabilities in need of long-term care to receive better care and remain in the community with the help of their carers.

At the same time, the SWD has updated the monthly household income limits for the two carer allowance schemes and the Special Care Subsidy Scheme for Persons with Severe Disabilities, as well as the monthly employment income limits for the Scheme on Providing Subsidy for Higher Disability Allowance Recipients in Paid Employment to Hire Carers. The updated income limits will take effect from today, which are applicable to existing recipients and new applicants.

For details of the schemes, please visit the SWD's website, or contact the CAST ( tel: 3468 5635 or 3468 5636; fax: 3468 5648; email: castenq@swd.gov.hk ) during office hours.

"The IT Scheme for People with Visual Impairment" (8th round) and "Central Fund for Personal Computers" (50th round) now accept applications.  The deadline for both is on 10 October 2024.  

The IT Scheme for People with Visual Impairment supports non-profit-making organisations providing services or schooling for people with visual impairment (PVI) and tertiary institutions to acquire advanced Chinese screen readers, Braille displays and accessories/portable devices to facilitate PVI's browsing the Internet, and to subsidise individual PVI with financial difficulties to purchase these assistive devices for meeting their needs on studying or employment.
 
The Central Fund for Personal Computers aims to assist persons with disabilities in acquiring the necessary computer facilities for self-employment or receiving supported employment service at home.

Invitations have been issued to the relevant organisations for making nominations and applications.
   
Details and application forms of the two schemes are available on the SWD’s website (www.swd.gov.hk/en/pubsvc/rehab/cat_fundtrustfinaid/) and CyberAble.net (cyberable.swd.gov.hk/en/index.html). 

Enquiries can be made to Rehabilitation and Medical Social Services Branch, Social Welfare Department:

Telephone: 3586 3594 or Email Address: eoimc@swd.gov.hk

The “Stepping Stone” - Pilot Scheme on “Subsidy to Encourage Employment of Disabled Recipients under the Comprehensive Social Security Assistance Scheme” subsidised by the Community Care Fund has been launched. For details, please click here.

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) has earlier invited non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and schools to submit applications for operating the tenth batch of Child Development Fund (CDF) Projects.  Upon the recommendation of the Vetting Committee, SWD has awarded 33 projects to 25 operating NGOs and 10 projects (including 2 joint-school projects) to 10 operating schools.

List of the operators of the tenth batch of CDF projects can be downloaded here.

Information on additional and planned places of rehabilitation services for the period of July 2024 to September 2024 has been announced.  Please download the information here.

The Government launched the “School-based After School Care Service Scheme” (the Scheme) in the 2023/24 school year to provide focused support for families in need (particularly single-parent families).  With funding from the Community Care Fund, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) are responsible for operating school-based after school care service at venues provided by schools, with a view to allowing primary students in need to stay after school to receive care and learning support, while enabling parents, who used to be tied up with caring responsibilities for their children during after-school hours, to choose to work and improve their livelihood.  The Scheme has received positive feedback since its launch.  In order to collect more comprehensive data and views from stakeholders for future review of the Scheme on the way forward, the Government will launch the one-year “School-based After School Care Service Scheme (Expanded Programme)” (“the Expanded Programme”) in the 2024/25 school year, to extend the pilot period of the Scheme, covering a total of 100 primary schools across all 18 districts in Hong Kong with about 6 000 service places

The Social Welfare Department (SWD) is now inviting eligible NGOs (Paragraph 4 of the Service Specifications) to apply for joining the Expanded Programme as Approved Service Providers (ASPs).  NGOs interested may liaise with the participating schools in accordance with the location of their service units for discussing the implementation details in accordance with the content, procedures and guidelines set out in the Service Specifications and submit the application form (Annex 1 of the Service Specifications) on or before 19 July 2024 to Community Care Fund (CCF) Team of SWD (Paragraph 38 of the Service Specifications). The list of participating schools will be provided after the briefing.

The Education Bureau and Labour and Welfare Bureau/SWD will form an interdepartmental working group to vet and approve the application.  CCF Team of SWD will notify the participating schools and partner NGOs (ASPs) of the result on or before 6 August 2024 so as to implement the after school care service in this September.

To allow interested NGOs and schools having better understanding on the Expanded Programme and the above-mentioned arrangement, the SWD is going to organise an online briefing session with details as follows:

Date:  26 June 2024 (Wednesday)
Time:  3 pm to 5 pm

Eligible and interested NGOs may download and return the completed reply slip to the Youth Section of the SWD on or before 24 June 2024 (Monday) by email (email address: ay7@swd.gov.hk).

For enquiries, please contact the following responsible officers of the Youth Section:
Ms Joanne TAM   Senior Social Work Officer (Youth)1    2892 5112
YU Choi Shing   Social Work Officer (Youth)7    3468 2941

Online Briefing Reply Slip (in Chinese)
Service Specifications (in Chinese)
Annex 1 - ASP Application Form (in Chinese)

Following the online briefing on the implementation of the School-based After School Care Service Scheme (Expanded Programme) held by the Social Welfare Department (SWD) on 26 June 2024, document below is provided :

PowerPoint Slides (in Chinese)

List of Service Centres interested to join the (Expanded Programme)  (in Chinese)

List of Participating Schools (in Chinese)

Frequently Asked Questions (in Chinese)

• Starting from 28 July 2023, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) expands the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong. The expansion measures include to invite applications from operators of residential care homes for the elderly (RCHEs) with experience and satisfactory track records in providing subsidised elderly residential care services in Hong Kong and are operating RCHE(s) in Mainland cities of the Greater Bay Area (GBA) to register their RCHE(s) in GBA cities as the Recognised Service Provider (RSP) under the GDRCS Scheme.

• For the details of the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong, you may click here. 
• Joining the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong as Recognised Service Providers, please click here to download the Invitation for Proposal and annexes. (Chinese version only)
• For enquiries, you may contact the Residential Care Services Section of Elderly Branch.

• Starting from 28 July 2023, the Social Welfare Department (SWD) expands the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong. The expansion measures include to cover elderly persons waitlisting under the Central Waiting List for subsidised nursing home places.
• Currently, nursing home places are provided at The Hong Kong Jockey Club Shenzhen Society for Rehabilitation Yee Hong Heights and The Hong Kong Jockey Club Helping Hand Zhaoqing Home for the Elderly only.

Eligibility Criteria
The elderly persons who have been assessed and matched for residential care services under the Standardised Care Need Assessment Mechanism for Elderly Services and are waitlisted for subsidised care and attention places or nursing home places on the Central Waiting List (CWL) for Subsidised Long Term Care (LTC) Services.

How to Apply

1. Elderly persons who are waitlisted for subsidised residential care services in the CWL and would like to apply for the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong may contact their responsible workers to file an application for GDRCS Scheme.
2. New applicants of LTC services may approach Medical Social Services Units, Integrated Family Service Centres or elderly centres to make an application and request for referral for subsidised LTC services.  Through initial screening and assessment as appropriate, they may apply for LTC service, including GDRCS Scheme, in accordance with their assessment results after their care needs have been ascertained in the Standardised Care Needs Assessment.

• For the details of the Residential Care Services Scheme in Guangdong, you may click here.
• For enquiries, you may contact the Residential Care Services Section of Elderly Branch at 2961 7234.

For enquiries, please contact the following responsible officers of Residential Care Service Voucher Office:

1. a local non-governmental organisation (NGO)/social enterprise (SE) [being a bona fide non-governmental and non-profit-making organisation, charitable institution, or trust of a public character that is exempt from tax under section 88 of the Inland Revenue Ordinance (Cap. 112)] or a local private organisation with proven experience of directly providing elderly care services, either CCS or residential care services (RCS), for a continuous period of at least six months immediately preceding the submission date of application; or
2. a local licensed private hospital.

For details of the SPED and application eligibility, please click here.

https://www.swd.gov.hk/en/pubsvc/rehab/cat_fundtrustfinaid/sped/