Families in crisis offered one-stop assistance to rebuild lives

Publish Date: 06-Jul-2018

To help desolate families that suffer from a sudden loss of their main source of income, St James’ Settlement and Hong Kong Family Welfare Society launched the Family in Crisis Pilot Support Project in 2017, with funding from the Chow Tai Fook Charity Foundation. The three organizers held a press briefing on 20 June to present the project’s results.

The project provides timely financial assistance and counseling services to the users to help them overcome adversity and rebuild their lives. Through intervention by professional social workers, the project assesses and addresses the needs of the users, with particular concern for those grass-roots families with young children.

This comprehensive service has proved more effective than other support services that focus on one type of aid. St James’ Settlement and Hong Kong Family Welfare Society commissioned the Hong Kong Council of Social Service and the Hong Kong Polytechnic University respectively to conduct a social impact assessment and a practice research on the families supported by the project. Up to 31 May 2018, the project has already aided 139 families. Among those receiving financial assistance, 15% received both emergency grant for funeral and ordinary grant for daily living expenses. 86% of the respondents were aged between 31 and 60, with children attending school. Without financial aid, the respondents might need to borrow money or tap into their children’s education funds.