Seven secondary schools with a total of more than 9,000 pupils could see their complement of social workers cut next year under a 'one social worker per school' policy to be introduced next month.
All 458 secondary schools will be given one full-time social worker in a policy costing $97 million to be financed largely from recurrent social welfare expenditure.
But Assistant Director of Social Welfare Ann Hon Kit-sheung said seven schools with more than 1,300 pupils that had one full-time plus a part-time social worker would lose the part-time social worker 'in the near future'.
She said outreach teams would be available in their place.
'The large schools will be victimised under the new arrangement,' said Sister Wong May-may, principal of Tack Ching Middle School, one of the seven. She said her school in Shamshuipo had about 82 pupils needing help from social workers.
