https://www.scmp.com/rss/523806/feed The latest news and top stories on the Social Welfare Department. A prominent Hong Kong-based governmental body, the Social Welfare Department is dedicated to overseeing and implementing social welfare services, including those specifically for the elderly. Its main areas of focus include social security, family and child welfare, rehabilitation and services for offenders. The institution is recognised for its comprehensive provision of social safety nets and its significant contributions to the... en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial Social welfare in Hong Kong is characterised by an extensive network of heavily subsidised services provided by the government and agencies. However, that does not mean those in need will not fall through the safety net because of slack supervision, bureaucracy and malpractices across the sector. A case in point is the respite services for supporting carers of the elderly and people with disabilities. Credit goes to the ombudsman for its investigation into an increasingly important service... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3329233/hong-kongs-respite-agencies-must-be-held-accountable-refusing-services?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3329233/hong-kongs-respite-agencies-must-be-held-accountable-refusing-services?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Oct 2025 22:45:09 +0000 Edith Lin Edith Lin Hong Kong social welfare authorities have pledged to improve their care home respite services, demanding that operators remove unnecessary background and medical checks while vowing to issue warnings to those who fail to rectify the situation. The remarks from Social Welfare Department assistant director David Ng Wai-lung came on Friday, a day after the city’s ombudsman found some of the 46 facilities it investigated were unduly selective when admitting applicants for respite services and were... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3328482/hong-kong-authorities-vow-improve-respite-services-after-ombudsmans-probe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3328482/hong-kong-authorities-vow-improve-respite-services-after-ombudsmans-probe?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 10 Oct 2025 05:25:05 +0000 Leopold Chen Leopold Chen Hong Kong social welfare authorities should strengthen supervision of care homes and review their resource allocation, the ombudsman has urged, after its investigation found some facilities were unduly selective when admitting applicants and were underused or even completely unused. The Office of the Ombudsman on Thursday also criticised the “lukewarm attitude” of the institutions in providing help and information, adding that the overall utilisation rate of services was persistently low and... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3328381/hong-kong-ombudsman-slams-poor-attitude-resource-use-care-homes-after-probe?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/society/article/3328381/hong-kong-ombudsman-slams-poor-attitude-resource-use-care-homes-after-probe?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 09 Oct 2025 09:25:20 +0000 Connor Mycroft Connor Mycroft This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. Hong Kong issued the No 8 typhoon signal at 9.20pm on Sunday, with Tropical Storm Tapah expected to make landfall over western Guangdong on Monday morning, the Observatory said, triggering the suspension of school classes and disrupting the start of the work week for... https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3324631/t3-typhoon-signal-remain-force-hong-kong-rest-sunday?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/health-environment/article/3324631/t3-typhoon-signal-remain-force-hong-kong-rest-sunday?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 07 Sep 2025 02:29:57 +0000 SCMP Editorial SCMP Editorial The city has been shocked, not for the first time, by the discovery of the remains of an elderly resident who lived and died alone in a public housing flat. It is also likely to be far from the last time. An inadequate social safety network for a growing population of elderly who live alone or with an elderly spouse, without appropriate support, could make that inevitable unless action is taken to counter isolation. There are several initiatives and pilot schemes that address the problem... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3322874/hong-kong-must-ensure-its-elderly-age-dignity-and-care?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/comment/article/3322874/hong-kong-must-ensure-its-elderly-age-dignity-and-care?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Aug 2025 23:15:13 +0000