Numbers Helped under Partners Engaging and Empowering Rough Sleepers Network

Mr Muhamad Faisal Bin Abdul Manap asked the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) what is the current number of families or individuals who have been engaged under the Partners Engaging and Empowering Rough Sleepers network; (b) how many of them are open to assistance; and (c) among those who are being assisted, how many have managed to acquire a long-term and stable accommodation.

Mr Muhamad Faisal Bin Abdul Manap asked the Minister for Social and Family Development (a) to date, how many families or individuals who are receiving assistance under the Partners Engaging and Empowering Rough Sleepers network have applied for a rental flat under HDB's Public Rental Scheme; (b) how many of these applications are successful and unsuccessful respectively; and (c) what are the reasons for the unsuccessful applications.

MSF, MND and HDB have been partnering many community groups under the Partners Engaging and Empowering Rough Sleepers (PEERS) Network. The network aims to engage, befriend and assist rough sleepers. Since May 2019, 1200 individuals have been engaged through outreach walks, and through referrals made to the PEERS Office in MSF.

Of the 1200 persons engaged, all are assisted by appropriate help agencies. These include Family Service Centres for social work support and Social Service Offices for financial assistance. 251 of them have moved on to longer-term housing. The rest are in S3Ps, or other forms of shelter arrangement such as Transitional Shelters.

Out of the 251 individuals, 142 of them have moved into HDB’s Public Rental Housing. The rest have either returned home, moved into family members’ homes or to alternative accommodation arranged by their employers. While some individuals have moved into public rental housing, there are some who are not eligible for public rental at the outset, as they may own property, have family members who can house them, or do not meet the citizenship criterion. HDB works with partners of the PEERS Network to assess the circumstances of each case and will exercise flexibility if the individual has no other housing options.