Data on School Programme Expenditure for Student Mental Health and Well-being in Past Five Years

Ms Eileen Chong Pei Shan asked the Minister for Education (a) what proportion of schools' programme expenditure was directed to student mental health and well-being in each of the past five years; and (b) whether the Ministry will publish this data as a recurring indicator.

My response will address both Parliamentary Questions raised by Ms Eileen Chong Pei Shan about funding for student mental health and well-being.

The Ministry of Education's (MOE's) approach to supporting student mental health and well-being is spread across a range of school activities and programmes. This includes manpower resourcing, curriculum support and professional training of educators and specialised personnel to create a school environment where students feel safe, connected and supported. Efforts include regular check-ins on students' well-being, early detection, peer support structures, and a curriculum that teaches social-emotional learning and mental health education. For example, quarterly surveys are conducted to assess how well students are coping and their support structures. We also invest in digital solutions to make the collection and analysis of such data more efficient and effective.

Beyond this, MOE resources schools with school counsellors and facilitates access to counselling interventions, as well as targeted support in the community, such as Response, Early Intervention, Assessment in Community Mental Health and the Youth Integrated Teams. The latter two provide mental health assessment and intervention services funded by the Ministry of Health.

Overall, the Ministry's expenditure on student mental health and well-being is included in our manpower resourcing and the operating grants given to schools. As these provisions and efforts are woven into daily school life rather than delivered as standalone programmes, MOE does not track the expenditure on mental health separately. Doing so would not accurately reflect the holistic support for mental health and may create a misleading picture that underrepresents the actual level of resourcing. For this reason, MOE does not publish this as a recurring indicator.

Supporting student mental health is a whole-of-Government effort. The full investment in student mental health extends beyond MOE's budget and any assessment of the Government's commitment should be understood in this larger context.