MSF to launch standardised tools for frontline workers to better detect, report domestic violence
Minister of State for Social and Family Development Sun Xueling said this while addressing questions in parliament related to a recent case of a girl who was sexually abused by a caregiver who wanted to adopt her.
This audio is generated by an AI tool.
SINGAPORE: The Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) will be progressively launching a suite of tools for frontline professionals to better identify and report cases of family violence, including sexual abuse.
This comes after several recommendations were given by a government-led task force on family violence in 2021, said Minister of State for Social and Family Development Sun Xueling in parliament on Wednesday (Jan 10).
Ms Sun was responding to questions by two MPs in relation to a recently reported case, where a girl was sexually assaulted almost daily from September 2020 to November 2020 by a caregiver who wanted to adopt her.
Questions were raised after the court case about why the abuse went undetected for nearly three months. The girl had not told anyone about the abuse, including during weekly sessions with professionals like a child protection officer, until she confided in a schoolteacher.
MP Nadia Ahmad Samdin (PAP-Ang Mo Kio) asked what safeguards were in place to ensure the suitability of adults who express interest in adopting children, especially those with traumatic pasts.
MP He Ting Ru (WP-Sengkang) asked if MSF will improve on existing training schemes for social workers and professionals handling cases of vulnerable underaged individuals to detect sexual and other forms of abuse.
Ms Sun told the House about the various steps taken in the adoption process to ensure a child’s welfare and best interests, including an adoption suitability assessment that prospective adoptive parents have to undergo.
Social workers and professionals at children’s homes also receive compulsory training to recognise signs and symptoms of abuse, including sexual abuse, said Ms Sun, who is also a Minister of State for Home Affairs.
She further noted that those working at children’s homes are screened for prior criminal records before coming into contact with children.
In the recent court case, these procedures were followed – the offender did not have a criminal record.
Ms Nadia then asked Ms Sun for more details on the number of volunteers who have been assessed to be suitable for the “kith caregiver” scheme.
The offender in that case, as well as his wife, were formally appointed as kith caregivers by MSF while the adoption process was ongoing.
Kith caregivers are non-familial adults known to a child through family or community connections, and they are not registered as foster parents.
Ms Nadia also asked if there are any measures that homes and MSF are putting in place to prevent similar cases from occurring.
In response, Ms Sun reiterated that the ministry conducted background checks on the offender and his wife. They were also assessed by professionals as capable of providing adequate and safe care for the girl.
Volunteers in MSF-funded programmes must also undergo suitability assessments and background checks, said Ms Sun.
In terms of training courses that children’s home staff undergo, Ms Sun said this includes introductions to a child abuse reporting guide and Singapore’s child protection framework, among other things.
The primary consideration when processing applications for adopting children is the child's welfare and best interests. There are various steps in the adoption process to ensure this. Prospective adopters must undergo a comprehensive adoption suitability assessment. If found suitable, they will receive a favourable home study report. This allows them to search for a child to adopt through adoption agencies or their own contacts. Once a child is identified, the adopters will make an application to the court, which will appoint the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) as the guardian. Minister of State for Social and Family Development Sun Xueling outlined these safeguards in reply to MPs’ questions in Parliament on Wednesday (Jan 10). She said social workers and professionals employed at children's homes receive compulsory training to recognise signs and symptoms of sexual and other forms of abuse. She said in the recently reported case of abuse, these procedures were followed by the home and the offender did not have a prior criminal record. “This incident is very regrettable and all the professionals and social service workers who have been in contact with the child are shaken,” she said. She added that the children's home had made every effort to perform due diligence on persons who have contact with the child and to supervise the contact. The social service professionals have also followed up actively with supervised visits. She said it is not possible to predict with absolute certainty how the relationship between an adopted child and the adoptive parent develops. Ms Sun said MSF will continue to emphasise to the homes the importance of selecting and training their volunteers well and to constantly monitor their residents’ safety and well-being.
Ms Sun then brought up the task force on family violence, which she had co-chaired with fellow Minister of State for Home Affairs Faishal Ibrahim. It was set up in February 2020 and gave 16 recommendations to improve various aspects of how domestic violence is handled in Singapore.
One recommendation was to develop consistent, standardised assessment and screening tools to enable frontline professionals to better identify cases involving family violence, manage the risks of perpetrators and the needs of survivors, and know when to report cases, including sexual abuse.
“MSF will progressively be launching a suite of tools to ensure a more robust and more consistent decision-making system for the domestic violence sector,” said Ms Sun.
“So this is something that we’re working on to make sure that not only has there been training provided to social service professionals, but that there are standardised assessment tools so that the social service professionals know what the baselines are and under what circumstances to report.”
Ms Nadia pressed for answers on how MSF ensures the rigour of supervision, check-ins and home reports, and how this applies across the various agencies that the ministry works with.
Ms Sun said the government will “spare no effort” in training social service professionals to identify signs of abuse.
Aside from training for social service professionals, Ms Sun stressed that those in the community – including neighbours, friends and teachers – should help when they can.
She pointed to MSF’s Break the Silence campaign, which in 2021 adopted a hand signal as its new logo to reflect a non-verbal cue that victims can use to get help.
“The most fundamental and, perhaps, the most comprehensive way of tackling this issue is to raise greater awareness among more members of the public – in particular persons who have immediate touchpoints with children,” Ms Sun added.
