SINGAPORE – Anxiety about transitions from school to work or community services, or between one job and another, is one of the top concerns for persons with disabilities (PWDs) and their caregivers.
The Taskforce on Assurance for Families with Persons with Disabilities hopes to provide more assurance and support in this area, said Minister of State for Social and Family Development Goh Pei Ming on March 25.
In his first progress update since the task force was set up in December 2025, Mr Goh, its chairman, broadly sketched out its key focus areas, including employment training, lifelong learning and financial support for families of PWDs.
The task force’s recommendations will be made public in the second half of 2026, said Mr Goh, who was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of an engagement session at the MINDS Regional Hub in Woodlands, as well as at its Woodlands Gardens School and Special Student Care Centre.
In the first few months, the task force met members of the disability space, such as those from special education (SPED) schools, adult disability services and job placement agencies.
Mr Goh said the recurring feedback he has heard from persons with disabilities, their parents and educators was their anxiety about transitions, such as going from school to work, or from one job to another.
“For most of us, we will naturally be worried when we have to move from one place to another… and all the more for our persons with disabilities and their families, especially given some vulnerabilities (they face),” he said.
One area the task force will focus on is strengthening upstream employment training for PWDs, so that students are trained in vocational skills and ready to work in related jobs.
It will also consider whether more can be done for day activity centres (DACs) and sheltered workshops (SWs), said Mr Goh, noting the Ministry of Social and Family Development’s (MSF) recent update that it is on track to increase these facilities’ capacities.
DACs are community-based facilities for those with disabilities aged 18 and above who cannot work, while SWs provide work skills training and job support for PWDs who can work but are not yet ready to do so or are unable to take up employment in the open market.
To meet growing demand, 100 new places were made available in SWs in 2024, with 880 more to be added at SWs and DACs from 2026 to 2027.
Mr Goh added that the task force is considering scaling up the Enabling Skills for Life Programme across the island.
The programme, piloted in 2025 at six selected centres for PWDs, equips adult PWDs with independent living, communication, social-emotional functioning and vocational skills. It also creates an individualised curriculum and training plan with PWDs and their caregivers.
The task force will look into enhancing financial support for families with PWDs, especially in the provision of adult disability services, Mr Goh said, without giving further details.
He added that more can be done to increase awareness of current programmes available for PWDs and to help the wider society, such as schools and employers, become more understanding and receptive towards this community.
“We will continue to engage widely across all stakeholders in the disability landscape, and when the recommendations are fairly ready, we will also want to consult widely with all the stakeholders again (to) refine the recommendations,” he said.
MSF set up the inter-agency task force to strengthen support for people with disabilities and their families across life stages.
Its other members are Ms Rahayu Mahzam, Minister of State for Health and Digital Development and Information; Mr Eric Chua, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Social and Family Development and Law; Mr Shawn Huang, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Manpower and Finance; and Dr Syed Harun Alhabsyi, Senior Parliamentary Secretary for Education and National Development.
As part of the engagement session on March 25, Mr Goh joined an arts and crafts activity with MINDS clients and told a story using flash cards to a group of students with intellectual disabilities.
MINDS chief executive Kelvin Koh said the agency hopes the task force can improve access to services such as Special Student Care Centres at all SPED schools and active ageing centres for persons with intellectual disabilities.
Other areas it hopes the task force can tackle include developing individualised support services and reviewing policies to shift care towards an approach that focuses on people rather than programmes and institutions, he added.
