GF 323
CONFIDENTIAL
機密
basic instrument of planning will remain the 5-Year Development Plan,
which is reviewed annually under the aegis of the Planning and
Evaluation Sub-Committee of the Social Welfare Advisory Committee.
The capacity of the Social Welfare Department for planning and
developing future services will be greatly strengthened after the
Department decentralizes its services into regions this year. While
the operational work of the Department will be hased in comprehensive
district offices, a team of professional officers under an Assistant
Director will supplement the existing Planning Unit at Headquarters,
thus enabling the establishment of a more co-ordinated system for the
development of new policy and the construction of welfare institutions.
4.42
The restructuring of the Department also entails the creation
of a new Division under an Assistant Director, whose primary responsi-
bilities will be to co-ordinate the annual subvention exercise, and to
evaluate welfare services provided by voluntary agencies. In the
immediate future, one of nis main tasks will be to devise, in close
consultation with the Hong Kong Council of Social Service, a more
satisfactory system of subvention.
4.43
One of the major constraints over the next few years is
likely to be the shortage of trained social workers to meet the
demands of the proposed expansion of services outlined in this White
Paper. The recent review of the welfare class in the Social Welfare
Department has enabled proposals to be made for a more economical
use of professionally trained manpower, for example by the use of
in-service trained staff in work, such as social security, where
professional expertise is not essential. Negotiations are already
in hand with the Universities and the Polytechnic for expanding their
social work departments, and the need for an accreditation system for
schools of social work in Hong Kong is being examined. In-service
CONFIDENTIAL
機密