SOCIAL WELFARE
required to refund either the payment received from the scheme or the amount of damages or compensation, whichever is the less.
During the year, 5 460 applications were received and 4970 were approved for assistance, with payments of $69.0 million compared with $55.5 million in 1991.
Emergency relief is provided to victims of natural or other disasters in the form of material aid, such as hot meals, eating utensils and other essential articles. Grants from the Emergency Relief Fund are also paid to disaster victims or their dependents to relieve hardship arising from personal injury or death.
ון
With the exception of burial grant, the rates of grants payable under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme, the Traffic Accident Victims Assistance Scheme and the Emergency Relief Fund were increased in March and September 1992 to cover the rise in living cost and in the average manufacturing workers' wages.
During the year, emergency relief was given to 4 042 registered victims on 98 occasions. The Social Welfare Department also assisted in providing hot meals to refugees and boat people from Vietnam.
To prevent abuse of the various schemes, a special team investigates cases of suspected fraud or difficulties encountered in recovery of overpayment. During the year, the team completed investigations into 19 cases.
Social Security Appeal Board
The Social Security Appeal Board is an independent body comprising non-official members appointed by the Governor. It considers appeals from individuals against decisions by the Social Welfare Department concerning public assistance, special needs allowance and traffic accident victims assistance payments. During the year, 138 appeals were heard by the board. Of these, six were related to public assistance, 130 to special needs allowance and two to traffic accident victims assistance.
Services for Offenders
The Social Welfare Department has several statutory duties in the field of services for offenders. These duties are to put into effect the directions of the courts on the treatment of offenders through social work methods. The overall aim is to rehabilitate offenders through probation supervision, the Community Service Orders Scheme, residential training for young offenders and after-care services.
Probation service is provided in 11 probation offices which serve 10 magistracies, the District and Supreme Courts. Probation officers make inquiries into the background and home surroundings of offenders as the court may direct and of prisoners for consideration of reducing sentences. They also supervise offenders in complying with the requirements of probation orders. Probation applies to offenders of all age groups from seven years onwards. It allows offenders to remain in the community under supervision and subject to prescribed rules set by the courts. The probation officers work closely with the probationers' families with a family-orientated approach. To promote community involvement in the rehabilitation of offenders, volunteers are recruited to befriend probationers and residents of institutions and assist them in activities that do not require professional skills and knowledge.
The Community Service Orders Scheme is a community-based treatment with punitive and rehabilitative aims. It requires an offender over the age of 14 and convicted of an
159