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Friday, June 30, 1972
SOCIAL WORKER CERTIFICATES PRESENTED
The Assistant Director (General) of the Social Welfare Department,
Mr. T.S. Heppell, today presented certificates to 52 in-service social workers
on completion of three training courses at the Lady Trench Training Centre.
In a brief address preceding the distribution, Mr. Heppell said he
was sure that for the participants, the main objectives of the courses had been
achieved.
These were to give them a general idea of the philosophy behind social
work, and to enable them to acquire certain basic skills likely to be of
service to them in their careers.
He recalled that with the expansion of social welfare services in
Hong Kong in the last decade, his department and many voluntary agencies had
been compelled to employ a large number of workers, without full professional
training, to cope with the growing demand for services.
Courses such as the three that had just been completed were intended
to train workers, and for this reason participants were already employed full-
time, aged 21 and above, with at least six months of practical experience in
the welfare field.
From 1962 to 1970, the Social Welfare Department's Training Section
trained 513 workers in these courses.
From September 1971 to the end of June this year, 110 social workers
participated.
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