ENG-1999 — Page 244

SOCIAL WELFARE

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conducts regular reviews of the Rehabilitation Programme Plan which projects the demand for and provision of various rehabilitation services over a planning period of five years.

Services for children with disabilities

At the end of the year, the department and NGOs altogether provided 1 318 integrated programme places in ordinary child care centres, 1 239 special child care centre places (including 78 residential places) and 1 615 early education and training centre places for pre-school disabled children. For autistic children, an enhanced training programme with input from clinical psychologists was provided in special child care centres. In addition, there were 96 small group home places for school-age mentally handicapped children requiring residential service.

Services for adults with disabilities

With a view to promoting integration of people with disabilities in to society, I 070 supported employment places were provided for those who could manage to work in open settings with necessary counselling and support service. For those who were not yet ready to compete in the open job market, there were 6 495 sheltered workshop places to help develop their work skills. Besides, there were 3 516 day activity centre places for severely mentally handicapped persons and 180 activity centre places for discharged mental patients to help them become more independent in daily living. Four social clubs for ex-mentally ill persons and 18 social and recreational centres for other groups of people with disabilities were set up to encourage their active participation in the community through various kinds of leisure activities.

As regards residential services, there were 4 583 hostel places, 17 supported housing places and 154 supported hostel places for people with disabilities who could neither live independently nor be adequately cared for by their families, or who lived in areas too remote from their places of training or employment. For aged blind people who were unable to look after themselves adequately, or in need of care and attention, 965 places were provided in homes and care-and-attention homes. For chronic and discharged mental patients, there were 570 long-stay care home places and 1 217 halfway house places.

Professional back-up and support services

Apart from professional back-up from clinical psychologists, occupational therapists and physiotherapists for people with disabilities in rehabilitation day centres and hostels, support services such as home-based training for mentally handicapped persons, after-care service for discharges of halfway houses, domiciliary occupational therapy service, and the community rehabilitation network for persons with visceral disability or chronic illness were provided in the community. Furthermore, respite service for mentally handicapped persons, occasional child care service for disabled pre-schoolers and six parents resource centres were provided to meet the special needs of families with disabled members.

Staff Training and Development

The department's Lady Trench Training Centre organises about 518 in-service training programmes for 22 156 staff working in the department and the non- governmental sectors. In addition to emphasis on competency-based training and