Foreword
Since our establishment in 1949, the Hong Kong Family Welfare Society (the Society) has held fast to our "family-centric" perspective. With love and passion, we have continuously actualised our mission in serving families and the community, enhanced our service quality and innovated services to meet the changing needs and promote the wellbeing of families and the Hong Kong community. Time flies, this year marks a significant milestone as the Society celebrates its 75th anniversary.
Keeping pace with the times, expanding diverse services
The Society started with a focus on providing basic resources support to families without means. Over the years, we have built on our "family-centric" perspective with the introduction of diversified services. We carry out regular review to excel the quality and efficiency of our services, while expanding and evolving our service scopes in line with social changes. In 2019, we set up a Family Constructive Dispute Resolution Centre, the first of its kind mediation education and service centre in Hong Kong, in fostering harmonious family and interpersonal relationships. Most recently, in 2022, we launched the "Carers Support Project” to co-create a carer-friendly community. In recent years, there have been a number of child abuse cases and tragedies in Hong Kong. we launched the "Child Protection in Action" project in 2022 with the aim of raising awareness among society about child protection so as to create a protective growing environment for children together. We also understand the heavy pressure that the post-pandemic situation has brought to the youth. In the 2022-23 academic year, we provided various activities for 4,700 Hong Kong families through the Jockey Club "Promoting Family Resilience Project” and the “Deliver-Love”- Youth Parents “Family Life Education Programme”, aiming to build their resilience in facing adversity.
Creating a Strategic Development Blueprint to Propel the Society Forward
To work towards the goal of fostering family wellbeing, the Society established the "HKFWS Envisioning 2024" in 2019, which is a five-year strategic plan and work program. Specialised and working groups were formed to implement four key strategic initiatives. Since the official launch of the plan in 2022, the Society has been implementing various programs and reforms in stages. This includes a dedicated focus on developing the "Family First Campaign", using "edu-tainment" techniques to convey the message of the importance of family. As we enter the final year of the five-year plan, we will continue to exert our utmost efforts to lay the foundation for the continued development of the Society and actively contribute to the wellbeing of Hong Kong families.
Walking alongside Hong Kong families, fostering family wellbeing
Despite the challenges bombarded by the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) over the past few years, our staff remained committed to connecting with current social situation and engaging different sectors in society to help families overcome adversity, consistently making a positive impact in promoting family wellbeing. This includes the annual "Family Month" in May, which engages our service units as well as partners from different sectors to raise public awareness on family wellbeing. In 2021, we launched family market “Homeland”, which is the first family-themed market with diversified programme activities and mutual interactions to convey the message about “Family Wellbeing in Transition”. In addition, the Society has commissioned the Chinese University of Hong Kong to develop the “Hong Kong Family Wellbeing Index” in 2020 and carried out territory-wide survey regularly to better assess and respond to the needs of families and offers insights for policy development related to families, ultimately enhancing the wellbeing of Hong Kong families.
Bringing families together, envisioning the future
As we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Society with the theme “Family is where love is”, we are excited to go deeper into the community and roll out a rich array of activities across the city to further promote family wellbeing. I sincerely invite all sectors of society to participate in the celebrations, not only to share the joy, but also to promote family wellbeing and work together hand in hand to foster a caring community.
Finally, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to all current and former Executive Committee members, benefactors from all walks of life, various government departments, partners, and all our Society’s colleagues for their ardent support over the years. Through our concerted efforts, we will endeavor to foster family cohesion and elevate family health and wellbeing, co-creating a brighter future for Hong Kong families.
Kitty Chau, Chief Executive
Hong Kong Family Welfare Society
2024