Mr Louis Ng Kok Kwang asked the Minister for Social and Family Development from 2018 to 2021, of children and young persons who enter a place of safety as defined under the Children and Young Persons Act 1993, what is the annual number and percentage
of them who subsequently enter (i) the Singapore Boys' Home or Singapore Girls’ Home or (ii) prison, respectively.
Answer
Children and young persons (CYPs) in need of care or protection may be referred
by MSF or ordered by the Youth Court to reside in a place of safety. MSF Youth Homes, namely the Singapore Boys’ Home and Singapore Girls’ Home, are also places of safety under the Children andYoung Persons Act.
2.
Table 1 provides the breakdown of such CYPs who subsequently offended and (i) entered MSF Youth Homes, or (ii) were imprisoned.
Table 1
| Admission Year | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| (i) CYPs in places of safety who subsequently offended and entered an MSF Youth Home for their offences (as of Sep 2022). | 7 (5%) | 2 (2%) | 1 (1%) | 0 (o%) |
| (ii) CYPs in places of safety who subsequently offended and were imprisoned (as of Sep 2022). | 6 (4%) | 0 (0%) | 1 (1%) | 1 (1%) |
3. There is a higher proportion of CYPs who entered MSF Youth Homes as a place of safety, who subsequently offended and were imprisoned, compared to those in other places of safety. This is because such CYPs have higher
risks and needs, displaying behaviours that could lead to offences requiring imprisonment.