The National Council of Social Service (NCSS) will launch a $15 million Protection Practitioners Care Fund from 1 February 2026 to support social service agencies (SSAs) in creating more supportive work environments. The fund was first announced by the Minister for Social Services Integration, Mr Desmond Lee, in Parliament on 5 November 2025.
Protection practitioners face a heavy emotional burden as their work exposes them to trauma and high-pressure situations daily. SSAs such as Montfort Care, TRANS Family Services, Allkin Singapore, and Casa Raudha contributed ideas for supporting their practitioners, including psychological support, retreat programmes, and structured mentorship. These insights have helped shape the design of the Care Fund, which is expected to benefit over 1,000 protection practitioners.
From 1 February 2026, SSAs can apply to the Care Fund via the NCSS website. The fund allows agencies to implement well-being initiatives, such as mental health support, coaching, mentorship, physical wellness programmes, retreats, and employee counselling services. Additionally, SSAs can use the fund to arrange supplementary manpower, enabling eligible protection practitioners to take up to two weeks of wellness leave on a discretionary basis.
Eligible protection practitioners must be social service professionals working in MSF-funded agencies providing services that support the safety and well-being of individuals and families affected by domestic violence. This includes professionals working in protection specialist centres, integrated services for individual and family protection, child protection centres, children’s homes, children’s disability homes, fostering agencies, safe and strong family programmes, crisis shelters, and family service centres.
