Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA)

The Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) 2012 established a data protection law that comprises rules governing the collection, use and disclosure of personal data. Social service agencies have to comply with the PDPA, as well as other relevant laws when handling personal data in their possession. The Data Protection Provisions of the PDPA came into effect on 2 July 2014.

On this webpage, NCSS has consolidated key information on the PDPA, as extracted from the Personal Data Protection Commission website. To ensure that you are complying with the PDPA, VWOs can access the customised guidelines and consent templates by clicking on the “PDPA Advisory Guidelines for Social Service Sector” and “Consent Templates” buttons.

   

>> Read more on PDPA General Advisory Guidelines.
 

Do Not Call (DNC) Registry

The Do Not Call (DNC) provisions under PDPA, in effect since 2 January 2014, generally prohibit agencies from sending unsolicited commercial telemarketing messages in the form of voice calls, text or fax messages to Singapore telephone numbers, including mobile, fixed-line, residential and business numbers, registered with the DNC Registry. Messages promoting charitable or religious causes do not fall under the purview of the DNC and are therefore still allowed. Please see chapters 3.8 to 3.13 of the DNC Advisory Guidelines for details.

If you are a social service agency intending to conduct telemarketing activities to users of Singapore telephone numbers, you will need to submit your list of telemarketing phone numbers for checking against the Do Not Call (DNC) Registry. Click on the “Getting Started” button for instructions regarding this. 

  

 

Singapore National Day Award

The Singapore National Day Award (NDA) is a national level award conferred by the Office of the Prime Minister. The purpose of the Award is to honour and recognise various forms of merit and service to the nation.

Outstanding Social Worker Award

The Outstanding Social Worker Award started in 1998. Organised by the Singapore Association of Social Workers, it is supported by the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) and ExxonMobil Asia Pacific Pte Ltd.

The Outstanding Social Worker Award (OSWA) is the highest award conferred by the President of Singapore to acknowledge and recognise the outstanding contributions by dedicated social workers of Singapore to the social service, healthcare or community sector.
 
  
Promising Social Worker Award

The Promising Social Worker Award (PSWA) introduced in 2008 accords recognition to social workers who are relatively new to the sector and nonetheless have made a difference in the lives of clients and the community alike.

The Singapore Centre for Social Enterprise (raiSE) was set up to raise awareness on social entrepreneurship and raise support for social enterprises in Singapore. raiSE hopes to strengthen the social enterprise sector in Singapore and encourage the growth of social enterprises as a sustainable way to address social needs.
raiSE will provide a range of services to help social enterprises from start to mature stages, such as funding, business advisory, training, relevant resources and networks. raiSE will also look to encourage collaboration and sharing of information between social enterprises and social service agencies. raiSE welcomes the support of corporations and individuals who would like to contribute or play a role in the social enterprise sector.
 
>> Read more about raiSE.

• Centre for Non-Profit Leadership
• ComCare
• Charity Portal
• Ministry of Social and Family Development
• People's Association
• Singapore Association of Social Workers
• Singapore Nurses Association

Centres of Specialisation (CoS) was an initiative started in 2007 to build and share a body of knowledge and expertise in a particular social service sector It aimed to look into standards and methods, review of processes over time, and document evidence-based best practices to train other social service agencies. In 2014, 14 COS projects were completed.

Agencies which are interested in building and sharing knowledge can participate in the GatherHere online platform under the Social Service Institute.