PM Lawrence Wong at the 10th Anniversary Celebrations of Big Heart Student Care

Ms Low Yen Ling, Chairperson of Big Heart Student Care,
My Cabinet and Parliament colleagues,
Staff, students, alumni of Big Heart Student Care
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen

Good morning to all of you. I'm delighted to join you this Sunday morning and let me start by wishing everyone a happy 10th birthday.

This is more than just a celebration of an important milestone for Big Heart; it is also a celebration of meaningful service, lives touched, and communities strengthened.

Tribute to Big Heart Student Care

As you heard just now from Ms Low, Big Heart started from the four Self-Help Groups which you are all familiar with - CDAC, MENDAKI, SINDA, and Eurasian Association. All four have long played a vital role in uplifting their respective communities.

But ten years ago, they made a bold decision: to come together and go beyond their own communities; to support all children, regardless of race, religion or background, and to provide them with student care. And out of this shared purpose, Big Heart Student Care was formed.

In the years since Big Heart has touched and transformed thousands of young lives.

You gave working parents ease of mind, knowing that their children are well cared for.

More than that, you provided a safe and nurturing environment for their children to get a better footing in their studies, explore new interests, and grow in confidence.

You gave them the space to become well-rounded individuals, ready for the future.

And we saw two shining examples of what Big Heart has done, in the two alumni you just saw briefly just now, the two emcees - Sofia and Danish - they are proud alumni of Big Heart Student Care.

Sofia graduated four years ago. She benefited from Big Heart's programmes - they gave her confidence, shaped her outlook in life, and encouraged her to step up and serve. Now, she is Student Council President in Northland Secondary School, and plays an active role in supporting efforts against cyberbullying. Well done Sofia!

Danish was a quiet child when he joined Big Heart six years ago. But he discovered his love for public speaking through your debating classes. And now in Secondary 1 in Orchid Park Secondary School, he has truly come into his own. Well done Danish!

These are just two stories but they are two of the many students whose lives have been transformed because of Big Heart's efforts.

So this morning, I would like to say a very big thank you to all the management staff, teachers and volunteers of Big Heart Student Care. Thank you for your dedication and hard work, let us give all of them a big round of applause.

To all the students and alumni - I hope you will always remember the support you have received, and hope to find your own way to pay it forward one day in the future.

New Initiatives

After-school student care in Singapore has evolved over the years.

The parents who are here, those of us growing up in Singapore in the 70s, maybe even in the 80s, student care was virtually non-existent.

Those of us who had working parents had to go home ourselves after school, often to an empty home. That is why they call us "latch-key children". Do you remember the phrase - because you had a key with you and then you had to open the door yourself. So we were left to our own devices and we had to learn to be independent very quickly.

But over time, we realised that after-school student care should not be an after-thought.

Where and how our children spend their time after school, does have implications on their growth and development.

And it is a golden opportunity for children - to build character, social skills, and explore new interests.

And that is why the Government has invested more in this space, working closely with partners to expand after-school care.

Today, every primary school has a student care centre.

It started with basic services - where they supervise students to do their homework and provide a space to keep them safe.

But fortunately it has evolved to include development programmes, focusing on building good character and social skills.

And Big Heart Student Care has been a key partner in this journey.

You started with 10 centres serving just over 500 students.

Now you have 30 centres serving 5,000 students.

And you work closely with MOE to design your programmes to complement what students learn in schools.

And you have made an effort to provide more support to those from less advantaged families.

And I am very encouraged that Big Heart Student Care is not standing still.

You are constantly innovating and developing better ways to care, develop, and engage your students.

Like introducing play-based learning to give students more space to experiment and collaborate with each other.

And deploying more mentors to help them build their socio-emotional skills.

Ms Low Yen Ling talked about the two new programmes just now and I am glad that Big Heart will be also growing and expanding the number of centres over the coming years to serve more students.

All these efforts reflect a belief we share: that every child in Singapore, regardless of background, deserves to have a good start in life, and we will provide for that.

Conclusion

To conclude, Big Heart Student Care has succeeded because of your close partnerships between our Self-Help Groups, schools, social service agencies and corporate partners.

This spirit of collaboration is a blueprint for our society and for the Singapore we want to build - a Singapore that is grounded in care, connection, and shared responsibility for one another.

So to everyone, everyone here in this room, to our parents, teachers, our student carers, to all of you who have contributed to Big Heart's journey - I say again, once again, thank you for all of you for your contributions. Thank you for making a difference to the countless lives of young people in Singapore.

Let us continue to work together to inspire minds and to touch hearts, and to build a Singapore where every child can thrive, where every family feels they belong. Thank you very much and enjoy this Sunday morning. Thank you.