The Association was delighted to share the research findings and case study results of the “Y-Flight: Family-based Support for Children with Special Educational Needs (SEN)” Project (“Y-Flight”) which has been run for two years. Its picture book “The Visible Secret” was also released at the sharing seminar.
We were honored to have Mr. Caspar Tsui, JP, Under Secretary for Labour and Welfare and Mr. Koo Tong-fat, Governor of Chow Tai Fook Charity Foundation to attend the event. Before the ceremony, the guests visited the tailor-made training facilities for SEN children in the Family Wellness Centre and talked with Y-Flight parents about their stories. Mr. Tsui appreciated the perseverance and love of the parents and encouraged the children to be self-assured and brave on facing the upcoming challenges. With the company of Mrs. Patricia Ling, MH, JP, the Association’s President, they officiated at the book launch ceremony and received handmade glass spheres as souvenir, which represent the confidence and courage of Y-Flight families.
Y-Flight has been running for two years using the family-based four-tier intervention model. Its target group was children with special educational needs and their families. Over 200 families were served. Service attendance exceeded 7,500 and each family enjoyed over 100 hours of services. The CUHK’s research has shown that such model is effective in helping parents with SEN kids to cope with their stress and enhance their social network. Apart from the research results, occupational therapist, social workers and parents involved also shared their experiences and tips for training SEN children.
To help the public to understand more about the real problems faced by SEN children and their families, the Association conducted a talk and two workshops after the sharing session. At the workshops, the social workers and Y-Flight parents facilitated the public to read the Y-Flight picture book which illustrated the life stories of the Y-flight families. The book not only helped the public to understand the practical problems faced by these families, but also to empathise with the SEN children and their parents regarding their struggles and feelings by using different color filters to look through the inner world of the characters in the book. It is expected that the public can have more understanding and acceptance towards the SEN children and their parents, and hence create a society with harmony and equal opportunity for the people with different needs, talents and abilities.