SPS YRSG Corporate Advance 2025

SPS-YRSG CORPORATE ADVANCE 2025

FORWARD CORRECTIONS: INNOVATE AND COLLABORATE

The Singapore Prison Service (SPS) and Yellow Ribbon Singapore (YRSG) held our Corporate Advance at the Singapore University of Technology and Design today. Themed “Forward Corrections: Innovate and Collaborate”, SPS and YRSG highlighted how we would continue to leverage technology and community partnerships to uplift inmates’ employability and increase their social and community capital, achieving longer term desistance for a safer Singapore.

2.                   The event was graced by Mrs Josephine Teo, Minister for Digital Development and Information and Second Minister for Home Affairs. About 800 SPS and YRSG staff and community partners attended the annual workplan seminar.

Leveraging Technology to Improve Operational Efficiency

3.                   As part of the implementation of our Corrections 2030 strategies, SPS has been working with HTX (Home Team Science and Technology Agency), to leverage technology to improve our operational efficiency and effectiveness.

4.                   Some of the technology trials under SPS and HTX that were showcased at the event include:

a.       Life Signs Monitoring System. The Life Signs Monitoring System is being trialled at the Changi Prison Complex Medical Centre. The Life Signs Monitoring System – where smart sensors are mounted on the walls of the medical wards – helps to monitor the inmates’ vital signs remotely and detect abnormal events such as irregular heart rates and falls. This system complements the existing medical rounds and physical patrols in medical wards, enhancing our ability to respond quickly to potential medical emergencies. The preliminary results from the trial are promising, and SPS and HTX are exploring rolling out the Life Signs Monitoring System to more medical wards and prison cells. 

b.       Autonomous Tele-visit System. In 2024, SPS facilitated about 130,000 face-to-face and tele-visits between inmates and their families or loved ones. These visits were either held face-to-face with inmates at the Changi Prison Complex, or tele-visits conducted from five Prison Link Centres and six Satellite Visit Centres.^[1]

SPS is setting up two additional Satellite Visit Centres at New Hope Community Services and Kaki Bukit Community Club this year, making it even more convenient for inmates’ families to visit their incarcerated loved ones.

To enhance security, improve operational efficiency, and increase convenience for families in the way tele-visits are currently conducted, SPS and HTX, will be trialling the Autonomous Tele-visit System in October this year. The system will be first deployed at the premises of our community partner, New Life Stories, and can be expanded to other locations, including Family Service Centres or community centres. Using facial recognition technology, artificial intelligence, and sentiment analysis, the Autonomous Tele-visit System includes the following features:

Uplifting Inmates’ Employability

5.                   To uplift inmates’ employability as part of Corrections 2030 strategies, YRSG continues to provide industry-relevant training and work opportunities for inmates to help them develop requisite skills so that they can secure jobs and grow in their careers upon release; as well as career facilitation and career retention support for inmates to facilitate their longer-term career development.  

Career Circles

6.                   YRSG’s ‘Career Circles’ programme for inmates comprises facilitated sessions on various career-related topics to equip inmates with the skills to set career goals and prepare for job searches. About 300 inmates have undergone the programme since its inception in 2023.

7.                    In February 2025, ‘Career Circles’ was enhanced with a revised curriculum and increased frequency. The programme has been streamlined from six months to a focused two-week curriculum, featuring six sessions to ensure that the content stays fresh and relevant for the inmates. A new workbook has also been introduced for inmates to record their reflections. More runs will be conducted, with one every two to three months for new cohorts. Furthermore, the single-session pre-release ‘Career Circles’ content has been revised to enhance the experience for participants, with the programme occurring two weeks before the inmate commences community-based programme or employment.

Project Beyond Hiring

8.                   Uplifting inmates’ employability would not be possible without the strong support from our partner employers. Today, more than 6,700 employers support the hiring of ex-offenders. To enhance support for both employers and ex-offenders in the workplace, YRSG introduced the ’Project Beyond Hiring’ (PBH) initiative in 2022.^[2] To date, YRSG has conducted five runs of PBH with employers in diverse industries (e.g. food and beverage, hospitality, logistics etc.). Employers whose workplace supervisors had participated in this initiative include Marina Bay Sands, Guzman y Gomez and Nando’s Singapore. YRSG will be conducting more runs of PBH to meet the increasing demand from partner employers.

9.                   Chief Executive Officer of YRSG, Mr Sunny Lee, said, “We firmly believe in the power of second chances and the impact of employment on successful reintegration. Our commitment to support inmates and ex-offenders as they rebuild their lives drives our work. Since launching the enhanced ‘Career Circles’ programme, we provide targeted guidance to equip individuals with the necessary mindset to secure meaningful employment and grow in their careers. At the same time, we place emphasis on building strong partnerships with our partner employers and developing tailored support systems for both ex-offenders and their supervisors through the Project Beyond Hiring initiative. These collaborative efforts create pathways to sustainable employment, enable ex-offenders to contribute to the workforce, and empower them on the path towards desistance.”

Strengthening Community Partnerships to Better Support Inmates’ Reintegration

10.                   Another Corrections 2030 strategy is to mobilise the community by involving even more community groups in our rehabilitation efforts. This aims to increase inmates’ social and community capital and create a strong ecosystem of support for ex-offenders. The halfway houses are amongst SPS’s key community partners.

11.                   In January this year, SPS implemented an enhanced Halfway House Service Model (HSM), or HSM+, which saw Highpoint Community Services Association and Yellow Ribbon Industries come on board, increasing the number of halfway house partners from nine to 11.^[3] Under HSM+, these halfway houses are able to provide enhanced support to the supervisees during and even after their halfway house stay. HSM+ also involves enhancing the competencies of the halfway house staff and upgrading the halfway houses’ infrastructure to improve accessibility for elderly supervisees and those with limited mobility. 

Launching a Refreshed Captains of Lives Campaign

12.                   Prison officers, or Captains of Lives, play an instrumental role in the secure custody and rehabilitation of inmates. To increase awareness of the varied roles of a prison officer, SPS has launched a refreshed Captains of Lives campaign.

13.                   The campaign tagline – “Conviction. Courage. Care. Our stories as Captains of Lives. What will yours be?” – captures the shared qualities of Captains of Lives, each with their own unique story to tell. To be a Captain of Lives, one must have a firm conviction in the SPS mission of ensuring a safe and secure prison, facilitating rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders back to society for a safer Singapore. Captains of Lives must also have the courage to carry out our responsibilities in a fair and humane manner, while showing care for the inmates, their families, volunteers, and community partners, and fellow Captains of Lives.

14.                   As part of the SPS-YRSG Corporate Advance 2025, SPS organised a recruitment fair for members of the public and potential Captains of Lives where they had the opportunity to find out more about the varied roles of a Captain of Lives, such as a Correctional Unit Officer, Singapore Prisons Emergency Action Response (SPEAR) Force Operator, Reintegration Officer, Correctional Rehabilitation Specialist, Staff Officer, and Singapore Prison Training Institute (SPTI) Trainer.

15.                   Commissioner of Prisons, Ms Shie Yong Lee, said, “As key social enablers, SPS and YRSG will continue to implement our Corrections 2030 strategies to create a safer throughcare ecosystem for inmates and ex-offenders. We will continue to leverage technology and strengthen community partnerships to enhance our operations and rehabilitation outcomes, for a safer Singapore.”

[1] The five Prison Link Centres are Prison Link Centre Changi, Prison Link Centre Geylang Bahru, Prison Link Centre Jurong, Prison Link Centre Selarang Park, and Prison Link Centre Tanah Merah. The six Satellite Visit Centres are located at Assyakirin Mosque, Industrial & Services Co-Operative Society Ltd, SANA Step-Up Centre @ Northwest, SANA Step-Up Centre @ Sengkang, Lakeside Family Centre, and Woodlands Social Centre.

[2] Project Beyond Hiring (PBH) targets workplace supervisors from employers who hire ex-offenders by providing customised training on mentoring and empowering ex-offenders at work.

[3] Suitable inmates may be emplaced on community-based programme at the halfway houses in the community. In 2010, the HSM was introduced to unify service standards and governance for all the halfway house partners. The 11 halfway house partners under HSM+ are Breakthrough Missions, Green Haven, HEB-Ashram, Highpoint Community Services Association, Jamiyah Halfway House, Pertapis Halfway House, Teen Challenge, The Helping Hand, The Turning Point, Rise Above Halfway House, and Yellow Ribbon Industries.