Finding Vulnerable Households and Preventing Solitary Deaths... Yeongdeungpo-gu Conducts Survey on Single-Person Households

By January next year, a survey of about 4,700 single-person households aged 50 and over using big data... Local community center officials conduct visits to investigate social networks, economic conditions, etc.... Choi Ho-kwon, Yeongdeungpo District Mayor, "We will implement tailored welfare services for vulnerable households and pursue comprehensive and robust welfare policies."

Visit for a Survey on Single-Person Households

Yeongdeungpo-gu (District Mayor Choi Ho-kwon) announced that it is conducting the "2023 Socially Isolated Single-Person Household Survey" to intensively identify and systematically support households at risk of isolation.

As of August, there are 95,305 single-person households in Yeongdeungpo-gu, accounting for about 50% of the total 195,310 households. Due to changes in social structure, the number of single-person households is steadily increasing, and issues such as housing and economic burdens and social isolation among middle-aged and older adults are becoming serious.

Accordingly, the district utilizes big data on crisis information such as power and water cutoffs and utility bill arrears to investigate households at risk of isolation more efficiently and accurately, strengthening the local community safety net.

The survey period is from September 2023 to January 2024. The survey targets approximately 4,700 single-person households aged 50 and above living in vulnerable residential areas such as public rental housing, goshiwon, and multi-family or multi-unit housing. These include ▲those identified in the welfare blind spots ▲residents wishing to participate in the survey ▲those who refused the 2022 survey ▲and those at risk of solitary death.

The survey is conducted based on the single-person household survey form covering ▲basic status ▲social networks ▲economic situation ▲housing conditions ▲health status ▲major issues and needs ▲risk of solitary death. Community center officials conduct visits and non-face-to-face surveys using phone calls and mail.

Based on the survey results, the district provides customized welfare services considering the conditions of crisis households, such as public benefits (basic livelihood security, emergency welfare), sponsorship donations and goods, Care SOS services, and case management.

Meanwhile, in last year’s survey (October 2022 to January 2023), 3,255 middle-aged households born before 1972 living in vulnerable residential areas were surveyed. As a result, 1,488 households at risk of solitary death were identified, and 2,487 customized welfare services, including emergency welfare, were provided.

Choi Ho-kwon, Mayor of Yeongdeungpo-gu, stated, “I hope this survey will serve as an opportunity to intensively identify socially isolated households and provide timely support,” adding, “We will implement more detailed and robust welfare policies to eliminate welfare blind spots and bring hope to households in crisis.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.