Seongnam City Wins Ministry of Health and Welfare Award for Excellence in Dream Start Project

Customized Integrated Case Management
for Vulnerable Children Aged 0 to 12
Including Soccer, Dongbyeonghaji, and University Student Mentoring

Seongnam City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Shin Sangjin) announced on November 24 that it was selected as an outstanding institution in the Ministry of Health and Welfare's evaluation of the Dream Start project and received the Minister of Health and Welfare Award.

Mayor Shin Sangjin of Seongnam City is taking a commemorative photo for receiving the Minister of Health and Welfare Award for the Dream Start Project. Provided by Seongnam City

This evaluation targeted 78 local governments (out of 229 nationwide) that implement the Dream Start project for children from vulnerable groups. Over the past three years (2022-2024), the assessment reviewed four areas-organizational structure and management, integrated case management, community cooperation, and satisfaction-across 10 categories and 28 indicators.

Seongnam City earned high marks for implementing tailored, participant-centered programs for vulnerable children aged 0 to 12 (currently 380 households, 523 children). These included physical health programs such as soccer classes and Dongbyeonghaji, emotional and psychological recovery programs such as university student mentoring and mental health therapy, cognitive and language programs such as sensory play for brain development and Korean reading play, and family function enhancement programs such as overnight family camps and family movie nights.

In terms of organizational structure and management, nine integrated case managers specializing in health, childcare, and welfare are assigned to systematically provide customized services that meet the needs of children.

In addition to the annual project budget of 900 million won, Seongnam City has also increased satisfaction by linking local resources to offer a variety of support measures, such as health checkups and vision tests for elementary school students, free eyeglasses distribution, performing arts experiences, donations of desks and chairs, and support for heating and cooling costs.

Mayor Shin Sangjin of Seongnam and welfare department staff are taking a commemorative photo for receiving the Minister of Health and Welfare Award for the Dream Start Project. Provided by Seongnam City

A city official stated, "We will continue to provide customized integrated case management services for children to ensure that those from vulnerable groups are guaranteed an equal start in life and can grow up healthy."

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