Singapore Red Cross Young Hearts Programme

The Young Hearts programme is a Singapore Red Cross community programme for children and young persons (CYPs) from vulnerable backgrounds. It aims to build self-reliance and widen access to opportunities through education, enrichment, positive role models and longer-term relationships with staff, volunteers and partners. It is a community support programme, not a Ministry of Education school, a universal tuition subsidy or a replacement for formal child-protection and social-service assessment (Singapore Red Cross, Young Hearts, accessed 30 August 2026).

Education, enrichment and excursions

The programme's three-part approach is Education, Enrichment and Excursions, delivered in a safe and supportive environment. Its main centre in Yishun provides free tuition for primary-school students, with tutors using a general framework and supplementary assessment books and reading materials. CYPs referred by social-service agencies may join when they need academic support. Enrichment activities have included sports and wellness, digital literacy and science, while excursions expose participants to places and learning experiences beyond the centre (Singapore Red Cross, Young Hearts, accessed 30 August 2026).

Access and current footprint

Young Hearts currently operates on a referral basis, according to the Singapore Government's community-support directory. That means the programme should not be described as an open universal entitlement or as automatic admission for every child who asks for tuition. The directory identifies a Young Hearts service point at Nee Soon East Care Corner, 269B Yishun Street 22, while Singapore Red Cross's current fundraising description says the programme reaches students in Yishun and Tampines; families should confirm current intake arrangements and locations directly with Singapore Red Cross (gov.sg, Together in the Lorongs, updated 30 August 2026; Singapore Red Cross, Supporting Our Young Ones for Brighter Tomorrows, accessed 30 August 2026).

The public programme pages do not publish a universal household-income threshold, fixed national beneficiary quota or guaranteed tuition place. Eligibility and referral are therefore distinct from the means-tested rules of schemes such as ComCare, KidSTART or preschool subsidies. A description of Young Hearts should retain the published “vulnerable backgrounds” and referral context rather than turning the programme into a general cash or education benefit (Singapore Red Cross, Young Hearts, accessed 30 August 2026; gov.sg, Together in the Lorongs, updated 30 August 2026).

Role in Singapore's support system

Young Hearts complements formal education and social-service pathways by combining tutoring with mentoring, enrichment and community participation. Singapore Red Cross describes a pay-it-forward element in which participants are encouraged to contribute through meaningful volunteer work as they grow. This makes the programme broader than homework help, but it does not make Singapore Red Cross the statutory owner of school admissions, child-welfare decisions or national education policy (Singapore Red Cross, Young Hearts, accessed 30 August 2026). Families seeking access should use the programme's current referral and contact channels; questions about statutory benefits or school placement belong with the relevant public agency.