Stronger together: South West CDC works with partners to uplift the community

At the South West District Meeting & Partners Appreciation 2025 themed “Stronger Together, As One Singapore,” South West CDC will recognise the efforts of partners in working closely with the CDC to implement programmes for the community. Mr Desmond Lee, Minister for Education and Minister-in-charge of Social Services Integration is the Guest-of-Honour.

2        A new programme Learning with AI Personalisation @ South West (LAP @ South West) will be launched at the district meeting. LAP @ South West is a partnership between KiteSense Pte Ltd, Temasek Foundation, Quantedge Foundation and SUSS targeting 1,500 Primary 4 - 6 students from vulnerable families who will be given access to the AI-powered Luminee Learning platform. LAP @ South West will support these students in core subjects including English, Mathematics and Science. Featuring a 24/7 AI coach, the platform delivers personalised learning support tailored to each student’s habits, pace, and needs.

3        LAP @ South West is an excellent example of how the people and private sectors can partner to uplift future generations in our community. With the AI-powered Luminee Learning platform helping accelerate student learning, community volunteers will guide students during study groups at some Community Clubs – helping them navigate the platform, build independent study habits and provide motivation and emotional support.  SUSS will conduct an evaluation study with Primary 4 to 6 students participating in LAP @ South West. The study will examine the students’ learning outcomes, the role of volunteers and programme implementation best practices. Insights gained will inform future initiatives and identify opportunities for broader community adoption.

4        Since the soft launch in February 2025, close to 250 students from South West have already signed up, reflecting community interest and the programme’s potential to make a meaningful difference in community enablement. The platform provides on-demand guidance, designed by an experienced curriculum team for Primary-level alignment and relevance. With flexible accessibility, students’ learning can take place at home or at study group sessions, complementing classroom teaching and parental guidance while strengthening their confidence, study habits and self-directed learning.

5        On the LAP @ South West programme, Mayor Low said, “In this 3P public-private-people partnership, we leverage the strengths of each party to harness AI in education to uplift and transform the learning journey of children from vulnerable families. Working with their schools, the programme combines the passion, resources, and expertise of our volunteers and partners with AI to provide personalised guidance in their studies, as well as motivation and encouragement to these students, who have been identified as needing additional support. It is also an opportunity to build in them independent study habits that give them a fair shot to succeed as they become more confident, self-directed learners.”

6            In Financial Year (FY) 2024/2025, the South West CDC rolled out a total of 27 local assistance schemes and programmes, which benefitted about 60,000 residents. More than 420 corporate and community partners were engaged. Our partners also contributed more than $3.6 million in cash and kind.

7        At the South West District Meeting & Partners Appreciation 2025, 12 corporate and community partners will receive the South West Caring Partner Awards for their efforts in 2024 to uplift the community. The awards recognise partners' dedication and provide a platform for South West CDC to take stock of their collective community impact. Beyond recognition, the ceremony offers valuable networking opportunities for partners to connect, share best practices, and explore new collaborations. Awardees include ExxonMobil Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, a 20-year partner whose annual Household Pack Distribution and South West CDC–ExxonMobil Transport Bursary initiatives have supported vulnerable families and students throughout the district. The South West CDC will continue to work with our partners and volunteers to implement programmes for residents, focusing on uplifting the less privileged, and helping residents defray living expenses. The list of recipients for the South West Caring Partner Awards can be found in Annex A.

8          Photos for the South West District Meeting and Partners Appreciation 2025 may be downloaded from the following link ↗ (opens in new tab).

Annex A - Recipients of South West Caring Partner Awards 2024

Annex B – Human Interest Stories

Volunteer Tutor

Kelly Ong Xin Yuan, Volunteer Tutor, Nanyang Sayang, Nanyang CC

Nanyang Sayang has integrated LAP @ South West into its volunteer tutoring programme, where Kelly supports Primary 4 to 6 students with onboarding, bite-sized goals and steady practice; she shares that “the AI tutoring platform is very user-friendly and visually appealing with a clean design and an engaging leaderboard system. The videos are also excellent – they present textbook information in a clear and accessible way that not only help students learn, but also serves as a great refresher for tutors.”

With routine checking and explanations handled on-platform, volunteers like Kelly focus on coaching, prompting reflection, encouraging perseverance and celebrating small wins.

Volunteer Manager

Tan Ming Hui, Rina, Volunteer Manager, Epworth Community Services

In 2019, Epworth Community Services started Epworth Study Buddies, a complimentary tuition-befriending programme to provide school-work supervision and befriending to primary school children who struggle with their schoolwork. Recently, the programme has integrated LAP @ South West as part of its programme, empowering volunteers to support students with more personalised and engaging learning experiences. Rina shares that the platform has allowed them to better support tutors and students with more up-to-date curriculum and resources.

“The platform strengthens the Study Buddies programme by providing tailored approaches aligned to our students’ learning abilities, enhancing learning outcomes and empowering our volunteers to teach more effectively,” she adds.

Student

Muhd Aqil, Primary 6 Student, Nanyang Sayang, Nanyang CC

Aqil uses the ALS platform ahead of mock exams and prelims, starting with a short “warm-up” to get into the flow; “I can use this at home as a warm-up before taking my mock exams and prelim papers. It is easy and I can understand the explanation for each answer well, so I can learn independently. When I get bored or tired, I can use the chat function for some fun.” Clear, step-by-step explanations help him self-correct quickly and move on with confidence, while a volunteer checks in on weekly targets at CC sessions, a combination of on-demand guidance and a supportive environment that strengthens his motivation and self-directed habits, complementing classroom teaching and parental guidance.

Educator

Mani Pariasamy (Sam), Organising Chair, LEAP Programme @ Yuhua CC

With over 25 years mentoring children, Sam leads Yuhua’s LEAP with AI programme at Yuhua CC, which recently joined LAP @ South West to support Primary 4 to 6 students. After integrating the AL-powered learning platform, he observed that “now, every student gets the right support at the right time – whether they need extra help or more challenging questions,” and “because the feedback is instant, mistakes become opportunities to learn immediately.” He adds, “the AI handles the routine drills, so we can focus on what really matters, that is, guiding, inspiring, and believing in these kids,” and his facilitators now pair short adaptive practice with confidence-building conversations, turning setbacks into learning steps and nurturing confidence, resilience and a love of learning.