SINGAPORE - Parents often tell their children to be wary of unknown vehicles that approach them, but a new electric van driven by social workers around Jurong may prove to be an exception.

The van, which is part of outreach efforts by non-profit organisation Youth Guidance Outreach Services (YGOS), makes its rounds to visit “hot spots” where youth-at-risk tend to hang out.

The social workers will invite youth in the area to hang out with them instead. The electric van is equipped with cushioned seating, a television monitor for playing games with a Nintendo Switch, Wi-Fi and two extendable canopies on either side to provide shelter from the sun. Youngsters can also watch movies projected on a cloth screen on the van’s exterior.

The initiative provides a way to bring its services to youth around the precinct that it may not have access to, like those who live farther from its centres or those who are loitering, said executive director of YGOS Wilson Tan.

“By going to them, we hope to build strong mentoring relationships providing help and guidance they may need,” he added.

The van, which was soft-launched three months ago, has reached more than 120 young people in the Jurong area. There are plans to expand the project, which operates every Wednesday and Friday from 6pm to 10pm, to the Geylang vicinity.

The initiative, called Mobile Outreach Support Team, was officially launched on Monday at YGOS’ Woodlands Centre.

It is funded by a $750,000 donation by utilities company SP Group. The donation also helped to refurbish two of YGOS’ youth centres in Woodlands and Ang Mo Kio.

Apart from mentoring youth, the upgraded spaces are used for activities like cooking, crafting, music and dance. YGOS’ youth centres benefit close to 1,000 youngsters annually.  The funding also helped with full-time staffing at its Jurong centre.

SP Group also sponsored 5,000 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of charging credits for the electric van, which will help it operate for about a year.

Mr Tan said some emerging issues among at-risk youth that the team hopes to tackle are those who might start committing petty crimes because of negative peer influence, and those who engage in intimate activities at secluded HDB staircases.

More youth are also picking up vaping as a substitute to smoking cigarettes, he said.

The van’s outreach efforts have garnered a positive response and the team has been able to reach out to diverse groups they were not able to previously reach, Mr Tan added.

C. Tharani, 16, who has been going to YGOS since 2021, said: “I have gained a lot from YGOS, forging new friendships with the trusted staff and volunteers. They have helped me build a support system outside of school and that has given me the confidence to pursue both my personal and academic interests.”