SAC Key Milestones
Four decades of building a profession, from the first counsellor training programme in 1981.
New Clinical Supervision Components and Standards, With Effect From June 2018
New Clinical Supervision Components and Standards for new Clinical Supervisor applicants were approved at the 35th Annual General Meeting, to take effect from June 2018.
Establishment of the Register of Clinical Supervisors
SAC’s Register of Clinical Supervisors was established during its 34th Annual General Meeting. Registered Clinical Supervisors are charged an annual fee from January 2017. The new Clinical Supervision Standards and Procedures document was approved.
SAC Counselling Symposium and Launch of the Ethics Manual of Procedures
SAC hosted more than 500 delegates on 15 and 16 October 2015, and launched the SAC Ethics Manual of Procedures. The Guest of Honour was the Minister of State for the Ministry of Health, Dr Amy Khor.
SAC Accepted as a Full Member of NCSS
On 1 April 2015, SAC was officially accepted as a Full Member of the National Council of Social Services.
New Membership Categories
New membership categories were introduced, and the SAC Constitution went through a major review and update.
Course Recognition Committee
The first Joint Committee meeting involving SAC, National Council of Social Service (NCSS) and Social Service Training Institute (SSTI), followed by the Ministry of Culture, Community & Youth (MCYS), Singapore Association of Social Workers (SASW) and the National University of Singapore (NUS) Social Work Department. The Course Recognition Manual was launched in December 2005.
Development of Standard Counselling Courses
SAC partnered the Ministry of Community Development and Sports, and the National Council of Social Services, to develop standard counselling courses.
Establishment of the Register of Counsellors
The SAC Register of Counsellors was established during its 20th Annual General Meeting. The SAC website was launched. The Constitution was amended for more clarity on its definition of a trained and qualified counsellor, with emphasis on training, practicum and clinical supervision.
Established Accreditation for Counselling Courses
Established guidelines for the accreditation of counselling courses in Singapore, to ensure clinical and supervision components.
New Training Standards for Membership, and the SAC Code of Ethics
Constitutional amendments related to training standards for membership were approved by the Registry of Societies and implemented for new membership applications. The new SAC Code of Ethics was subsequently accepted at an Extraordinary General Meeting.
The Licensure Effort
A paper was developed by the Executive Committee to propose standards for the recognition and licensing of professional counsellors in Singapore. It was presented to the Ministry of Community Development in 1999, but was rejected as the counsellor fraternity was considered too small.
SAC is Registered as an Official Society
SAC was officially registered with the Registry of Societies.
Founding of SAC
Three staff from the Counselling and Care Centre attended a conference-workshop in Salatiga, Indonesia, to bid for the subsequent conference-workshop to be held in Singapore. This provided the impetus for a local association affiliated to the Association of Psychological and Educational Counsellors of Asia-Pacific. SAC was founded by the late Mr Anthony Yeo, Singapore’s “Father of Counselling”.
First Counsellor Training Programme
The Counselling and Care Centre initiated the first formal counsellor-training programme, which formed the basis for membership qualification.
The story behind the timeline
Read how the Association was founded, and why its founders chose to keep membership inclusive.