Mr Kuah Chee Hian, 63, used to be the sole breadwinner for his family of five, working 12-hour shifts to support his wife and three daughters, now aged six to nine years.Amid those gruelling days, support came in 2022 when an officer from the Ministry of Social and Family Development (MSF) knocked on their door as part of an outreach effort, spoke to them and helped them sign up for ComLink, as it was known then.Since the programme's transition to ComLink+ at the end of 2023, his family has been matched with a ComLink+ family coach, who worked with the household to place them on a combination of "progress packages" from 2024, entitling them to various financial top-ups. These included quarterly contributions to their younger two daughters' Child Development Account (CDA) if they achieved at least 75 per cent preschool attendance in a given quarter. Their coach also introduced them to an external savings-matching programme and helped place the family on ComCare support earlier this year, after Mr Kuah was medically certified unfit for work due to chronic knee pain from years spent on his feet in supermarket retail and security enforcement roles. ComCare, also under MSF, supports lower-income households with financial assistance to meet basic needs such as food, transport and household bills.All of this aid has gone a long way in supporting the family, whose main monthly expenses are utilities for their two-room rental flat and for their children, said Mr Kuah."If we're able, once we're stable already and do not require financial (support), we will give up our ComCare (assistance)," he said, adding that the family does not intend to reapply once their situation improves, as they work towards supporting themselves and buying a home.