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2013/2014
PATRONThe Honourable Leung Chung Ying, GBM, GBS, JP VICE-PATRONSMrs Marjorie Bray Council Members 2013/14CHAIRMANMiss Nancy Law Tak Yin VICE-CHAIRMANMr Michael Szeto Chak Wah HON TREASURERMr Patrick Ng Wing Hang HON LEGAL ADVISORMr Peter Chan Kin Sang HON MEDICAL ADVISORDr Hui Siu Ping MEMBERSMr Chong Chan Yau CO-OPTED MEMBERSDr Clement Chan Wai Nang EX-OFFICIO MEMBERMs Maureen Tam Ching Yi CommitteesAUDIT COMMITTEECHAIRMANMs Winnie Kong Lai Wan MEMBERSMs Eva Chow Yee Fei (until Jul 2013) STAFF REPRESENTATIVEMs Katherine Szeto Dick Ka EX-OFFICIO MEMBERSMiss Nancy Law Tak Yin EYE CARE & VOCATIONAL SERVICES COMMITTEECHAIRMANDr Hui Siu Ping MEMBERSMr Joseph Kwan Kwok Lok STAFF REPRESENTATIVEMr Joseph Cho Chun Wah EX-OFFICIO MEMBERSMiss Nancy Law Tak Yin FACTORY MANAGEMENT COMMITTEECHAIRMANMr Michael Szeto Chak Wah MEMBERSMr Colin Bosher STAFF REPRESENTATIVESMr Joseph Cho Chun Wah EX-OFFICIO MEMBERSMiss Nancy Law Tak Yin FINANCE & ADMINISTRATION COMMITTEECHAIRMANMr Patrick Ng Wing Hang MEMBERSDr Vincent Kwan Pun Fong STAFF REPRESENTATIVESMs Kany Wong Kan Ying EX-OFFICIO MEMBERSMiss Nancy Law Tak Yin REHABILITATION SERVICES COMMITTEECHAIRMANMs Ida Lam Choi Chu MEMBERSMr Jason Ho Ka Leung STAFF REPRESENTATIVEMs Kitty Chung Shuk Ming EX-OFFICIO MEMBERSMiss Nancy Law Tak Yin RESIDENTIAL SERVICES COMMITTEECHAIRMANMr Lam Wai Pong MEMBERSMs Shirley Cheung Yuet Mei STAFF REPRESENTATIVEMs Doreen Mui Siu Ping EX-OFFICIO MEMBERSMiss Nancy Law Tak Yin PUBLICITY & FUND-RAISING COMMITTEECHAIRMANMiss Nancy Law Tak Yin MEMBERSMs Winnie Kong Lai Wan EX-OFFICIO MEMBERMs Maureen Tam Ching Yi YUEN LONG HOME REDEVELOPMENT COMMITTEECHAIRMANMr Lam Wai Pong MEMBERSDr Ho Chi Kin PROJECT CONSULTANTSArchitectProfessor Patrick Lau Sau Shing Quantity SurveyorMr Yu Hon Kong Structural EngineerMr Ng Kam Tong M & E ConsultantMr Raymond Tam Kit Man Project Management TeamMr Carlos Lau Chung Yue HONG KONG JOCKEY CLUB CHARITIES TRUST REPRESENTATIVEMs Irene So Mui Ling EX-OFFICIO MEMBERSMiss Nancy Law Tak Yin Other CommitteesCENTRALISED BRAILLE PRODUCTION CENTRE STEERING COMMITTEECHAIRMANMs Kitty Chung Shuk Ming VICE-CHAIRMANMs Mok Siu Lai (Ebenezer School) MEMBERSMr Jason Ho Ka Leung OBSERVERMs Ho Yee Wan STAFF REPRESENTATIVESMs Emily Chan Lai Yee INFORMATION ACCESSIBILITY CENTRE USERS' COMMITTEECHAIRMANMs Kitty Chung Shuk Ming MEMBERSMr Kwan Chi Wai STAFF REPRESENTATIVESMs Emily Chan Lai Yee DEAFBLIND REHABILITATION PROGRAMME ADVISORY COMMITTEECHAIRMANMs Amy Tso Lei Lei MEMBERSMs Shirley Cheung Yuet Mei STAFF REPRESENTATIVESMs Doreen Mui Siu Ping PARENTS RESOURCE CENTRE ADVISORY COMMITTEECHAIRMANMr Edward Kwok Ho Lai MEMBERSDr Kenneth Sin Kuen Fung STAFF REPRESENTATIVESMs Maureen Tam Ching Yi ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Chairman’s ForewordFor the purpose of improving the quality of life of the visually impaired, in the past year, apart from continuously enhancing our existing services, the Hong Kong Society for the Blind ventured into outreaching services so that visually impaired people who are not aware of our services can be assisted when need arises. COMMUNITY SERVICE FOR LOW VISION ELDERLY PERSONSAccording to the projection of the Census and Statistics Department, in the period 2011 to 2021,the number of people aged 65 or above will increase from 919,000 to 1,455,780. Over 70% may suffer from various eye diseases such as diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, retina degeneration, resulting in low vision or total blindness. Deterioration of vision as the elderly persons grow older would affect their daily life. With support from the Hongkong Bank via the Community Chest of Hong Kong, we launched in December 2013 a 3-year programme on “Comprehensive Home and Community Based Low Vision Rehabilitation Service” for elderly aged 60 and above living in the community and suffering from low vision. This is an integrated rehabilitation service comprising home-based eye examination and assessment of the home environment to enable the elderly to continue to live independently in the community. Upon receiving referrals from community elderly centres, our optometrists and occupational therapists will visit the elderly persons to conduct eye examination and safety assessment, and give advice on improving their home environment and safety. Financial assistance is available for covering part of the costs for home modification, purchase of visual aids and assistive devices. Up to 31 March 2014, 59 elderly persons benefitted from the services. They are happy that the services have improved their home safety and quality of life. COMMUNICATOR SERVICE FOR DEAFBLIND PILOT PROJECTDeafblind persons have disabilities in both vision and hearing. It is estimated that in Hong Kong there are around 300 deafblind persons. They have limitations in communicating with others. They have difficulties in daily life such as shopping, attending social activities and seeking medical consultation. The Hong Kong Society for the Blind cares about their unique service needs. With support from the Community Chest of Hong Kong, we have been running the deafblind rehabilitation programme since 1995. Since November 2010, the Resource Centre for the Deafblind has organized six elementary, intermediate and advanced certificate courses on deafblind communicator. Over 100 trainees have graduated. The courses aim to provide the trainees with a better understanding of the needs of the deafblind through lectures and practical work. The trainees are also taught how to use tactile sign language to express words and sentences in communication with the deafblind, as well as techniques in guiding the deafblind. Those who have completed the course and passed all the assessments may be employed as communicator to assist the deafblind to integrate into the community. We were grateful to S.K. Yee Medical Foundation for their generous support of the 3-year project on “Communicator Service for the Deafblind”. Thirty communicators will be trained in three years to provide guiding and communication services to the deafblind to foster their social integration. Qualified communicators will provide free guiding and communication service to the deafblind including delivery of messages (except contracts and legal documents), assisting the deafblind in attending social activities and managing daily activities such as shopping, visiting post office, handling personal banking business, etc. Currently, there are 110 deafblind members and we expect to be able to provide 50 communicator services a year to those in need. TRAINING COURSE FOR PREVENTION OF LOW VISION FOR EYE SPECIALISTS FROM 20 COUNTRIESCurrently, around 269 million people worldwide are suffering from various forms of eye disease leading to low vision. Of this, 80% are from the developing countries. In Hong Kong, owing to the aging population, the number of people suffering from glaucoma, macular degeneration and diabetic retinopathy is rising leading to an increase in the low vision population. They face great difficulties in study, work and daily life. To raise public awareness of low vision and prevention of eye diseases, the Lions Clubs International Foundation gave the Lions Clubs International District-303 Hong Kong and Macau, China a grant of HK$3 million to organize the National Focal Persons Training Course on Low Vision in joint collaboration with the Hong Kong Society for the Blind for two consecutive years from 2013. Public education events on prevention of blindness were also organized. The first training course was held from 16 to 27 September 2013. Twenty six eye specialists including ophthalmologists and optometrists from 20 developing countries attended the course. On gaining more knowledge about the different aspects of low vision in the course, the graduates are expected to shoulder the responsibility of promoting low vision service in their own countries to benefit millions of low vision persons. REDEVELOPMENT OF YUEN LONG HOME FOR THE AGED BLINDThe foundation works for the redevelopment of the Yuen Long Home was completed in March 2014. Due to the complexity of the foundation works and the rising construction costs, the project sum exceeds the original budget. We are most grateful to The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust in providing a supplementary grant of HK$39.08 million for the project. Together with the original grant, the total sum supported adds up to HK$205.38 million. The superstructure works will commence in April 2014. The new seven-storey “The Hong Kong Society for the Blind Jockey Club Yan Hong Building” will be completed in March 2015. Upon completion, there will be residential care places for the current 80 aged blind residents of the Yuen Long Home. In addition, there will be 40 self-financing residential places for other elderly persons in need and another 40 places for people with multiple disabilities in need of residential care and rehabilitation training. As the approved grant from The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust can only cover the construction costs and basic facilities, we need to raise funds for acquisition of rehabilitation equipment and enhancing facilities to provide adequate residential care and rehabilitation services to the visually impaired elderly and persons with multiple disabilities. The Council and I would like to thank various departments of the Hong Kong SAR Government, The Hong Kong Jockey Club, the Community Chest of Hong Kong, various charity funds, individual donors, individual and corporate volunteers for their support over the year to enable us to be creative in providing appropriate services for the needy. In addition, we would like to thank our service users, their families and carers for giving us their views to enhance our services. I would like to thank all members of the Council and Committees for providing expert advice on the delivery of various services of the Society. Last but not least, on behalf of the Council, I would like to thank the Chief Executive and all staff members for their zeal and conscientious efforts in delivering services. The future is full of challenges. The public has rising expectation of welfare voluntary agencies. The requirements of our service users are also escalating. With the mission of facilitating the visually impaired persons to have equal opportunities in participation in our society, The Hong Kong Society for the Blind will continue to strive for better services through creative ideas. Nancy Law ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Chief Executive’s ReportJob is important to an adult. With a job, a person is able to earn a living and support his or her family. For those people who are proud of their jobs, work brings them personal satisfaction and a sense of achievement. No matter what our profession is, we are the engine of the society playing an important role to give it energy to move on. This sense of social responsibility is intrinsic. Primary school children are able to tell what they want to be when they grow up and be a contributive member of the Society. Even for persons with disabilities, their aspirations to contribute to the society are just the same as other people in the society. With this belief, the Hong Kong Society for the Blind strives to provide job opportunities for the blind since 1963. The Factory for the Blind was set up with the objective “to help the blind to help themselves”. We were in fact in the forefront of promoting job opportunities for persons with disabilities. In mid 2013, our Career Support and Development Centre conducted a survey on employment for the visually impaired in Hong Kong. Of the 320 registered members of the Centre, 164 were interviewed. Among them 133 expressed that they were in need of career support services. More than half of the respondents got a job at the time of interview, while less than half, i.e. 35% were unemployed. Among the unemployed, it was found that the age group of 26-35 got the most number of having a job, while the age group of 46-55 ranked highest in unemployment. With higher education and relevant work experience, the age group of 26-35 is able to get a job more easily. However, those in the age group of 46-55 are used to have little computer knowledge and more severely affected by degenerative eye diseases resulting in poor vision, and that accounts for their high unemployment rate. For those aged 55 and above, as they are approaching the retirement age of 60, quite a number of them are less eager to find a job and that attributes to their relatively high unemployment rate too. From the survey findings, most visually impaired persons were working in the personal service and social welfare sectors. Among the respondents who had a job, 17.8% worked in the personal service sector and of which, 87.9% worked as masseurs. About 23.9% was engaged in the social welfare sector working as social worker, office assistant, programme assistant, tour guide and clerical staff. About 3% worked in the catering and information technology sectors, while none of the respondents worked in the construction nor the health care sectors that require certain degree of sight to do the manual work. Besides, less people with mild to moderate degree of visual impairment have jobs when compared to those with severe visual impairment or total blindness. It is known that persons with severe visual impairment or blindness learnt to read braille when they were young and they were able to move around more readily with canes. Among the respondents, quite a number of them received massage training and chose to be masseurs as their life career. This explains why they have a higher employment rate. On the contrary, people with mild to moderate degree of visual impairment are not familiar with braille nor computer skills of using screen reading, and hence, they would have difficulties in performing clerical work. It is interesting to note that lots of them are reluctant to work as masseurs as they still have residual vision and a relatively higher education. The survey gave us information on the employment situation of the visually impaired and the type of career support services they need. For those who are interested in the social welfare sector, computer skills are a rather common job requirement. Besides, before taking up career in social welfare, they should start to do volunteer work when they are still young so as to find out if they like to work in the social service sector or not. For those with secondary education only but no other pre-vocational training, it is necessary to provide them with various types of vocational skills training to increase their chance for open employment. In addition, the cultivation of a proper working attitude and a sense of responsibility in supporting own families through taking up employment would help to improve their motivation in job seeking. To increase job opportunities for the visually impaired, we were indebted to the Chan Dang Social Services Foundation for sponsoring the visually impaired to take one-year training on piano tuning plus basic repair and maintenance since 2012. One of the low vision trainees, who completed the course in mid 2013, passed the national examination in December in Guangzhou and obtained the qualification. He is currently employed by the Factory for the Blind as piano tuning technician. While the piano tuning business shows sign of growth, funding is required to train up more visually impaired piano tuners for the job. Transcription is another type of job that the visually impaired can handle. By listening to voice recordings, the visually impaired transcriber is able to produce written records for meetings and interviews. The job can be done at home too. No matter the person is a low vision or totally blind, if they have good computer skills in word processing, good hearing and patience, got secondary school education and above, they can do the job well. We believe that the visually impaired should have equal opportunities in participating in various aspects of the society. To this end, the Barrier Free Access Consultancy Service was set up in 2000, to provide barrier free access consultancy service to the government and the commercial sector. A one-stop service including on-site assessment, design, production and installation of barrier-free access facilities such as tactile guide paths, tactile maps, directional signs with braille and tactile symbols is available. On 21 July 2011, the Barrier Free Access (HK) Limited was registered as a wholly owned subsidiary of the Hong Kong Society for the Blind. The company now employs three full time and one half time visually impaired persons. They provide transcription and proof reading service for barrier free access facilities such as braille plates and tactile maps, on-site testing of barrier free access facilities and day to day clerical duties. The society is changing with global communication done within seconds on the web. Surfing on the web to search for information and communicating with people around the world has become an indispensable part of our life. Same for the visually impaired, web accessibility is crucial to the visually impaired in their access to information. The Barrier Free Access (HK) Limited offers web accessibility testing service for the commercial sector and various non-government and government organizations. Visually impaired persons are recruited to do the web accessibility tests and to produce reports on improvement suggestions to foster equal participation of people with disabilities on the internet. The visually impaired should be a participant in building a barrier free society but not just a beneficiary. Through partnership with the sighted, social inclusion is no longer a mere myth but reality. Maureen Tam ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Achievement HighlightsGOLDEN AWARD IN "THIRD AGE PERSONS CONSUMER CULTURE STUDY AWARD 2012/13"In “The Invisible Consumer Life” report submitted by our Rehabilitation Centre, two visually impaired members’ positive and negative experience in everyday shopping, difficulties encountered by the visually impaired in shopping were described. The report gained high regard from the adjudicators and received the Consumer Council’s Golden Award for 2012/13.
2013 BEST PRACTICE AWARD IN SOCIAL WELFARE: SOCIAL RESPONSIVENESS AWARDInformation Accessibility Centre provided audio description service to the visually impaired for movies screenings, performing arts and outdoor activities. Audio description service had been proved to have increased the opportunities of the visually impaired in social participation and demonstrated the importance of equal participation and social inclusion. The “Audio Description Services for the Visually Impaired” project won the 2013 Best Practice Award in Social Welfare - Social Responsiveness Award organized by the Hong Kong Council of Social Service. WEB ACCESSIBILITY RECOGNITION SCHEME 2014The new website of Barrier Free Access (HK) Limited was granted Gold Award in the Web Accessibility Recognition Scheme 2014. The scheme was jointly organized by OGCIO and Equal Opportunities Commission to recognize the contribution made by the organizations for promotion of web accessibility to facilitate equal participation for people with disabilities. Company Website：
COMPREHENSIVE HOME AND COMMUNITY BASED LOW VISION REHABILITATION SERVICESupported by the Hongkong Bank via the Community Chest of Hong Kong allocation, the Hong Kong Society for the Blind launched the first-ever three-year project named “Comprehensive Home and Community Based Low Vision Rehabilitation Service” in December 2013. The project aimed at providing occupational and optometric services to elderlies, age 60 or above, with low vision and have difficulties in coping with their daily lives in the community for improvement of their quality of life and independent living. PILOT PROJECT ON COMMUNICATOR SERVICE FOR THE DEAFBLIND AND CASE BOOK ON DEAFBLIND TRAININGFunded by the S.K. Yee Medical Foundation, the Resource Centre for the Deafblind launched the first-ever three-year project, “Pilot Project on Communicator Service for the Deafblind” in April 2013. It is estimated that 50 sessions of communicator service will be rendered to needy deafblind every year. The Case Book on Deafblind Training was published in August 2013 for sharing with rehabilitation practitioners, people taking care of the deafblind, their teachers and the proper ways to tackle the issues arose for training the deafblind. The book was written by deafblind rehabilitation instructors and special schools’ teachers on how they provided training to six deafblind cases. Approaches used varied according to the age and degree of the deafness and blindness of the clients. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rehabilitation ServicesREHABILITATION CENTRE (KOWLOON & THE NEW TERRITORIES)Enrolment & Trainees ParticipationThe Rehabilitation Centre of Kowloon & the New Territories recorded 151 cases of enrolment and 110 referrals. During the year, a total of 65 visually impaired service users completed independent living skills training programmes conducted at the Centre and 75 trainees completed route orientation programmes. Trainees were encouraged to participate in the Centre’s affairs in the weekly Community Life Education sessions. Social workers also met with class representatives on a monthly basis. Moreover, Trainees Affairs Groups led by two visually impaired instructors of the Centre were set up in the Kowloon and the New Territories centres respectively, for regular sharing with trainees through a different platform on service operation and general training needs. Community ParticipationBarrier Free Facilities Site Inspection Trainees led by instructors of Rehabilitation Centre attended nine site inspections on barrier free acess facilities in 2013/14. The inspection visits were meaningful assessments to provide the facility managers insights for improvement to meet with needs of persons with visual impairment. Training for public and community organizations Staff conducted courses on effective communication skills with visually impaired and provided sighted guide talks for NGOs, commercial corporations and schools. A total of 70 talks were conducted for 2,104 participants. Eight workshops on Enhancing Communication with Visually Impaired Patients and Barrier Free Access in Hospital Setting for nursing staff of the Hospital Authority, were held from November 2013 to March 2014. Besides, an Orientation & Mobility Foundation Course was conducted for 24 teachers of the Counselling and Special Education Centre of Macau on 4 and 14 December 2013. Public EducationOn 4 May 2013 and 20 May 2013, assistance was given to the Radio Television Hong Kong in the filming of an ETV programme named “Changes of the visually impaired trainees after receiving rehabilitation courses”. Two ex-trainees and two instructors participated in the filming. The programme was broadcasted on ATV on 15 November 2013 and on TVB Pearl channel on 2 December 2013 and 16 January 2014 respectively. Replacement of equipmentThe Jockey Club IT Scheme for People with Visual Impairment supported the replacement of four sets of Chinese JAWS and four sets of Focus 40 Braille Display in July 2013, at a total cost of HK$121,200 for the two Rehabilitation Centres, to improve the facilities there. 4D4U Guide Dog Users Training Pilot ProjectThe 4 Dogs 4 Users Guide Dog Training Pilot Project was completed successfully in November 2013 with generous support from the Guiding Eyes for the Blind in the United States. Four guide dogs were matched with four visually impaired guide dog users in Hong Kong, and they underwent one month training in the States and returned to Hong Kong in August 2012 and April 2013 respectively. To celebrate and share the fruitful results upon completion of the project, and to handover the four guide dogs and their users to the Hong Kong Guide Dogs Association for continuation of support service, we were indebted to have Mr. Fong Kai-leung, Assistant Director (Rehabilitation and Medical Social Service) of the Social Welfare Department, Mr. Ian Cox, Chairman of Development Committee, International Guide Dog Federation, and Ms. Amy Kwok Oi-ming, the Guide Dog Ambassador, to officiate at the Results Sharing and Handover Ceremony on 3 November 2013 at Stanley Plaza, Hong Kong. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Rehabilitation CentreAge Profile
Analysis of Trainees' Causes of Blindness
Enrollments and Referrals
Trainees Number in Various SubjectsHome Management Skills
Social & Educational Activities
Counselling and Group Sessions
Orientation & Mobility Skills and Physical Exercise
Communication Skills
DEAFBLIND TRAINING PROGRAMMEThanks to the unfailing support of the Community Chest of Hong Kong, the rehabilitation programme for the deafblind on communication, orientation and mobility training, adaptive aids consultancy services and service referrals continued. Nineteen deafblind persons received the training during the year under review, and 10 of them live in the community. Apart from rendering training to the deafblind, a four-session sign language course was organized for 20 frontline workers and teachers in deafblind services. They were given practical training in tactile sign language and knowledge on ways to address various communication needs of service users. During the year, a total of 15 awareness training sessions on deafblindness were delivered to 425 school students and people from the community. Certificate Course for Communicator/ Guide for the DeafblindThe 5th batch of “Certificate Course for Communicator / Guide for the Deafblind Level One – Basic” and the 1st Level 3 – Advance Course were successfully organized. Ten course members completed the basic,intermediate and advance levels in three years to make possible the launching of Professional Communicator/Guide service for the deafblind. Rev. Dr. Cyril Axelrod being awarded the OBERev Dr. Cyril Axelrod, Honorary Consultant of Deafblind Rehabilitation Programme, was conferred Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE), on 22 November 2013 by Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom for having taken a major role and contribution in promotion of deafblind services in Hong Kong since 2008. Rev Dr. Cyril Axelrod was the first deafblind priest in history to receive this conferment. During his visit to Hong Kong in 2013/14, Father Cyril conducted a professional training workshop on deafblindness and Autism for 29 rehabilitation workers and special school teachers. SERVIEC DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Deafblind Training Programme
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Employment ServicesTHE CAREER SUPPORT AND DEVELOPMENTCENTREVocational TrainingMassage Training for the Visually Impaired Two introductory massage training courses were completed in June and August 2013 respectively. Twelve visually impaired participants completed the training and were awarded the Certificate of Attendance. The 14th Ten-month Massage Training Course commenced in October 2013. The eight visually impaired participants will complete the course by the end of August 2014 and a Graduation Ceremony will take place in September 2014. Graduates will be presented certificates co-signed by the China Disabled Persons’ Federation Employment Service and Administration Centre and The Hong Kong Society for the Blind. Besides, two advanced massage training courses on Deng-Li Stretching Therapy were completed in August 2013. Twenty working visually impaired masseurs attended the course and 19 of them completed the course and received Certificate of Attendance. Piano Tuning and Basic Repair Training With the generous support of the Chan Dang Social Services Foundation, we started in 2012, a piano tuning and basic repair training course for the visually impaired who were interested in developing a career in piano tuning. A visually impaired young adult completed the one year training and passed the Elementary Piano Tuning and Basic Repair Certificate Examination in October 2013. The newly graduated piano tuner has been employed by the Factory for the Blind as piano technician since January 2014, to provide piano-tuning and simple repair service to organizations and individuals. The second piano-tuning trainee being supported by the Community Chest of Hong Kong, started his training in July 2013 and will sit for the examination in October 2014. Other Vocational Training Programmes During the year under review, the Centre organized a series of job-related training courses. Altogether 19 classes and programmes were held for 92 members. Dr Karen Lee Scholarship Two visually impaired persons talented in music were given the support from the Dr Karen Lee Scholarship to advance study in piano playing and music composition.Completion of these courses in the near future would be useful in their career advancement in music. Job TrialsCollaboration Scheme on Job Trial Placement Under the support of the Flag Day 2012/13 and the Simatelex Charitable Foundation, nine visually impaired persons participated in the job trial placement project in 2013/14. They were placed in normal work environment for training of job skills and communication skills with co-workers and customers. Empower Shop The Empower Shop is a job training platform for the visually impaired job-seekers to get acquaintance with jobs in retail service and to build up their confidence in interacting with people. A total of three trainees were given six-month training during the year under review.Customers interacting with the visually impaired sales trainees had the chance to get to know more about their working abilities. Meanwhile, a retail management system sponsored by the Community Chest of Hong Kong was installed at the Empower Shop in March 2014 to provide the trainees real work experience of doing shop sales. Daily Living Aids and Appliances PromotionFour demonstration sessions were conducted in the year for our own staff members from different service units, ophthalmologists, optometrists, school teachers, and the public to show how different adaptive equipment help to overcome the difficulties of the visually impaired in their daily life. Volunteer SupportAs usual, volunteers were recruited to provide support to the Centre service in escorting the visually impaired job-seekers to attend job interviews, to assist the Empower Shop trainees to operate mobile sale activities, to repair walking canes, and to provide maintenance service to the computers installed in the self-study rooms and inside the computer room. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Career Support and Development CentreEmployment Service
Aids and Appliances Service
Adaptive Equipment Load Service
Job Related Training Programme/ Class
Computer Zone and Self-study Rooms
THE FACTORY FOR THE BLINDBusiness PerformanceThe Factory sales of 2013/14 were HK$13,317,662, representing a slight increase of HK$186,144 (1.42%) over the same period in 2012/13. The sales of the Paper Box Section and the Filing Tag Section increased by 9.77%, and 8.61% respectively, whereas the sales of the Sewing Section, the Assembling Section and the Customer Service Centre Section declined by 19.83%, 13.52% and 2.85% respectively. Acquisition of New Machineries and Systems to increase productivitySupported by the Flag Day 2012/13, the Factory purchased two Serial Die-Cutting and Creasing Machines at the total project sum of HK$497,000. The two machines were delivered to the Factory in June 2013 and January 2014 respectively for production of a wide range of paper boxes to meet with customers’ needs. The Human Resources Information System was introduced to calculate worker wages since September 2013 to increase accuracy and efficiency. Besides the Material Requirement and Production Planning System (MRPPS) was launched since April 2013 to improve production management and inventory control. Factory's Annual Outing 2013The Factory’s Outing was held on 30 November 2013. A total of 219 participants (including 154 service users, 35 staff and 30 volunteers) visited Stanley for sightseeing and then dined at North Point. Future DevelopmentThe Factory will continue to promote its piano tuning business in the coming year. More visually impaired piano tuning technicians will be employed to cope with the growing number of piano tuning job orders. To provide more job opportunities for the visually impaired musicians, the Factory started an outreaching “Piano Teaching” service project for residents of private housing estates since July 2013. The Factory will collaborate with its business partners to explore more job and performance opportunities for persons with visual impairment with musical talents and qualified as musical instrument teachers. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 The Factory for the BlindSales Proceeds of the Different Production Sections (HK$)
Factory Workers
Sheltered Workshop Trainees
HEALTH MASSAGE AND TREATMENT CENTREBusiness PerformanceThe business of the two Centres, S.K. Yee Health Massage & Treatment Centre and Bernard van Zuiden Health Massage & Treatment Centre recorded encouraging revenue for the year. The total revenue from massage, beauty therapies and beauty products were HK$7,073,000, an increase of 3.4% compared to last year. During the year, 20 visually impaired staff members including masseurs/masseuses, beauty masseuse, massage assistant and customer service assistant were employed. We were particularly thankful to our loyal customers for their long term support that led to a stable growth of business and gave visually impaired staff members the opportunity to demonstrate their abilities in providing services to the general public. Business Promotion and Product DiversificationThe Centres introduced a number of new facial treatments and premium skincare products to meet different customers’ needs. Special gift sets were promoted during seasonal festivals which received good responses from our customers. With sponsorship from Economic Digest and Weekend Weekly, the Centres placed free advertisements for service promotion. We also participated in various exhibitions and public events such as the Caring Company Partnership Expo 2014 at The Hong Kong Convention Centre, and provided massage service to the participants of the Standard Chartered Hong Kong Marathon 2014. Mobile Massage ServiceTo increase our business exposure, we promoted our mobile massage service through placing advertisement on the Hong Kong General Chamber of Social Enterprises display board at Kwun Tong. To be more cost effective and to increase competitiveness, the operation of the mobile massage team underwent reengineering exercise during the year. Staff Training and DevelopmentWe are committed to providing training and development opportunities to staff members to upgrade their skill sets for achieving service excellence. Six Masseurs/Masseuses successfully completed the Deng-Li Stretching Therapy training course. Moreover, Beauticians and Beauty Masseuse were sponsored to attend the product and training workshops so as to keep them abreast of the latest products and service skills. 18 Districts Caring Employers 2013 AwardWe were pleased to receive the 18 Districts Caring Employers Award 2013 at the International Day for Disabled Persons held on 1 December 2013 at the Kowloon Park.The award recognized the contribution of the Centre for employment of the people with visual impairment, and promotion of equal job opportunities for people with disabilities. Donation from Ng Teng Fonng Charitable FoundationThanks to the Ng Teng Fong Charitable Foundation for a donation of HK$100,000 for replacement of the worn out pumps for the hydraulic massage couches, air-conditioning enhancement work and introduction of e-signature to the WeM customer service system to improve service quality and efficiency. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Health Massage and Treatment Centre
Mobile Massage Team
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Eye Care and Low Vision ServicesGENERAL EYE AND LOW VISION CENTREService PerformanceThe General Eye and Low Vision Centre provided over 41,000 consultations and more than 1,000 major surgeries to its clients in 2013/14. Clinical low vision trainings were given to final year Optometry students of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Ophthalmologists of the public hospitals and other local and overseas service providers and institutes, such as Optometry Department of the Singapore Polytechnic University, Ophthalmological Departments of the Zhongshan School of Medicine and the Tiangjin Medical University, and Low Vision Clinic of the Hong Kong Eye Hospital. With generous support from the S.K. Yee Medical Foundation and the Yin Shin Leung Charitable Foundation, 23 patients with financial hardship were able to receive surgeries to restore their eye sight and to improve their independence and functional abilities in their daily living. Other ProjectsThe Centre started in December 2013 the Blindness Prevention with Glaucoma Screening and Public Education Programme supported by The Link Real Estate Investment Trust. We screened around 1,000 elderly persons living in the public housing estates from December 2013 to March 2014. With funding support from the Education Bureau, we jointly organized the 6th “Teachers Training Course on Supporting Learning Needs of Students with Cortical Visual Impairment (CVI)” with the Ebenezer School and Home for the Visually Impaired in January 2014. The training course gave 26 special teachers and therapists better understanding of the education needs of the students suffering from cerebral visual impairment and the appropriate teaching approaches for drawing up teaching plan for individual CVI students. A one-day seminar on supportive services and resources for students with visual impairment was organized with the Education Bureau in December 2013, for teachers teaching students with visual impairment in mainstream schools to maximize the assistance they can provide to visually impaired students. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 General Eye and Low Vision CentreTotal No. of Attendance
VISION 2020 - LOW VISION RESOURCE CENTRETo keep up with its role as an important and resourceful low vision centre for the developing countries, the Centre is continuously in search of low cost and quality low vision devices and equipment for its service users. The product list was regularly reviewed and updated by adopting recommendations from advisors of the Low Vision Programme Committee of the International Agency for Prevention of Blindness, and identifying new products introduced by suppliers at the optical and eye wear related exhibitions in Hong Kong and overseas. Besides, technical assistance was given to customers in use of the various devices. New vision assessment equipment and low vision devices such as the high power reading glasses with silicon spectacle frame, and improved light absorption spectacles were introduced in 2013/14 to broaden the product portfolio and choices. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Vision 2020 Low Vision Resource Centre
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Residential ServicesPROFESSIONAL SERVICES FOR THE AGED BLINDElder AcademiesIn 2013/14, the two elder academies - Lok Yi Elder Academy and Ki Yan Elder Academy established in 2009 and 2011 respectively in joint collaboration with secondary schools in the neighbourhood, organized a number of classes, such as liberal education, ocarina, handicraft making, painting and clay making, rubber band exercise, Tai Chi, cooking and study of famous historical figures in Chinese history for the aged blind. Besides, health talks were held; visits to CLP Green Eco Fish Farm in Yuen Long, The Hong Kong Museum of History and Cheung Muk Tau Holiday Centre for the Elderly were arranged to promote continuous learning and active ageing. The courses were designed and held in an accessible environment to meet with needs of the aged blind. The assistance from secondary school students to play the role as teaching assistants and volunteers, helped to promote inter-generational inclusion and to promote life-long learning for a fulfilling life. Innovative Fall Prevention ProjectAccidents like falling could be detrimental to the aged blind both physically and mentally. Most of the falls happened in our residential homes was reported to have caused by intrinsic factors, such as lower limb weakness and poor postural balance. In order to reduce the risk of falling, a fall prevention exercise programme - “Fall Proof Project” was developed to provide assessment and training for our frail elderly. We were grateful to Mrs. Grace Tsao for her generous support of HK$280,000 to purchase assessment and training equipment for the Kowloon Home for the Aged Blind in 2013. Twenty visually impaired residents aged between 70 and 97 with independent mobility were recruited to participate in a 12-month exercise training programme. They were engaged in a 60-minute exercise session three times a week for lower limb muscle strengthening, endurance training, transfer training and postural balance training. The results proved that the 12-month exercise training programme was effective for improving the lower limb muscle strength as well as postural balance of the aged residents with visual impairment. The programme would be extended to the other Homes for the Aged Blind in the near future to reduce fall risk of the visually impaired elderly. Professional Development of Dementia Care for the Aged BlindThe Occupational Therapist of our Dementia Care Team, gave a presentation named “Commissioning Dementia Care: A holistic integrated approach of rehabilitation service for elderly with visual and cognitive impairment” at the 16th Asia Pacific Regional Conference of Alzheimer’s Disease International on 13 December 2013. “An Integrated Rehabilitation Service” programme was carried out by the physiotherapist and occupational therapist in different individual training and group sessions. One-stop service to streamline the course of rehabilitation service for frail residents with cognition and visual impairment was provided in Kowloon Home for the Aged Blind. The project integrated a variety of specific treatment modalities into a tailor-made service across the professional boundaries. This holistic service approach could optimize service outcome to meet with the genuine rehabilitative needs of residents. The project will serve as a reference model for the other Homes for the Aged Blind and professionals working in the field. LOVE COUPONS CAMPAIGN 2013“Love coupons” charity fund-raising campaign is an annual joint charitable fund-raising activity of agencies serving the elderly in Hong Kong. It was the first time that we joined the “Love Coupons Campaign 2013” to raise fund from 26 October to 1 December 2013 to support certain projects of our elderly service. We made appeals through different channels, including approaching prospective donors and supporters, selling love coupons through internal service units. There were also eight days of street selling during the months of October and November in Tuen Mun, Yuen Long, Tin Shui Wai, Sham Shui Po, and Shek Kip Mei respectively. After deducting the administrative expenses paid to the organizer, a net sum of HK$280,465 was raised to support specific projects for the aged blind in 2014/15. "ABILITIES BEYONGD DISABILITIES" - SERVICES FOR PERSONS OF MULTIPLE DISABILITIES WITH VISUAL IMPAIRMENTThe 7th Asian Intellectual Disabilities Conference in GuangzhouThe conference was held from 18 to 20 June 2013 in the Guangdong Museum and Guangzhou Tianhe Children’s Palace. A total of 18 trainees and residents from our Morning Glory Day Activity Centre cum Hostel, the Bradbury Home and the Joyful Home attended the workshops and visited the local programmes in Guangdong. Our Occupational Therapist presented the paper “Pro-life care Enrichment program for the aged multiple disabilities and visual impairment” at the conference and participating members had the chance to share and exchange valuable experiences with other experts from the mainland, Macau, Hong Kong and Taiwan. The international Association for the Scientitfic Study of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities - 3rd Asia-Pacific ConferenceThe Conference was held from 21 to 23 August 2013 at Wasada University in Tokyo. Mr Sam Sung, a resident of the Bradbury Home and Mr Johnny Tsang, a trainee of the Morning Glory Day Activity Centre cum Hostel presented their paper named “Independent living for individuals with multiple disabilities and visual impairment in Hong Kong: Our journey to inclusion” at the Conference. They told their own stories and had given the conference participants a better understanding of their needs and aspirations as a person of Multiple Disabilities with Visual Impairment. Mr Sung, who is one of our pro-active members of Ambassadors of Positive Living Programme, shared his story of “Independent Living in Hong Kong” at the Conference. Mr Johnny Tsang is a talent in playing harmonica and drums and has been participating in various public performance in Hong Kong. He is also one of the disabled artists in Hong Kong with courage to meet challenges and to use music to share with people in the community. Besides, the Home Superintendent also presented the paper on “Pro-life Care Enrichment Programs for families with multiple disabilities and visual impairment - Carer Successor Scheme”. Feedback from the audience was positive and encouraging. The abstracts of the two papers were published in the Journal of Policy and Practice in Intellectual Disabilities, Volume 10, June 2013. Cultural Exchange Tour to Tokyo - Visit to the Tokyo Support Centre for the DeafblindThe Tour was held from 23 to 26 August 2013 right after the Conference in Japan. Nine trainees and residents joined the tour to Tokyo together with volunteers, family members and staff. A friendly visit was made to the Tokyo Support Center for the Deablind in Asakusa. We had a good sharing meeting with their President, Director and deafblind members. Our trainees were able to enjoy the sharing session with the presence of interpreters and the use of finger Braille. COMMUNITY PARTICIPATIONThe 10th National Day Celebration Singing ContestA group of parents and residents attended the “10th Celebration of National Day Singing Contest Final” on 5 September 2013 to show their support to our “The Cheers” band. We were glad that the Cheers received the Silver Award in the Group Singing Competition. iRun - Hong Kong Jockey Club Hong Kong Special Marathon 2014The iRun - Hong Kong Jockey Club Hong Kong Special Marathon 2014 was held on 19 January 2014 at Tamar Park. Twelve trainees from the Morning Glory Day Activity Centre cum Hostel, Bradbury Home and Joyful Home took the challenge. Our disabled athletes paired-up with 13 runners to finish the 3km Challenge Cup Run while a resident of JH completed the 5km Challenge Cup Run. All the participating athletes got a medal as their reward. Apart from a demonstration of the physical abilities of persons with disabilities, the Special Marathon paved way for promotion of social inclusion. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Residential ServicesEnrolment in each of the Home Bradbury Care and Attention Home for the Aged Blind
Kowloon Home for the Aged Blind
Yuen Long Home for the Aged Blind
Jockey Club Tuen Mun Home for the Aged Blind
Morning Glory DAC CUM Hostel Day Training Centre
Hostel
Bradbury Home
Joyful Home
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Barrier Free Facilities and Adaptive Equipment ServicesBARRIER FREE ACCESS (HK) LIMITEDBusiness PerformanceBarrier Free Access (HK) Limited (BFAHK) achieved very impressive sales of HK$8 million through the provision of barrier free access consultancy services and supply of Braille and tactile products in 2013/14, an increase of 14% compared to last year. We shall continue to cooperate closely with different stakeholders in developing barrier free access facilities, so as to enhance a barrier free community for the visually impaired persons. The work projects done during the year included the barrier free access enhancement projects of government premises, by provision of design service and production of tactile maps and guide paths in more than 200 public premises and locations comprising parks, sitting-out areas, public libraries, hospitals and clinics, government offices and etc. The enhancement projects were able to widen the social life circles of the visually impaired and fostered their social integration. Apart from rendering consultancy services in barrier free access facilities to the Mass Transit Railway (MTR) Corporation, we also participated in the design work and produced tactile maps for the Guangzhou-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link and West Island Line Projects. We also undertook the enhancement of barrier free access facilities such as design and production of tactile maps, guide paths and supply of Braille signage for 15 shopping centres of The Link REIT. Furthermore, to help the visually impaired to effectively obtain information via the internet, we actively participated in promoting the importance of web accessibility. Consultancy service was given to different organizations to improve their websites. Over 50 websites were tested for web accessibility in the past year, including the Water Supplies Department, Information Services Department, Lands Department, The Office of the Government Chief Information Officer (OCGIO), and etc. Public EducationPublic education is very important in raising public awareness in barrier free access facilities. Seminars were held for Leisure and Cultural Services Department, Metro Plaza of Sun Hung Kai Property, Sun Fook Kong Group and Rotary Club of Hong Kong North, to introduce the design principles of barrier free access facilities and the methods of communication with visually impaired. Participants were impressed by the newly recruited visually impaired Public Education Assistant who demonstrated the usage of barrier free access facilities and taught them the sighted guide techniques. The University of Macau invited BFAHK to provide consultancy service for their new campus and share our experience of installing barrier free access facilities in Hong Kong. To broaden the awareness of tertiary education students for promotion of barrier free community and social inclusion, BFAHK joined as a co-organizer with the Quality People in the video creation competition, named “Love, No Barrier”. In the coming year, BFAHK will join hands with different organizations and corporations to further promote the barrier free concept to various sectors of the society. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Barrier Free Access (HK) Limited
ADAPTIVE EQUIPMENT SERVICEThe objective of Adaptive Equipment Service is to provide sales of adaptive equipment and supportive services to persons with visual impairment to enable them to stay active in their work, school and community and to improve their quality of life. The sales for 2013/14 were HK$2,953,720. It was 12% higher than 2012/13. In 2013/14, we introduced a series of new products to the service users and potential customers through exhibitions and demonstrations. The Merlin Ultra and Elite HD/OCR table top high definition closed-circuit television viewing aids with Optical Character Recognition functions were among some of the new key products. The new portable Pebble HD and Ruby XL/HD hand-held video magnifier gave better reading convenience and high definition quality to people with low vision. The JAWS and ZoomText software supported new Windows 8.1 platform with more powerful features that help the visually impaired to increase their work efficiencies. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Adaptive Equipment Service
2013/14 Product Sale Proportion
------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Education and Community Support ServicesCENTRALISED BRAILLE PRODUCTION CENTREProduction of Braille BooksCentralised Braille Production Centre (CBPC) completed braille transcription of 513 books of 233,836 Master Braille Sheets (MBS) and 15,092 MBS of articles in 2013/14. The overall production (including copies) numbered to 4,992 volumes and 725,270 braille sheets (included loose sheets). Besides, to promote e-learning, a total of 503 titles in 2,276 volumes of braille eBooks were also produced. During the year, a new braille magazine for students and young adults – “Neo Youngster Bi-monthly Magazine” was produced. To address the trend that people with low vision may not be as proficient in braille as in the past, CBPC has endeavored a new project to turn braille books, which are already phonetic based, into audio books. A total of 24 Braille Audio eBooks were produced in the pilot trial. eBook Reader ProgrammeA new “Timer” feature was added to the eBook Reader Program as Ebenezer School expressed their wish to have the timer feature with log for their reading / comprehension training use. To encourage communication and cater for any last minute change of teaching schedule, student members of the CBPC eBook Reservation System can now check the request schedule and transcription progress of their books on the eBook website. Staff TrainingIn May 2013, CBPC invited a specialist from American Printing House to conduct a three-day Tactile Graphics Training Workshop. A total of 33 transcription staff from CBPC and Ebenezer School attended. Other ProjectsIn collaboration with Information Accessibility Centre and Parents Resource Centre for the Visually Impaired Children, CBPC held two summer activities in 2013 to promote reading and braille usage. CBPC assisted in organizing a joint project on Ancient Chinese Classical Reading Class. Another joint project was the Support and Sharing Group on Study and Social Skill for visually impaired students and parents. The state of affairs and opinion shared were invaluable in service development. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Centralised Braille Production CentreTranscription Completed Books (Titles)
Articles / Documents
Thermoformed / Embossed / Bound
INFORMATION ACCESSIBILITY CENTREThis year, Information Accessibility Centre made strenuous efforts to introduce a number of new programmes and activities for members, with a view to enrich their knowledge and extend their horizon. Tele-digital Library Services for the Visually ImpairedListening to newspapers/magazines and talking books through our Tele-digital Library System has become an important part of our service users’ daily life. Hit rate of the Tele-digital Library for the visually impaired continued to increase. During the year, the Tele-digital Library System underwent system upgrade to make it more user-friendly and be made available for use on popular smart devices such as iPhone and iPad. Thanks to the support of Pacific Century Cyber Works Limited (PCCW) for their additional sponsorship of eight more telephone lines to make up a total of 16. Adding the other eight telephone lines supported by the Community Chest of Hong Kong, there is a total of 24 lines that help to improve system access efficiency to the service users. Audio Description (AD) ServicesThe audio description services project continued with the Community Chest’s support since May 2012. During the year, our members participated in 37 screenings and seven performing arts programmes with audio description. The total attendance rate was recorded at 2,596. Besides, two outings with audio description had been arranged to the Chi Lin Nunnery and another one to the Hong Kong Wetland Park during the year. Due to overwhelming response from members, it was the third time that we organized visit to the Hong Kong Wetland Park in two years. Members showed appreciation to the good preparation of the volunteer audio describers for introduction of various exhibits and sceneries inside the scenic spots. Joint AD Programmes with other NGOs Riding on the Centre’s endeavours in a vigorous promotion of audio description in Hong Kong, the International Animation Festival 2013 organized by Hong Kong Arts Centre offered 10 screenings of five classical animations with audio description at their theatres. Moreover, the Arts with the Disabled Hong Kong (ADAHK) provided audio description services to two performing arts programmes on the open dress rehearsal of “Classical Ballet: Swan Lake” and the “Cantonese Opera: West Kowloon Bamboo Theatre 2014 – Execution of the Duke’s Brother” for the visually impaired audience. We also joined hands with the Tsuen King Youth S.P.O.T. of The Hong Kong Federation of Youth Groups to organize a visit to the Hong Kong Correctional Services Museum. Youth volunteers were trained to provide audio description services. We were also excited to work with the Labour and Welfare Bureau to add an audio description sound track to the TV series -“A Wall-less World IV” which was produced by Radio Television Hong Kong. Also, thanks to the support from Emperor Motion Pictures, Media Asia Group Holdings Limited as well as the other film making and distribution companies, we were able to add audio description sound tracks to two movie DVDs: “Ip Man: the Final Fight” which was released in July 2013 and “Blind Detective” released in September of the same year. Cultural and Leisure ActivitiesTalks of different interest To widen the exposure and knowledge of the visually impaired, we invited professionals from different fields as guest speakers. This year, our Centre organized five talks and one workshop, inviting doctors, writer, coffee lover and a group of trainee solicitors to give talks on the subject they excelled, that helped to widen exposure of our visually impaired members. Response from the attendants was very positive. Music Programmes Following last year’s successful experience, the graduate students from the Music Department of the Chinese University of Hong Kong continued to organize a series of music workshops for our members. This year, three music workshops were organized on music from North India, Cuba and Vietnam respectively. Apart from listening to music and group singing, the visually impaired participants were given the chance to feel different musical instruments, such as sitar and table. They even took part in dancing with the music and tasting the food of the nations to broaden their exposure. These programmes were very popular among our members. Visually Impaired Students Study Group and Sharings In collaboration with our Centralised Braille Production Centre and the Parents Resource Centre for the Visually Impaired Children, two activities were held for the visually impaired students in the summer of 2013 on Chinese Classical Reading and Support and Sharing in Inclusive Education. A total of 10 secondary school students joined the Reading Group and 16 students with their parents attended the Support and Sharing Group. The participants treasured the experience gained in the programmes. Braille Magazines for Youth In collaboration with Centralised Braille Production Centre, a new youth cultural Braille magazine “Neo Youngster Bi-monthly Magazine” had been added to our library collection in November 2013. This bi-monthly magazine which covers columns on recommendation of new books released, student corner and interviews with people from different walks of life, are found to be of interest to the youngster. Together with “Fleurs des Lettres”, we have two cultural Braille magazines produced for our readers to broaden their horizon and strengthen their writing skills. SERVICES DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Information Accessibility CentreMembership
Tele-digital Library Service for the Visually Impaired
Collection
Loans
THE HONG KONG JOCKEY CLUB COMMUNITY PROJECT GRANT: PARENTS RESOURCE CENTRE FOR VISUALLY IMPAIRED CHILDREN15th Anniversary Celebration ActivitiesTo celebrate the 15th Anniversary of the Centre, a Variety Show cum Lunch Party was held on 24 August 2014. Over 100 audiences including 30 performers attended. Performances included children Cantonese opera, dancing, singing, drama, musical instruments playing, etc. More importantly, seven Centre members who received disc jockey training took turn to be the Master of Ceremonies. They gave remarkable performances and received good response from the audience. Meanwhile, the publication of “We are Together for 15 - year - Message Book” collected 23 heartfelt messages and sharing from the parents and our visually impaired members, that exhibited the selfless love from parents and the appreciation from children. "Broadcasting Training and Internet Radio" ProjectSince starting in August 2008, the project continued and this year four training programmes comprising 18 training sessions were organized for eight visually impaired children and three visually impaired teenagers. They were trained as disc jockies and production technicians to record and produce quality radio programmes on the internet. The Internet Radio Programme has been running smoothly and there was a total hit rate of 13,373 since its establishment. Fifty radio programmes (about 1,000 minutes in total) were produced and uploaded onto the radio website. There were the youth’s diary, interactive games and interviews of special guests including a guide dog user, a professor and a visually impaired working adult. School Inclusion Sharing ProgrammeThe School Inclusion Sharing Programme started in 2011. This year, seven workshops were conducted in two secondary schools and three primary schools. Through sharing, interactive activities and experiential games, the sighted students learnt more about the abilities and potentials of their fellow visually impaired schoolmates and developed mutual support and concern among each other. A total of 210 secondary school students, 298 primary school students and 15 teachers attended. The project has proved to be useful to facilitate the visually impaired school integrators to obtain more direct support from their peers and teachers so as to foster their integration in normal school life. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 The Hong Kong Jockey Club Community Project Grant: Parents Resource Centre for Visually Impaired ChildrenMembership
Member Attendance
Toy & Resource Library Collections
Number of Programmes and Attendance
RESOURCE CENTRE FOR THE DEAFBLINDCommunicator Service for the DeafblindThe commencement of the 3-Year Pilot Project on Communicator Services for the Deafblind greatly improved the participation and inclusion of the deafblind in joining the social activities and in experiencing new exposures, such as going to concerts and dramas, visiting the Governor’s House and attending special programmes held at shopping malls. Besides, Resource Centre for the Deafblind celebrated the Easter, Christmas and Chinese New Year with different outdoor activities such as barbecue, buffet, feeding dairy cattle, visiting the herbal tea cultural museum, and etc. Eight deafblind persons and their companions from Macau joined the Chinese New Year Basin Food celebration and had a meaningful sharing with local deafblind. Social Inclusion and Volunteer ProgrammesThe Centre organized community education and volunteer programmes every year to promote the social inclusion and raise the general public’s understanding of deafblindness. A total of 47 youth members from the Jockey Club Fanling Children & Youth Integrated ServicesCentre of The Boys’ & Girls’ Clubs Association of Hong Kong and Methodist Centre Aldrich Bay Integrated Children & Youth Services joined the public education programmes to learn to care and respect the others. Besides, there were 82 by headcount attended the training workshops and volunteer consolidation programmes during the year. "You Are Not Alone" SchemeWorkshops on “Orientation & Mobility Training for the Deafblind” and “Assistive Devices for the Deafblind” were held for the deafblind, their families and carers, in order to have a broader understanding on the needs of deafblind. In the first members’ forum, members reviewed the services of 2013/14 and gave opinions on their service needs. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Resource Centre for the Deafblind
COMMUNITY SUPPORT AND RECREATIONAL SERVICEEnrolment and Service ProgrammesCommunity Support and Recreational Service (CSRS) continued to provide emotional support services to the newly blind waitlisted for training at the Rehabilitation Centre. Recreational, educational and developmental group activities were organized for members including those graduates of the Rehabilitation Centre to strengthen their social network and widen their social circle. As at 31 March 2014, CSRS has a membership of 677, of whom 516 were visually impaired members, 45 were their family members and 116 volunteers. During the year, CSRS organized 50 groups with a total of 1,210 participants by headcount, 12 outdoor programmes with a total of 656 participants by headcount and six festive programmes with 302 participants by headcount. Visually Impaired Golfer Fun DaySeventy visually impaired members took part in the Golfer Fun Day jointly organized by the Roadshow and the Agency for Voluntreer Service on 28 September 2013, together with 80 corporate volunteers and two professional coaches. Members were particularly excited to play golf with the famous pop artist, Mr Alan Tam, on the day. VOLUNTEER DEVELOPMENT SERVICERenewal of volunteer membershipDuring the year, all volunteers had renewed their membership for issuance of new volunteer card. A new volunteer handbook was published that volunteers would record their number of service hours on the handbook for easy reference. As at 31 March 2014, 710 volunteers registered with our agency. Caring Company SchemeWe nominated 12 companies and corporations for the Caring Company Logo in 2013/14. Four of our service units, namely , the Factory for the Blind, Career Support and Development Centre, S.K. Yee Health Massage and Treatment Centre and the Barrier Free Access (HK) Limited joined the Caring Company NGO Partnership Expo held on 28 February 2014 to promote our services for the visually impaired and to identify new corporate partners. Volunteer Training and GatheringTalk on “Infection Control” was conducted for our volunteers on 27 June 2013. There were 33 volunteers attended. With funding support from the Sham Shui Po District Council, a volunteer gathering was held on 10 January 2014. In the morning, participants gathered at the Tuen Mun Home for the Aged Blind to attend a sharing by a visually impaired service user about her personal experience and how volunteer service was useful in fostering her social rehabilitation. After that they had a barbecue lunch at the Tin Shui Wai Greenfield. A total of 101 volunteers and staff members attended. On 20 March 2014, an orientation day and touring of different service units was organized for 31 new joined volunteers. The 5th Hong Kong Volunteer AwardA saxophone volunteer team serving our residential homes received the Volunteer Award with Special Merit from the Agency for Volunteer Service. Their remarkable musical performance had been impressive that they were invited to perform at the Social Welfare Department Central, West, South and Outlying Island District Volunteer Award Ceremony on 12 October 2013. Volunteer Management SystemWith support from the Social Welfare Development Fund Phase II, a new volunteer management system will be launched in 2015/16 for better management of the volunteers database for efficient service matching and calculation of service hours. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Volunteer Development Service
PUBLIC EDUCATION PROGRAMMEDuring the year, more than 8,000 individuals coming from schools, community organizations and business corporations visited our services. Through participation in different experiential games and the sharings conducted by the visually impaired services users, they were given better understanding about the abilities of visually impaired persons and the difficulties they encountered in daily life. We were grateful to the Labour and Welfare Bureau for sponsoring part of the costs of these public education programmes, which recorded an attendance of around 4,500 students from both primary and secondary schools. SERVICE DATA 2013/14As at 31 March 2014 Public EducationPublic Education Programme
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