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The Secretary for Labour and Welfare, Mr Matthew Cheung Kin-chung, visited street-sleepers, a single-parent family and residents of an elderly home in Sham Shui Po today (January 20) to celebrate the approach of the Lunar New Year with them.
Mr Cheung first visited the activity centre of the Christian Concern for the Homeless Association (CCHA) at Nam Cheong Street to join dozens of street-sleepers and the centre's frontline social workers at their year-end reunion lunch. Mr Cheung arranged some roasted meat, glutinous rice and desert as a gesture of goodwill.
This was the third consecutive year that Mr Cheung had joined street-sleepers for a year-end reunion meal. He took the opportunity to exchange views with the Director of the CCHA, Ms Ada Lai, on the services provided by the centre and to learn more about the general background of the street-sleepers. He also chatted with the street-sleepers, and encouraged them to make good use of a range of support services provided by the Social Welfare Department (SWD) and non-governmental organisations. These include outreaching, counselling, financial and accommodation assistance, employment guidance and the arrangement of job placement and personal care.
After the lunch, Mr Cheung visited a single-parent family living in a subdivided unit in a building nearby to better understand the difficulties and needs of the mother. He presented the mother and sons with a new year pudding and stationery sets to wish them good health and good progress in the children's studies.
At the end of the half-day visit, Mr Cheung officiated at the naming and opening ceremony of Yan Chai Hospital Lee Wai Siu Kee Elderly Home in Un Chau Estate, a contract home where more than half of the places are subsidised. Speaking at the ceremony, Mr Cheung noted that seven new contract homes would come into operation from now until 2014-15. Additional sites for new contract homes have also been earmarked in 10 development projects to address service demand, he added.
Mr Cheung toured the elderly home's various facilities and was briefed by staff on the services offered to residents. He wished the elderly residents good health and happiness in the Year of the Dragon.
Ends/Friday, January 20, 2012
Issued at HKT 17:13
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