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Peace Chiu

Educators have urged the government to set a timeline for solving the health, safety and operational problems faced by schools built half a century ago as teachers, government and legislators prepare to meet for the first time on the matter next month.
Known commonly as “matchbox-style” schools because of the obvious resemblance, the cuboid premises were built between the mid-1960s and 1980 in public housing estates for use as primary schools.
There are 28 of them left, and they face problems such as falling cement pieces and bad ventilation and fire safety.
Lam Tai-fai, who chairs the Legislative Council’s panel on education, announced that the panel, the Education Bureau and the education sector would discuss how to tackle the problems in the meeting, after panel members and undersecretary for education Kevin Yeung Yun-hung visited three of the schools on Tuesday.
The visit came after a number of requests from schools to look into how such premises affected education, administration and management.
Lam said the panel would make more visits in the future if that was necessary.
Yeung said that the authorities would look into the current process that allocates places for the reprovisioning and redevelopment of schools. The current process considers various factors, such as the school environment and facilities, teaching quality and future plans of the school.
But priority is not given to the matchbox-style schools.
Ip Kin-yuen, the panel’s deputy chairman, said the problem was urgent, citing an example shared by one principal, who told of how a whole ceiling at his school had collapsed.
During the visit, principals talked about health and safety concerns such as slippery floors from rain seeping in through ventilation walls, cement pieces falling from ceilings, and poor ventilation, which resulted in the growth of mould and could increase the risk of widespread seasonal flu.
Students and teachers were also affected by noise interference from classrooms opposite each other, the lack of a hall big enough to fit all the students, and the lack of proper sporting and performing arts facilities.
“These problems affect the learning and development of students, and create the problem of additional manpower and administrative work for the staff,” said Tsui Hei-lai, principal of E.L.C.H.K. Kwai Shing Lutheran Primary School. She hoped that the meeting would render short-, mid- and long-term solutions for matchbox-style schools.


Call for action on Hong Kong’s crumbling ‘matchbox-style’ schools

Ip Kin-yuen, deputy chairman of the Legislative Council’s education committee (left) visits one of the matchbox-style schools. Photo: Dickson Lee

Call for action on Hong Kong’s crumbling ‘matchbox-style’ schools

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Schools were built between the mid-1960s and 1980 on public housing estates