| The Hong Kong Public Libraries system provides free library and information services to meet the community's need for knowledge, information, research and recreation. |
Public Libraries
The LCSD operates the Hong Kong Public Libraries (HKPL) which is a library network comprising 66 static and 10 mobile libraries. It also manages the Books Registration Office. The library system provides free library and information services to meet the community's need for knowledge, information, research, and recreation and to support lifelong learning and continuous education. It promotes reading and the literary arts and offers library extension activities to people of all ages.
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The HKPL has 3.81 million registered borrowers and a comprehensive collection of library materials, including 10.81 million books and 1.65 million multimedia materials. More than 61.32 million books and other library materials were borrowed from Hong Kong's 76 public libraries during the year.
The Hong Kong Central Library is a major information and cultural centre, offering a total stock of more than 2 million items and providing a wide range of facilities. Special features include an arts resource centre and a multimedia information system, a central reference library with six subject departments, a Hong Kong literature room, a map library, a language learning centre, a young adult library and a toy library. Facilities are also available for hire, including a 1 500-square-metre exhibition gallery, a 290-seat lecture theatre, two activity rooms, a music practice room and eight discussion rooms.
In addition to hosting regular cultural activities and talks, the Hong Kong Central Library also organised a wide range of large-scale cultural and scholarly talks throughout the year, including a Subject Talk on Cosmopolitan Hong Kong, Explore the World of Medicine: Public Lecture Series 2009, a Subject Talk Series on Life & Death Education: Peace Within, Public Lectures on History and Business in China 2009-10, a Public Lecture entitled Prof. Charles K. Kao and Optical Fibre, 'New Vision in the 21st Century' Subject Talk Series 2009 entitled The Outstanding Young Persons' Discourse on Adversity Resilience and Public Lectures on Asian Studies 2009.
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Public Libraries Advisory Committee
The Home Affairs Bureau has set up a Public Libraries Advisory Committee to advise the Government on the overall development strategy of the HKPL. Its members include professionals, academics, community personalities and government representatives.
District Council Review
Consolidating the efforts made in 2008, which saw the implementation of the District Council Co-management Scheme, Hong Kong's public libraries continued to collaborate with the District Councils (DCs) to develop district library services and to organise activities that better meet the needs and aspirations of local residents. Their concerted efforts provided the impetus for another year of encouraging development, which is best illustrated by the growing diversity of the community involvement activities organised for local communities and the wider variety of work projects undertaken to enhance library facilities and improve the library environment.
With financial support from the DCs, more than 3 000 regular extension activities, including storytelling, subject talks and workshops, were organised throughout the year. Increased interest and support were also witnessed amongst the DCs for organising large-scale activities to promote reading, many of which involve outreach efforts to bring public libraries to local communities. Examples of these activities include the Summer Reading Programme 'Delightful Reading Journey' in Sham Shui Po, 'Vote for Good Books for Children and Youth' and Creative Book Report Writing in Tuen Mun, and the 'Healthy Green Reading in Sha Tin' Carnival and Book Review Competition in Sha Tin, and a number of new initiatives, such as the Book Fiesta in the North District and the Community Wall Painting and Bookmark Design Competition on Road Safety in Sai Kung. Often co-organised with district organisations, these outreach activities boost the popularity of Hong Kong's public libraries and involve the community more closely through diversified approaches to the promotion of reading in different walks of life. Some of the DCs also support reading by organising promotional campaigns to subsidise the establishment of additional community libraries or the improvement of the facilities of existing community libraries under the Community Libraries Partnership Scheme.
The DCs have also been actively enhancing library facilities and environment. In addition to providing the necessary financial support for work projects, the DCs also encourage the proactive identification of library facilities that need improvement. Examples of work projects undertaken in 2009-10 included the reprovisioning of the Butterfly Estate Public Library in Tuen Mun District in June 2010 to allow the accommodation of more facilities and patrons; the upgrading and replacement of building services such as air-conditioning systems, lighting systems and CCTV systems; the installation of Braille floor plans; and the upgrading of audio-visual systems to facilitate the organisation of library extension activities.
Extension of Library Opening Hours
In April 2009, all 33 major and district libraries saw their opening hours extended from 61 or 62 hours to 71 hours a week to provide more convenient services and to meet the needs of a wider spectrum of user groups. The major and district libraries in urban areas have extended their morning operating hours six days a week and their evening hours on all weekdays and Saturdays, whilst those in the New Territories have increased Saturday opening hours and cancelled weekly closing days. The opening hours of these libraries have also been aligned to provide seven-day-a-week library services to the public.
All major and district libraries now open at 9:00 am every morning, except for Mondays or Thursdays when they open at noon, and operate until 8:00 pm on weekdays and Saturdays.
New Initiatives in Library Services
The HKPL is making a dedicated effort to improve its service to the public by enhancing its library stock, reference and information services, and use of information technology, and by promoting good reading habits in the community.
With a view to promoting the use of oral history in Hong Kong studies and to bring about wider public appreciation of the important role of oral history in preserving local history and culture, the Hong Kong Oral History Special Collection project was launched at the Reference Library of the Hong Kong Central Library in October 2009 with the support of nine founding partners from the local tertiary institutes. The Collection aims to provide a wide range of reference materials including oral history records, audio-visual programmes, books, resource guides, research outputs on oral histories of Hong Kong and materials deposited by the founding partners for public reference. A core collection of standard works, journals and reference resources on the theories and practice of oral history is also available. The Hong Kong Oral History Information thematic website was also launched by the Library as a one-stop information portal for locating oral history resources held in the Special Collection and local archives, libraries and museums.
Launched in August 2008, the Sports & Fitness Collection aims to promote public awareness of the attainment of healthy living through sport and exercise and to help amateurs, professionals, and the general public to enhance their sporting skills and physical fitness through access to library resources. The collection has expanded to its present size of 17 000 items, including books, reports, magazines, multimedia resources, electronic databases, e-books and news clippings. To enhance access to the collection, a Sports and Fitness Information Website has been developed as a one-stop Internet portal that allows readers to check out, reserve or renew library materials, and make enquiries about relevant subjects through the online 'Ask A Librarian' service. To enhance public awareness of sport and fitness and to promote the collection, subject talks, roving book exhibitions, and reading activities such as 'Olympic Book Corners' and the 'Olympic Sport and Literature Competition ----- Hong Kong Phase' were organised in 2008 and 2009 respectively. Focus was also placed on user education, with workshops incorporating specially designed hands-on activities held regularly throughout the year to publicise online access to the Sports & Fitness Collection. These workshops were particularly well received by teachers and students of the Physical Education of Hong Kong Diploma of Secondary Education.
To promote and support lifelong learning, Hong Kong Public Libraries will continue to collaborate with the Education Bureau to encourage school students to use public library services by offering the Library Cards for All School Children Scheme. In addition, Open University of Hong Kong course materials are available in 16 public libraries to facilitate the public's pursuit of self-learning.
Information Technology Initiatives and Digital Library Services
The HKPL's Library Automation System (LAS) is one of the world's largest computerised library systems with both Chinese and English capabilities. It provides 24-hour Internet library services, including online catalogue searching and the reservation and renewal of library materials. The HKPL also provides a wide range of online services through its website (www.hkpl.gov.hk), which recorded more than 152 million visits in 2009-10. It is planning to replace the existing LAS with a new library system and to launch a pilot run on a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) sub-system to enhance the efficiency of public library services.
During the course of the year, more than 85 new Internet Express Terminals with a motorised height adjustment feature were installed in branch libraries to promote the wider use of information technology. In addition, more than 1 700 of the computer workstations in libraries were provided with an Internet connection for public use. Wi-Fi service is available in all 66 static public libraries.
The Multimedia Information System (MMIS) has opened up new realms of information retrieval by offering the public instant access to a wide variety of digital documents and audio and video programmes. It provides a powerful and sophisticated one-stop search facility that enables library users to explore multimedia archives via the Internet or through any of the 600 workstations at the Hong Kong Central Library or 26 major and district libraries. A major upgrade of the MMIS based on the latest technology is currently underway, with completion expected in 2013.
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Reference and Information Services
Reference and information services are available at the Hong Kong Central Library and five other major libraries ----- the City Hall, Kowloon, Sha Tin, Tsuen Wan and Tuen Mun public libraries. The Reference Library at the Hong Kong Central Library has six subject departments with a total collection of 1 million items and a wide-ranging collection of electronic resources, including 59 online databases, 48 000
e-books and multimedia materials. The Library also holds a permanent collection of books on Hong Kong and the depository collections of nine international organisations.
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Specialised reference services are available at the Arts Resource Centre, the Hong Kong Literature Room and the Map Library of the Hong Kong Central Library. In addition, the City Hall Public Library offers specialised reference services through its Business and Industry Library, Creativity and Innovation Resource Centre, and Basic Law Library. The Kowloon Public Library provides specialised resources and services through its Education Resource Centre. During the year, the HKPL handled a total of 3.9 million enquiries.
To further meet the public's research needs, the Hong Kong Central Library has a referral service in place to assist registered library users in gaining access to the collections of The University of Hong Kong Libraries.
Extension Activities and Promotion of Reading and the Literary Arts
Outreach programmes form an integral part of library services, and Hong Kong's libraries organised a balanced mix of activities throughout the year, including storytelling programmes, book displays, exhibitions and community talks. A total of 19 879 library outreach programmes were offered in 2009-10.
In addition, a variety of reading programmes and reading-related activities were also organised to promote reading amongst, and sustain the reading interest of, library users. The annual Summer Reading Month was held from July to August to attract children's interest and promote family reading. The highlight of the 2009 programme, which carried the theme 'The Family of the Chinese Nation', was an exhibition that presented interesting information on the ethnic groups in China to enlighten children about the unique culture and customs of different ethnic groups.
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Teen Reading Clubs were formed at 32 major and district libraries during the year, with Family Reading Clubs set up at five major libraries. Meet-the-Author 2009 sessions were organised thematically to enhance young people's reading experience. To tie in with the 4.23 World Book Day, and in celebration of the 60th anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, the HKPL organised a school-wide creative writing and collage design competition on the theme 'China Today', which aimed to broaden young people's reading scope and deepen their understanding of different perspectives while promoting reading and arousing social awareness through the study of modern China.
Many other special programmes and competitions were held throughout the year to promote creative writing and encourage the appreciation and development of the literary arts. The 10th Hong Kong Biennial Awards for Chinese Literature, for example, was held in collaboration with the Hong Kong Arts Development Council to encourage creative writing in Chinese and to support budding writers. Other major creative writing competitions included the 19th Chinese Poetry Writing Competition in 2009 and Competition on Story Writing in Chinese for Students in 2009.
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A variety of cultural programmes were held during the year to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Founding of the People's Republic of China, including the aforementioned creative competitions in conjunction with 4.23 World Book Day 2009, and a public lecture series shared the same theme on 'China Today'. All of these programmes were designed for people in Hong Kong to know more about the rich culture and heritage of the motherland and the development of modern China.
Community Libraries
Libraries@neighbourhood is a community library partnership scheme designed to provide community-based library services in collaboration with non-profit-making local community organisations. Participating organisations are offered a block loan of library materials and professional advice to set up community libraries that meet the needs of their target clients. By the end of 2009-10, 151 community libraries had been set up.
Books Registration Office
The Books Registration Office helps to preserve Hong Kong's literary heritage through the registration of local publications, and monitors the effective use of the International Standard Book Number (ISBN) system. It publishes 'A Catalogue of Books Printed in Hong Kong' in the Government Gazette on a quarterly basis, and this Catalogue can also be accessed through the Internet. In 2009-10, the Office registered a total of 13 763 books, 12 226 periodicals and 886 new publisher prefixes conforming to the ISBN.
