Chapter 1 - Introduction and Controlling Officer's
Profile of Key Responsibilities

1.1	The Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD), set up under the Home Affairs Bureau, is responsible for the territory-wide provision of recreational, sports and cultural facilities and services.

Vision, Mission and Values

1.2	Our vision is to - provide quality leisure and cultural services that are commensurate with Hong Kong’s development as a world-class city and events capital.

1.3

Our mission is to -

enrich life by providing quality leisure and cultural services for all;
promote professionalism and excellence in leisure pursuits and cultural services;
promote synergy with sports, cultural and community organisations to enhance the development of arts and sports in Hong Kong;
preserve our cultural heritage;
beautify the environment through tree planting;
achieve a high level of customer satisfaction; and
build a highly motivated, committed and service-oriented workforce.

1.4

We achieve our mission by embracing the following core values -

Customer focus
We continue to respond to customer needs and pledge to provide services in a courteous and user-friendly manner.

Quality
We pledge to deliver high-quality services in a cost-effective manner.

Creativity
We continue to encourage diversity and to value original ideas.

Professionalism
We uphold the highest standards of professionalism and ethics while maintaining a high level of performance.

Result oriented
Our focus at all times is to achieve the best results possible.

Cost-effective
We are committed to reaching our goals in an efficient and cost-effective manner.

Continuous improvement
We seek to continually improve our services and to respond proactively in meeting the changing needs of the community.

Overall View of Our Operation

1.5	Organisation Chart of the Leisure and Cultural Services Department

1.6	The Department organises and promotes a wide range of leisure and cultural activities for people of all ages with a view to enhancing arts appreciation and enriching the quality of life of the community. The major responsibilities of the Department are set out in the paragraphs below.

Recreation and Sports

1.7	We develop and manage recreation and sports facilities and organise a wide range of leisure activities in order to promote recreation and sports at all levels throughout the community. As at 31 December 2013, the number of major recreational and sports facilities under our management was –

No. of major recreational and sports facilities

Sports centres	94
Sports grounds	25
Beaches	41
Swimming pools	43
Parks	1503
Children’s playgrounds	695

Horticulture and Amenities

1.8

We promote greening of Hong Kong through planting of trees, shrubs and other plants in public parks and amenity areas, and through organising a wide range of community greening activities. In 2013, we maintained a total of about 1 190 hectares of amenities area and planted about 2.55 million trees, shrubs and annuals.

Heritage and Museums

1.9

We preserve heritage and provide museum services with a view to promoting appreciation of art, science, history and heritage and culture. In 2013, we managed 14 museums, two heritage centres, a film archive and two visual art centres. We organised a total of 142 in-house/off-site exhibitions and 26 149 in-house/outreach programmes covering the themes of art, science, history and heritage.

Performing Arts

1.10

We promote performing and cinematic arts through the provision of cultural facilities and the presentation of programmes. In 2013, we managed 16 performing arts venues and organised over 5 400 cultural presentations, which included music, dance, Cantonese and western opera, drama, theatre and multimedia performing arts programmes and activities.

Public Libraries

1.11

We provide, manage and develop library services to meet community needs for knowledge, life-long learning, information, research and recreation; offer library extension activities to all ages; and promote reading and literary arts. As at 31 December 2013, we operated 77 public libraries and the stock of books and multimedia materials was 11.39 million and 1.74 million respectively.

Chapter 1 - Introduction and Controlling Officer's Profile of Key Responsibilities