Public Libraries
The LCSD operates the HKPL network of 70 static and 12 mobile libraries, and manages the Books Registration Office. The library system provides free library and information services to meet the community’s needs for information, research and recreation, and to support life-long learning. The HKPL also promotes reading and the literary arts, and offers library extension activities for people of all ages.
With 4.54 million registered borrowers, the HKPL stocks a comprehensive collection of 13.09 million books and 1.86 million multi-media materials. During the year under review, users borrowed more than 49.84 million books and other library materials from the 82 public libraries. The HKPL also provided online access to 273 000 e-books for public use.
The flagship Hong Kong Central Library in Causeway Bay contains more than 2.72 million library items, and a wide range of library facilities. Special features include an arts resource centre, the Multimedia Information System (MMIS), about 480 computer workstations providing access to the HKPL network and to online electronic resources, 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 available for hire at the central library include a 1 540 square metre exhibition gallery, a 290-seat lecture theatre, two activity rooms, a music practice room, and eight discussion rooms.
Public Libraries Advisory Committee
The Public Libraries Advisory Committee is made up of professionals, academics, and prominent community and government representatives. It meets regularly to advise the Government on the formulation of strategies and measures for the development of HKPL’s facilities and services, as well as the plans for promotion of reading and collection development.
District Council Co-management
In 2017-18, the HKPL continued to work with the District Councils (DCs) on district library services, helping to meet the needs of local communities by organising activities to promote reading and carrying out projects to enhance library facilities and reading environments.
With financial support from the DCs, the HKPL organised more than 3 500 regular extension activities and large-scale reading activities throughout the year to encourage reading and attract more people to visit our public libraries. Examples of these included the Summer Reading Programme – Know More about Chinese Culture in Sham Shui Po; the Tuen Mun Reading Festival 2017 – Advancement through Reading; Summer Reading Fun in Sai Kung; Let's Read with the Puppets in Kwun Tong; Family Reading Tips in Yau Tsim Mong; and My Uniqueness – Culture of Ethnic Minorities in Yuen Long.
To promote reading among the elderly and encourage life-long learning, the HKPL also organised a variety of extension activities in partnership with community organisations. Examples included a series of talks and workshops titled Healthy Living Healthy Ageing in Islands District, an Information Technology Series for the Elderly in Wan Chai, and a subject talk series on Discovering the History and Vestiges in Tsuen Wan.
New Libraries
In June 2017, the Yuen Long Public Library was re-provisioned to the Yuen Long Leisure and Cultural Building, with enhanced services and facilities. A pilot scheme was launched in 2017-18 under which three self-service library stations would be provided, one each for Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories. These would be located at convenient spots where pedestrian flow is heavy and which are far from existing libraries. The first self-service library station was commissioned in Eastern District on December 5, 2017. It enables members of the public to take advantage of 24-hour library station services, including check-out and check-in of library items, pickup of reserved library items, and payment of library fines and charges by Octopus.
Information Technology applied to Library Services
The HKPL operates the Next Generation Integrated Library System, which enables 24-hour catalogue searching together with reservation and renewal of library materials. The HKPL’s mobile application ‘My Library’, one of 10 winning apps in the 2016 Healthy Mobile Phone/Tablet Apps Contest, had a new mobile payment function added in early 2018 enabling easy payment of library fines and charges by Apple Pay, Android Pay or credit card.
The HKPL’s digital library system, the MMIS, provides 24-hour one-stop searching of over six million pages of digitised materials, including old Hong Kong newspapers, photos, house programmes and posters relating to the performing arts, maps, manuscripts, audio programmes, e-books and online databases. The MMIS can be browsed online, or via over 1 300 workstations at the Hong Kong Central Library and the other 69 static libraries.
Hong Kong Memory (HKM) is a multi-media website that gives free and open access to digitised materials relating to the historical and cultural heritage of Hong Kong, including text documents, photographs, posters, sound recordings, motion pictures and videos. At the end of March 2018, the HKM website provided public access to 29 thematic collections, 20 virtual exhibitions and over 100 oral history records.
During the year, more than 26.1 million visits were made to HKPL websites or related online services.
Reference and Information Services
Reference and information services are available at the Hong Kong Central Library and six other major libraries – City Hall, Kowloon, Ping Shan Tin Shui Wai, Sha Tin, Tsuen Wan and Tuen Mun. The Reference Library at the Hong Kong Central Library has six subject departments with a collection of over one million reference material items and electronic resources. Reference materials are continually being added to the collections, and heritage documents are also collected through regular Document Collection Campaigns. The Reference Library also houses the depository collections of nine international organisations.
Specialised reference services are available from the Arts Resource Centre, the Hong Kong Literature Room and the Map Library in the Hong Kong Central Library. The City Hall Public Library offers specialised reference services through its Business and Industry Library, its Creativity and Innovation Resource Centre, and the Basic Law Library. The Kowloon Public Library provides specialised resources and services through its Education Resource Centre. The Sha Tin Public Library hosts a thematic collection and a webpage providing sports and fitness resources, the Tuen Mun Public Library holds a thematic Food and Nutrition Collection, while the Tsuen Wan Public Library’s Modern Living Collection is designed to support green, healthy and stylish living. These wide-ranging reference materials and thematic resources are promoted through workshops, library visits and subject talks, in collaboration with the Education Bureau (EDB), academics, and NGOs involved in specific areas. The Hong Kong Central Library also operates a referral service by which registered users can access the collections of the University of Hong Kong Libraries.
During the year, the HKPL handled over 3.14 million enquiries.
Extension Activities and Promotion of Reading
The HKPL organised a total of 22 983 library outreach programmes during the year, which included storytelling programmes, book displays, exhibitions and community talks.
The HKPL joined with other organisations to organise territory-wide reading activities. As part of the Government’s efforts to make Hong Kong a more ‘age-friendly’ city, the HKPL also organised various library activities and workshops suitable for the elderly such as Talk Series cum Exhibition on Elderly Health to encourage life-long learning and engaged senior volunteers to conduct Sharing Session and Workshop on Self-care Abilities which were targeted for children to foster cross generation communication and respect. In addition, appropriate furniture and equipment such as height adjustable reading tables, chairs with armrests and desktop video magnifiers are available to support the elderly’s reading needs.
Promotion of Literary Arts
Various special programmes and competitions were held throughout the year to promote creative writing and encourage appreciation of the literary arts. Highlights were the 14th Hong Kong Biennial Awards for Chinese Literature, which included seminars conducted by local and overseas scholars and writers, and the Chinese Poetry Writing Competition.
Community Collaboration
The HKPL continued to collaborate with the EDB on the Library Cards for All School Children Scheme, and also organised briefing sessions on library resources and facilities for teachers and teacher-librarians as a way of encouraging students and teachers to use our public library services and collections. With the support of the EDB, the HKPL engaged native English-speaking teachers to deliver storytelling sessions in public libraries. Sixteen public libraries continued to stock Open University of Hong Kong course materials, designed for self-learning.
The Libraries@neighbourhood - Community Libraries Partnership Scheme provides community-based library services in collaboration with non-profit local community organisations. These organisations are offered block loans of library materials, together with professional advice on setting up community libraries tailored to their target audiences. In 2017-18, over 200 community libraries were in operation.
Books Registration Office
