EDUCATION
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assisted by having their fees paid in whole or in part. The assist- ance payable is equal to the difference between the approved fee of the school and the fee that would be charged in a comparable Government school. About 3,540 students now receive awards of this nature. Assistance to certain non-profit-making secondary schools on the basis of the number of classrooms occupied has also been in operation since September 1961. There are 1,476 private schools.
VOLUNTARY EDUCATION AND WELFARE WORK
Missions of various denominations and Kaifong welfare associa- tions organize grant-in-aid and subsidized schools. Both missions and Kaifongs sponsor boards of management for non-profit-making schools. Kaifongs also provide free education for poor children. The British Red Cross Society organizes hospital schools for crippled children. Schools for the deaf, for the blind and for lepers, orphanages, and homes for maladjusted children are also provided by various welfare associations while the Po Leung Kuk provides free schooling for homeless young women and children in its care.
Other welfare agencies which help education include the YMCA, YWCA, the Tung Wah Group of Hospitals, and the Boys' and Girls' Clubs Association. The Children's Playground Association, the Boy Scouts and Girl Guides Associations, and the Rotary Clubs, also give assistance. The Education Department works closely with the Social Welfare Department and voluntary agencies on special schools, and is represented at the meetings of the Hong Kong Council of Social Service and the Mental Health Association of Hong Kong. The department associates closely with the Medical and Health Department in health education and with the Hong Kong Teachers' Association in the professional sphere.
LIBRARIES
A public library was opened in the new City Hall in 1962. Other libraries are maintained by the British Council, the United States Information Service, the Chamber of Commerce, a number of Government departments including the Education Department, and the University of Hong Kong. Access to the university and some of the official libraries is restricted. Books, pamphlets,