>the Director of Social Welfare were made by the Juvenile Courts.
150 children found wandering or thought to have been abandoned were reclaimed by their relatives as a result of notices inserted monthly in the local press, supplemented by broadcasts. (See Appendix 4).
27. Beside their normal duties of interviewing in the office, visiting the homes of children in care, writing up reports of their investigations and attending court hearings, Children's Officers deal with children who are beyond the control of the parents, give advice on child care, and assist poor children to obtain relief or temporary shelter. Ninety six children in care were recommended for admission into Government schools and, in some cases, for reduction of school fees.
28. Not the least of the duties of Children's Officers is that of maintaining an effective liaison with a large number of children's homes, nurseries and creches run by various voluntary organizations; a list of these is given at Appendix 5, while Appendix 6 shows the number of children admitted to various institutions during the year at the instance of the Department. A specially close connexion has been built up with the Po Leung Kuk, an old-established Chinese institution for children and girls in need of care and protection (See Appendix 7). An event of much significance in child care was the opening of the 'Children's Garden' at Wu Kwai Sha in the New Territories on 22nd March, 1958. Run by the Christian Children's Fund Incorporated, it is the largest home for children of its kind in the Far East; the total cost of construction was over six million dollars of which Government con- tributed one third. When finally completed, the Children's Garden will be a self-contained model community with ninety five cottages accom- modating 1,200 children. Notable features are its cottage plan of child care under house-mothers, with emphasis on the individual treatment of each child in a family atmosphere, and its educational system, which provides primary, vocational and technical education in carpentry, mechanical engineering, applied science and other subjects.
CHAPTER VI
YOUTH WELFARE
29. The close relationship between Government and voluntary organizations has been stressed in the opening chapter. This is particularly true of work for the many children not fortunate enough to obtain places in schools. There are estimated to be upwards of 50,000 such children between the ages of eight and eighteen years, most
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