recreational pursuits to join freely in normal social intercourse and continuing to keep contact with him afterwards to see him further along the road to recovery. The Society is managed by an active voluntary committee and has a chief welfare officer and twelve caseworkers. Besides the Social Welfare Department, the Prisons Department, the Police Force and the Secretariat for Chinese Affairs also each provide an observer or adviser for this Society's Committee; the Prisons Depart- ment has now taken over the administration of the government sub- vention, but this has not in any way reducing this department's friendly involvement with the Society. The welfare contribution is reflected in the increasing casework services to ex-prisoners on which the society has so properly concentrated over the years, with careful selection of staff, proper adjustment of caseloads and planned staff development.
CHAPTER V
FAMILY AND CHILD WELFARE
46. Anyone who strolls or jostles through the crowded streets of Hong Kong, whether in the other developed areas or in the resettlement areas cannot but be bewildered by the number of children around him. This is almost a city of children and their needs are among our more pressing problems. Many Hong Kong mothers are working women, and children cannot be taken to most factories or other work-places; yet there are often no older relatives at home who can stay and look after children below school age. Urban dwellings are very different from village communities. For this reason the chief child welfare need in Hong Kong, apart from the special needs of orphan or disabled children, is increasingly recognized to be the provision of more day care centres where little children may be looked after. At present there are sixty three non-profit-making nurseries and creches and eighteen play centres, some sponsored by international agencies but most of them run by Hong Kong organizations. Six nurseries and creches and two play centres were opened during the year; more than thirteen thousand places are now provided in these day care centres, compared with only about three thousand five years ago. But even if one adds to this the profit-making day nurseries and more than sixty-six thousand places in kindergartens which are the concern of the Education Department, it is obvious that the needs are still far from being met. Sixty-two day care centres have been equipped by UNICEF since 1962. It is no exag- geration to say that without this UNICEF backing for which Hong Kong
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