TNAG-1415-FCO40-1896-Public-finance-in-Hong-Kong-1985 — Page 148

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The Working Group recommended the introduction of the following procedures to ensure that the work was carried out expeditiously:

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standard schedules of accommodation, standard layouts, standard finishes and standard costs for furniture and equipment for various social welfare services in housing estates should be established and agreed with the voluntary organizations;

for services within housing estates yet to be constructed, a turnkey system should be instituted with the Housing Authority's main contractor doing as much of the work as possible. The voluntary organizations would be permitted to make certain changes to the layout and fitting out of the premises within the established standards but if these would result in additional costs, the excess costs would be met by the voluntary organizations. The cost of fitting out would be paid from the Lotteries Fund direct to the Housing Authority; and

for already constructed estates and estates under construction, use should be made as far as possible of the Housing Authority's term maintenance contractors to carry out fitting- out work.

In implementing its recommendations on standards, the Working Group agreed that priority should be given to establishing standards for the 'core'

services, namely children and youth centres, nurseries, social centres for the elderly and hostels for the elderly and a committee has been meeting since July 1984 to establish standards for these services. Unfortunately progress has been slow, mainly because it has proved to be a time-consuming task to establish appropriate standards for each service which can be adapted to the different design blocks in housing estates, and to secure agreement to those standards from the voluntary organizations. April 1985, standards had been agreed for the 'core' services in two types of design block and work was in hand to draw up standards for the 'core' services in the remaining types of design block. Thereafter standards will be established for other services as far as this is practicable.

In