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RECREATION AND THE ARTS

programmes - the Spring Lantern Festival, Christmas Carnival were organised to mark festive seasons and special occasions throughout the year. In the New Territories, the Cultural Services Department organised 350 similar entertainment programmes, attended by 170 000 people.

Recreation and Sports Service

Since its inception in 1974, the Recreation and Sports Service (RSS) has done much to meet the growing demand for recreation and sports at community level, which has resulted from increasing affluence and leisure time. The RSS motto is 'Recreation and Sport for All', and the policy is to try to ensure that recreation and sports are as widely available as possible.

In 1984, 773 763 people from all sections of the community took part in programmes organised by the RSS and the activities themselves are designed to meet their different needs. Each activity organised by the RSS has a specific purpose, whether it be to introduce a new sport to the public; to stimulate interest by offering, for example, special courses for housewives or factory workers; to improve the standard of a particular sport by organising a training course for instructors or officials; or to provide individuals with the basic skills to enable them to develop their interest by joining a local club. A further important aim of RSS courses is to bring people closer together within a particular neighbourhood, helping to foster a shared sense of 'community'.

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In order to achieve these various objectives, projects are organised jointly with other government departments, and with outside organisations. The RSS and various district boards have jointly organised a variety of community events, which have helped to give local residents a greater sense of district identity. A total of 1 256 of these projects were organised in 1984. The RSS has also liaised closely with national sports bodies, jointly organising territory-wide sports development schemes; young people with talent discovered at the grass-roots level have been guided towards the relevant associations for more specialised training. Three members of the Hong Kong Olympic team in Los Angeles were previous participants on RSS courses - an example of those who have benefitted from this early encouragement and guidance.

The sports bodies themselves have continued to receive financial assistance from the govern- ment, enabling them to improve standards through competitions and training programmes. This assistance has been granted on the advice of the Council for Recreation and Sport, which was established in 1973 and is the government's advisory body on sports and recreation. A major part of the council's work is in advising on the disbursement of grants to sports associations. In 1984, $4 million was allocated to such associations, and an additional $900,000 was granted to enable the Hong Kong team to attend the Olympic Games.

However, the Recreation and Sports Service's activities are not confined to the able- bodied. A Special Groups Unit was set up in 1983 to cater for the recreational needs of the handicapped and underprivileged. In its second year of operation, a wider range of activities was organised for various handicapped groups, which include the physically and mentally handicapped, and the maladjusted. The programme was also extended to help the more severely disabled. In 1984, 127 projects were organised for 9 000 handicapped people - an increase of about 20 per cent over the previous year.

Outdoor pursuits still remain the most popular form of recreation. In 1984, a total of 60 372 day-campers and 145 364 overnight-campers took part in activities organised in the Lady MacLehose Holiday Village, the Sai Kung Outdoor Recreation Centre, the Tai Mei Tuk Water Sports Centre, and the Chong Hing Water Sports Centre.