PolyU Design Institute for Social Innovation releases findings on Effective Transitional Housing Delivery in Hong Kong

To relieve the pressure on those with urgent housing needs, the Hong Kong Government has been committed to promoting the development of transitional housing in recent years. The Jockey Club Design Institute for Social Innovation (JCDISI) of The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) has released the interim findings of its “Study on Effective Transitional Housing Delivery in Hong Kong” (the Study) and its report on policy recommendations. Funded by the Strategic Public Policy Research Funding Scheme, the Study is the first comprehensive study of Hong Kong’s transitional housing programme.

The Government plans to complete 84 transitional housing projects and provide over 21,000 housing units by 2024-25, among which over half are in the New Territories. The Study examined 35 projects located on open-air sites with newly constructed relocatable units using Modular Integrated Construction (MiC) technology, which account for about 86% of transitional housing units delivered under the programme. Compared with programmes in other cities using relocatable building structures, the Study concluded Hong Kong’s transitional housing programme to be the most unprecedented in terms of scale and development speed while also having the widest societal participation.

Prof. LING Kar Kan, Director of JCDISI of PolyU and Principal Investigator of the Study, said, “The distinguished achievement of the programme is attributed to the NGOs that proactively echoes the Government’s call to take up a pivotal role in the development of transitional housing projects. Their endeavours are supported by the Government, particularly the Task Force on Transitional Housing, and quasi-government bodies such as the Urban Renewal Authority, as well as professionals in various development-related disciplines, building contractors and MiC unit manufacturers, private developers and charity foundations.”

Dr Raymond TAM, Teaching Fellow of the Department of Applied Social Sciences at PolyU and Co-investigators of the Study conducted interviews with tenants in transitional housing projects. He said, “A major merit of transitional housing is its enhancement of the tenants’ well-being through creating supportive neighbourhoods. The survey clearly indicates the positive feelings of tenants in terms of an improvement in their relationship with family and neighbours. They also consider their current living environment to be good for their health and to make them feel safe in everyday life.” He noted one common suggestion from respondents concerning the possibility of extending the duration of stay in transitional housing so as to reduce the frequency of moving.

Whilst pointing out the merits of the transitional housing programme in Hong Kong, the Study also identifies various pain points out of the stakeholders’ experience. These include the relatively short tenure of the sites, limited scope of the Government’s funding scheme, technical issues encountered in the design and development process, concern about occupancy rates of projects at remote locations, funding for provision of supportive services for tenants, and the administrative burden related to tasks including project promotion, tenant recruitment and eligibility assessment.

The Study supports the Government taking up the role as builder in the Light Public Housing (LPH) programme to enhance the efficiency of delivery, and proposes the followings.

Prof. Ling further commended all parties engaged in the transitional housing programme and said, “Their collaborative effort has forged a trans-sectoral and multi-disciplinary network to enable efficient implementation of transitional housing projects. This collaborative network has become valuable social capital which can continue to help tackling the housing problem of the grassroot families.”