New life for old school

March 28, 2021

History class:

A Tongzhi period door plaque with a history of more than a century still hangs as a reminder of the campus’ history.

Stable supply:

Water pumps and tanks are installed to service the living spaces equipped with private bathrooms and kitchenettes.

Close-knit community:

The tenants’ children now have more space to roam around and even visit their neighbours.

Improved conditions:

Tenant Ms Huang says her family used to live in such a small flat that they had no room for a table and could not have meals together, but now they enjoy more space.

Happy household:

Tenant Ms Shek says her son is much happier with their new home as there is a basketball court for him to play in.

Features retained:

The Lok Sin Tong Benevolent Society, Kowloon Chief Executive Alice Lau says the building conversion ensured the school’s original characteristics were preserved.

Download Video| Transcript

Voiceover:
A Tongzhi period door plaque with a history of more than a century.

A school badge hanging on the wall of the lobby. 

Every tile is a record of the past.

This over 70-year-old school in Kowloon City has been given a new lease of life by charity group The Lok Sin Tong Benevolent Society, Kowloon or LST.

Once the last batch of students had left in 2019, the group turned Lok Sin Tong Primary School into transitional housing with affordable rent to help relieve the financial burden for low-income families who have been waiting for public rental housing.

Mother-of-two Ms Huang is one of the 51 families which have moved into the LST housing project.

LST housing tenant Ms Huang (Translation):
It’s amazing, I can’t describe it. We used to live in such a small place that we had no room for a table and couldn’t have meals together. Here we have more space.

Voiceover:
The flats range in size from 260 to 420 sq ft, for households of two to three people or four to five people. 

To convert the school into living spaces equipped with private bathrooms and kitchenettes while still preserving the school’s original characteristics, special attention had to be paid to the plumbing and lighting design.

The Lok Sin Tong Benevolent Society, Kowloon Chief Executive Alice Lau (Translation):
We had 26 classrooms and activity rooms to work with. The biggest challenge was converting the campus as it was not a standard one like other schools. The designer and architect had to revamp every single room. Most of them have good ventilation. The natural light is also not bad as there are many windows. 

We divided up some of the rooms to provide more units. However, some areas weren’t suitable for housing so we turned them into shared spaces for residents, such as a laundry room, library and games room. 

LST housing tenant Ms Shek (Translation):
The neighbourhood here is nice and other children in the community come to visit our home. We used to live in a tiny flat in Mong Kok and my child was unhappy with the lack of space and didn’t want to stay at home.

We moved into our new flat last December. The environment is good and my kid is now happy as there’s a basketball court for him to play in.   

Voiceover:
To be eligible for a transitional housing unit, applicants should be living in inadequate housing conditions or be in urgent need of community support and have been in the queue for public rental housing for no less than three years.

Successful applicants will be offered a minimum lease term of two years. 

Following the overwhelming response to its Kowloon City project, the LST has launched another one at the junction of Sung Wong Toi Road and To Kwa Wan Road offering 110 units.

Founded in 1949, Lok Sin Tong Primary School stands out in the Kowloon City neighbourhood with its striking historic features.

Once the last batch of students had left in 2019, charity group The Lok Sin Tong Benevolent Society, Kowloon (LST) set about transforming the old school campus into transitional housing with affordable rent to help relieve the financial burden for low-income families who have been waiting for public rental housing.

The flats range in size from 260 to 420 sq ft, for households of two to three people or four to five people.

Campus revamp
To convert the school into living spaces equipped with private bathrooms and kitchenettes while still preserving the school’s original characteristics, special attention had to be paid to the plumbing and lighting design.

Water pumps were installed at the covered playground, while the basketball court was retained for the tenants’ use. Next to the basketball court, a Tongzhi period door plaque with a history of more than a century still hangs as a reminder of the campus’ history.

“The biggest challenge was converting the campus as it was not a standard one like other schools. The designer and architect had to revamp every single room,” explained The Lok Sin Tong Benevolent Society, Kowloon Chief Executive Alice Lau.

She said the school had a total of 26 rooms, most of which had good ventilation and natural light thanks to the many windows. But not all the areas could be utilised for housing.

“So we turned them into shared spaces for residents, such as a laundry room, library and games room,” Ms Lau added.

Blossoming community
The more than 50 families that moved in gradually formed a small, close-knit community.

“The neighbourhood here is nice and other children in the community come to visit our home. We used to live in a tiny flat in Mong Kok and my child was unhappy with the lack of space and did not want to stay at home.

“We moved into our new flat last December. The environment is good and my kid is now happy as there is a basketball court for him to play in,” said LST housing tenant Ms Shek.

Her neighbour, mother-of-two Ms Huang, also welcomed the improved living conditions for her family.

“It is amazing, I cannot describe it. We used to live in such a small place that we had no room for a table and could not have meals together. Here we have more space.”

To be eligible for a transitional housing unit, applicants should be living in inadequate housing conditions or be in urgent need of community support and have been in the queue for public rental housing for no less than three years.

Successful applicants will be offered a minimum lease term of two years.

Following the overwhelming response to its Kowloon City project, the LST has launched another one at the junction of Sung Wong Toi Road and To Kwa Wan Road, offering 110 units.