Hong Kong [08-03-2018] – LONGEVITY DESIGN HOUSE announces a sponsorship from the Li Ka Shing Foundation today to support the project “Longevity Care Home Modification Project” (referred to as “Home Modification Project”). The project aims to improve the living quality and safety standard of elderly homes in five districts in the coming year, through home modification projects, customized design, and installation of rehabilitation equipment for the needy seniors.
The generous donation of HK$3M will be used to support the underserved elderly households at the five local districts including Sham Shui Po, Kwai Tsing, Kwun Tong, Tuen Mun and the Central and Western District. Beneficiaries include 200 solitary elderly or old couples living in private old buildings (e.g. tenement buildings, or buildings aged 40-year-plus) from each of the above-mentioned districts. Home safety assessment, together with on-site advice from occupational therapists will make up a customized total home modification solution for the beneficiaries. The Home modification items may include:
• To supply and install handrails
• To supply and install single sockets • To supply and install LED lights or fluorescent tubes • To install raised toilet seats • To install customized rehabilitation equipmentThis project also helps Longevity Design House to further develop their apprenticeship program. To fulfill the service demand, Longevity Design House will work with the Vocational Training Council to train 50 young technical workers with ageing knowledge to serve the beneficiaries in the first year.
“This project is specially designed for senior citizens from grassroots or underserved groups without financial aid. They might own a small, old apartment that it is worn out or far below quality and safety standards as a result of poverty,” according to Mr. Lawrence Lui, the Co-Founder of LONGEVITY DESIGN HOUSE. He adds that the funding from Li Ka Shing Foundation provides the social enterprise with a shortcut to upgrade the below-average home risk management of the needy but neglected silver hair community.
Hong Kong with be confronted with a rapidly ageing community in the very near future. The ideal vision of “Ageing in Place” will require more resources and support, while the local place is too small for ageing and the living cost is too high for the aged, says Lui.
Mr. Alan Cheung, Chairman of LONGEVITY DESIGN HOUSE, says, “The generous donation from Li Ka Shing Foundation is an incredible gift for the 1,000 elderly households in grassroots communities. Now all of them can enjoy a renovated quality living environment with less household risk, and which is customized and totally free. It also gives a big boost to the sustainable development of the social enterprise sector in Hong Kong and helps social enterprises to amplify their social impact.”
About LONGEVITY DESIGN HOUSE
First of its kind in Hong Kong, the social enterprise LONGEVITY DESIGN HOUSE targets to improve the quality and safety standard of elderly homes. With the edge of social innovation mindset and interior design profession, the team formed by five post 80s’, Lawrence Lui and his four classmates Ray Tang, Vincent Mo, Ken Tong and Tony Leung completes 400 Home Modification Projects in the past 30 months for elderly with different financial and medical needs. The social enterprise created the first “Interior Design Experimental showroom for Elderly” in Hong Kong and being recognized by several awards, include: the Champion of Hong Kong Green Building Week 2015 Green Building Ideas Pitching Event, the “Incubation Program for Social Innovation 2015’ by The HKFYG Jockey Club Social Innovation Centre and “Social Innovator Program 2016” by DBS Foundation.Media Enquiry
Longevity Design House Lawrence Lui Co-founder Tel: (852) 3611 6963/ 9493 4688 Email: lawrence.lui@longevitygroup.net
