With the footbridge, the school now provides a more comprehensive learning environment for them …

An improved learning environment

The public road caused a lot of inconvenience for students before the connecting footbridge was built.

The school staff were always willing to put aside their work and help students cross the road when needed. "During rainy days, the task was even harder and it was even more embarrassing for students. Not only did the staff have to take care of them while watching out for cars, they also had to hold up umbrellas!" recalls senior physiotherapist Yeung Hung-kai. He is relieved now the footbridge has been completed. "It is also easier for teachers to travel between campuses with all their teaching equipment," he says.

School social worker Lo Kam-wah says there are a variety of facilities in the new campus, including webcams and recording devices in the distance learning room, which allows students to interact with mainland students. The facilities also include activity rooms, school hall, indoor playground, visual arts room, outdoor playground and a music room. Both primary and secondary students use these facilities. "We have 194 students in total. Some of them are boarders. With the footbridge, the school now provides a more comprehensive learning environment for them," says Mr Lo. Now teachers can just stay on one side of the footbridge to ensure students' safety when they get to the new campus.

With the footbridge, students have more time for learning and sharing with teachers, thus creating and retaining a sense of happiness at the school – there was lots of fun and laughter throughout the interview, and students were reluctant to go back to the classroom when it drew to an end.

HKJC funding for Hong Kong Red Cross John F. Kennedy Centre footbridge

The partnership between Hong Kong Red Cross John F. Kennedy Centre and the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust began in 1995. At the time, the HKJC funded the expansion and upgrading of facilities of the main campus. In 2007, the Charities Trust provided funding for the construction of the footbridge linking the main and new campuses, allowing students to travel safely between the two campuses without crossing the road below, which has no road signs. The Hong Kong Red Cross John F.

Kennedy Centre is the only special school offering residential services to children with physical disabilities on Hong Kong Island. It is specially designed to serve disabled youth between the age of six and 20 years old living on Hong Kong Island, providing full schooling, rehabilitation and boarding services to them. The school currently has an enrolment of 194 students.

Website:www.jfk.edu.hk/