Highlight As a responsible corporate citizen, the Land Registry actively participates in local community programmes. We strive to help the disadvantaged, care for our staff and protect the environment through partnership with social organisations or other Government departments.

(a) Corporate Citizenship

The Land Registry recognises the importance of social responsibility to the community and strives to uphold a high standard of corporate citizenship. Our community initiatives focus on six main areas:

(i) Supporting Social Services

The Land Registry Volunteer Team has joined hands with some ten other Government departments to run a “Crossover Volunteer Project” programme since 2005. In 2010/11, the Volunteer Team organised 25 volunteer activities for the elderly and children. We also encouraged our staff to participate in community programmes such as organ donation and blood donation.

In recognition of our continuing commitment to serving the community, the Hong Kong Council of Social Service awarded the “Fifth Consecutive Years” logo under the “Caring Organisation” scheme to the department in February 2011.

(ii) Encouraging Donations

We encourage our colleagues to make contributions to the Community Chest by participating in a variety of activities under its Corporate and Employee Contribution Programme.

We also participated in fund-raising activities in support of other worthy causes including raising funds for the Hong Kong Paralympic Committee and Sports Association for the Physically Disabled through participating in the Standard Chartered Marathon since 2002 and supporting the community’s conservation drive through taking part in the Ngong Ping Charity Walk in January 2011.

(iii) Promoting Equal Opportunities

The Land Registry promotes equal opportunities for all staff and eliminates discrimination on the grounds of sex, disability, family status and race.

We also provide placement opportunities for people in need through participating in the Social Welfare Department’s Sunnyway Programme and the Labour Department’s Youth Pre-employment Training — Workplace Attachment Programme. In addition, we organised a Job Shadow Day for secondary school students in collaboration with the Junior Achievement Hong Kong.

(iv) Caring for Employees

We recognise the importance of maintaining a healthy workforce. In 2010/11, 35 seminars on occupational safety and health related issues, such as first aid care, health tips on the use of computer monitors, prevention of musculoskeletal disorders, handling of workplace violence and stress management, etc. were arranged for staff.

Staff’s awareness of the importance of work-life balance and healthy life style was promoted through the department’s publications, seminars and outings organised by the Staff Recreation Club for staff and their families.

(v) Being Green and Environmentally Friendly

The Land Registry is committed to ensuring that its business and daily operations are conducted in an environmentally responsible manner. To fulfill this objective, we have:

• formulated an environmental policy and set out key areas for actions;

• continued our drive in 4-Rs (i.e. reduce, reuse, recycle and replace) and efficient use of energy and resources. In particular, the Land Registry News in electronic format was launched in August 2010 to replace the paper version;

• undertaken environmental audit and surprise checks to various offices to keep up the momentum in environmental protection; and

• promoted green awareness among staff by putting across the message on energy conservation, anti-pollution and recycling initiatives, etc. through publications and participating in events such as Carfree Day organised by Greenpeace.

The Controlling Officer’s Environmental Report 2010 with detailed environmental performance is available on the Land Registry’s website.

(vi) Providing a Safe Workplace

The Land Registry spares no effort in providing a safe and comfortable work environment for all its staff and maintains a strong track record on health and safety performance.

A departmental Safety Management Committee has been in place since 1997 to formulate and implement policy on occupational safety and health. We have comprehensive guidelines and procedures for ensuring occupational safety and provide our staff with ergonomic office furniture and equipment to ensure occupational health.

Fire prevention system and fire fighting equipment are inspected regularly and fire drills are arranged annually. Environment and Safety Executives are appointed to conduct regular inspections to ensure the workplace is free from safety hazards.

As part of our efforts in providing a conducive working environment, we have participated in the Indoor Air Quality (IAQ) Certification Scheme organised by the Environmental Protection Department since 2003.

Since April 2010, we have provided an automated external defibrillator at our Customer Centre in Queensway Government Offices for emergency uses.