HDB Community Week is an annual event that celebrates residents’ efforts to strengthen the community spirit in the heartlands. This year’s Community Week was held at Punggol Town Square from 27 May to 2 June.

The exhibition tagline ‘Good Neighbours, Great Communities’ focuses on the acts of neighbourliness that form a key element in creating cohesive communities. Here are some highlights:

1) Good Neighbour Award Ceremony

Over the past year, HDB received 2,960 nominations for the Good Neighbour Award (GNA) — a heartening indication that the ‘kampung spirit’ in the heartlands is alive and well. Be it cooking for neighbours or conducting mass qiqong sessions, residents proved that they were more than willing to go the extra mile for their neighbours.

14 national recipients were recognised for their exemplary acts of care during Community Week, and visitors to the exhibition could read about their inspiring stories.

Heart-warming stories from the GNA recipients

Visitors share their tips on being good neighbours

2) Friendly Faces, Lively Places Fund (FFLP) Project Exhibits

HDB’s Friendly Faces, Lively Places Fund (FFLP) encourages residents to initiate projects to enliven communal areas. Since its inception in 2016, 18 projects have been implemented for the benefit of more than 5,000 residents.

One example was the Terrarium Art Workshop held at the amphitheatre of SkyTerrace @ Dawson, where neighbours taught each other how to craft their own terrariums. Such activities inculcate in residents a sense of ownership over their shared community spaces, and in the process help them to develop a deeper bond with one another.

FFLP projects featured at Community Week 2017

3) Friends of Our Heartlands Launch

The launch of the ‘Friends of Our Heartlands’ network was another event highlight. To make it easier for residents to find volunteering opportunities, all the existing volunteer programmes offered by HDB will be consolidated and made available through this network. This includes on-going projects like Project SPHERE, which is an initiative that aims to engage the elderly living in HDB rental flats through various workshops and activities.

The main takeaway from Community Week 2017 is that community building is a constant work in progress, a collaborative effort between HDB and residents. On its part, HDB will continue to create more opportunities for residents to engage with their neighbours in hopes of crafting a caring, cohesive community.