Old Slab (Chinese: 舊長型) is a typology of residential block design employed in public housing estates in Hong Kong. Buildings of this type consist of one or more elongated rectangular slabs that are joined end‑to‑end, forming a linear complex. The design was widely used in the construction of Hong Kong’s public housing from the 1970s onward.
As of 2018, 257 Old Slab structures existed across the city’s public housing stock【source】. Notable examples include Sai Wan Estate, Kwai Shing West Estate, Lai King Estate, Wong Chuk Hang Estate (demolished in 2009), Choi Yuen Estate, Lai Kok Estate, Shun Lee Estate, Cheung Ching Estate, and Pak Tin Estate【source】.
The Old Slab design is characterised by its simplicity of plan, ease of construction, and efficient use of land, factors that contributed to its prevalence in the large‑scale development of Hong Kong’s public housing programmes.
References
- “Push to extend ‘old slab’ estates.” The Standard, 2 May 2018. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
- “Old Slab.” Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_Slab (accessed 12 April 2026).