Old Victoria Barracks was one of the first British military compounds in Hong Kong. There were over thirty military buildings in the Barracks but most of them were demolished. The buildings which still exist –Roberts Block, Cassels Block, Montgomery Block, Rawlinson House and Wavell Block, together with the declared monument Flagstaff House – used to serve as residences and dormitories. During the Japanese Occupation (1941-1945), the buildings were used by the Japanese. In 1979, Victoria Barracks was handed back to the Hong Kong Government, and part of it was converted into the Hong Kong Park.
Located above Kennedy Road, Roberts Block was built in the early 1900s and was originally known as army Married Quarters “E Block”. It was named after the Second World War probably after Brigadier (later Major-General) G.P. Roberts. Since 1986 until 2013, it has been occupied by the New Life Psychiatric Rehabilitation Association as a hostel for recovered psychiatric patients. The property is vacant now and under the management of Government Property Agency. Roberts Block was accorded as Grade 1 Historic Building in 2009.
This block is three-storey high. The north elevation is in elegant Edwardian Classical Revival style with open verandahs on all three floors formed by red-brick square columns supporting a classical entablature and moulded cornice at each floor level. The spaces between the columns are filled with classical urn-shaped balustrading. The architectural features are painted white in contrast to the red brickwork. The original steel staircases and some half-glazed wooden doors and fanlights still exist.