Safe City Tour: The Heart of Stavanger
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City stories
Udgivet: 26 Feb - 2021
The Safe City Tour travels to Stavanger
Enhancing safety and inclusion in the Heart of Stavanger, lifting disadvantaged areas, reducing socioeconomic disparities, reaching and supporting youth through corona, and investing in strong networks to prevent radicalisation and extremism in Stavanger.
The eight week of the Safe City Tour took us to the Norwegian city of Stavanger. During the safe city tour week, Stavanger invited the local and global public on a virtual visit, and provided insights into the city’s involvement in Nordic Safe Cities projects, why they prioritise strong networks, how the city works to create safe urban spaces, prevent poverty and crime, and to support and empower youth through corona.
Images: City of Stavanger
Within the Nordic Safe Cities Alliance, Stavanger’s ‘Safe City Action‘ focuses on taking action to create security in public spaces and enhance the feeling of safety around specific areas of Stavanger.
More broadly, the City of Stavanger focuses on prevention and early intervention rather than firefighting. Stavanger invests in universal solutions that target root causes of unsafety and extremism. Stavanger is working to decrease urban insecurity and is preparing a strategic and environmentally friendly lighting plan to make hiking trails, riding trails, parks, recreation areas and activity facilities feel safe and inviting
On the first stop of the Safe City Tour, Mayor Kari Nessa Nordtun welcomes us to Stavanger. Mayor Nordtun explained that preventing radicalisation and creating a safe, inclusive and democratic city with safe public spaces is a priority in Stavanger. The city is therefore a proud member of the Nordic Safe Cities Alliance.
Within NSC, Stavanger is particularly focused on 2 projects. In the Safe Spaces Task Force, Stavanger is working to enhance the public feeling of safety in the central park – also called the Heart of Stavanger – and transform the park into an inclusive and attractive space for different user groups to enjoy.
In the Trygg By Norge (Safer Cities Norway) project, supported by the Norwegian Gjensidige Foundation, Stavanger is developing preventive efforts targeted specifically at the local youth in collaboration with civil society.
Video: Mayor Nordtun, City of Stavanger
“The best solutions to the big challenges are achieved when cities work together” – emphasises Mayor Kari Nessa Nordtun.
In addition to taking part in NSC, Stavanger prioritises the regional alliance, ‘Samver’, where the city works with neighbour cities, the Sør-Vest police district, national security and intelligence services (PST), the prison and probation system, and the Regional resource center on violence, traumatic stress and suicide prevention (RVTS).
Samver contributes to the region being able to prevent, detect and deal with situations related to violent extremism. An important task within Samver is to facilitate cooperation and coordination between the actors involved.
Video: Mayor Nordtun, City of Stavanger
Stavanger invests in universal solutions that address root causes of unsafety and extremism, and currently focus particularly on prevention among youth and lifting vulnerable neighborhoods, explains Mayor Kari Nessa Nordtun.
Video: Mayor Nordtun, City of Stavanger
Two of the city’s vulnerable neighbourhoods, Storhaug and Hillevåg, have so far been allocated a budget to improve living conditions and to make the areas more inviting. Amongst the focus points are decreasing socio-economic disparity, preventing unemployment, crime, youth crime and improving health outcomes.
In Hillevåg, the city has also initiated a pilot project to increase active citizenship and democratic participation. The pilot engages all 9th graders to increase their influence and decision making power in their local neighborhoods.
Video: Citizenship in Schools, Hillevåg, City of Stavanger
At times it can be very tough to be young – especially during these isolated times. But no matter the issue, there is always someone to talk to in Stavanger. Due to the Corona situation, Stavanger has had to find alternative ways to reach the youth and communicate the various offers that are available to children, young persons and their parents.
Stavanger has therefore created short animated information films that briefly present how the different actors and services in the city operate. The films are shared through social media, websites and parents meetings, among other places.
Video: Youth services, The City of Stavanger
Among the many services available to young people, Stavanger currently works with targeted initiatives to support young adults into employment, and provide leisure mentors who work with children and young people aged 8-13 who do not otherwise participate in any activities. The mentors are safe, stable adults who follow up, support and motivate children to find a leisure activity that suits them.
Click the button below to see more animated information videos.