Youth work and projects in Tensta

Youth work and
projects in Tensta
Photo: Jasmina Alkasab
Policy statement
Welcome to the City district of SpångaTensta – a part of the City of Stockholm
“I’m convinced that we won’t be able to turn Tensta into a safe and secure
place without working very closely with parents, schools, police, associations,
sports clubs and the various faith communities. For this reason we want to
establish a dialogue based on trust, a long-term approach, and give and take.
Previous experience has taught me that we on the city council can’t solve the
problems here in Tensta without closely cooperating with those who live here.
I’m impressed with and have great respect for the wisdom and commitment
I’ve encountered when meeting people from the clubs and associations.”
“My vision is for everyone in Spånga-Tensta to aim for the same goal where
youth work is concerned, be aware of the needs that exist, and base the work
that we do together on these needs. We’ll then put all the pieces of the puzzle
together to ensure a better life for our youngsters. Luckily, we have a great deal
of support from the City Hall and from the Invest in Järva Programme.”
“On February 16, 2009 a new organisation came into being. The decision
to review the organisation was made by our district council in December 2008
when we were drafting the operating plan. As I see it, the point of departure for
the organisation is to establish interdisciplinary work methods with a focus on
the whole picture.”
The City of Stockholm is divided into 14 city district
councils with the same responsibilities and authority as
the City´s other committees and boards. The city district
councils work within their respective geographical areas
and have overall responsibility for their own activities
in the areas of care of children and the elderly, care of
individuals and families, refugee reception, park management, etc. The leadership of the City of Stockholm
maintains overall responsibility for issues concerning
the entire municipality, e.g. municipal taxation and the
City’s joint budget. The main part– three-quarters – of
the City’s financial resources is passed on to the district
councils. How much each city district council receives
depends on its individual needs, such as the number of
inhabitants, the ages of inhabitants and their living conditions.
Spånga-Tensta city district council’s catchment area
is located about a quarter of an hour from Stockholm
city centre, easily accessible by car, Metro or surburban/
commuter train. The district has 36,000 inhabitants, of
whom half live in relatively old one family houses and
half in the more large-scale district of Tensta, next to the
sizeable recreation area of Järvafältet (the Järva field).
Tensta is a typical part of the ambitious ‘Million Dwellings Programme’ – a government initiative carried out
between 1965 and 1974 aimed at eradicating the housing
shortage in Sweden by building a million apartments over
a ten-year period.
The local plan for Tensta from 1965 stated that it was
to be “a partly new outer-city environment. A residential
Maria Häggblom
District Director
Spånga-Tensta city district
area that brings some of the city’s intensity, concentration and order to the suburb’s verdure, spaciousness and
freedom from disturbance”.
Despite a high level of ambition, several districts
built at that time ran into problems at an early stage. The
global oil crisis in 1973 led to economic decline and a fall
in demand for housing. New apartments remained empty
or were often filled with households with no other choice.
At the same time the first major influx of refugees since
the World War Two began, and the refugees were often
housed in these areas.
Much has been done over the years to improve the situation in these districts in various respects, both socially
and in terms of the physical environment. Despite several
initiatives in recent decades – state and municipal – Tensta and numerous other districts built in the same period,
including those around Järva, have problems such as high
unemployment, a high level of dependence on financial
assistance (for example, social security benefits) and poor
school results. But at the same time, it’s a district with a
young and vigorous population with experiences from
most of the world – a richness to take advantage of!
Today, the city district administration prioritises efforts to create a more secure area for those who live and
grow up here – in particular for young people.
Today, Tensta is one of the six city districts surrounding neighbouring Järvafältet that is included in Järvalyftet – The Invest in Järva Programme (read more on
page 11).
Director
Urban environment &
citizens’ services
Strategic staff
Elderly and
disabled
Individual and
family care
Preschool and
leisure
Financial assistance
Organisational chart – the city district
2
3
Facts/statistics about Tensta
The ‘SamTidigt FörSt’ model
Population*
Tensta in figures
Population
Inhabitants with a non-Swedish background
(born abroad or with two parents born abroad)
Number of dwellings
Of which houses
Inhabitants per dwelling
Gainfully employed (aged 20–64)
Average income (aged 20–64)
Job seekers
Qualified for upper-secondary school after year 9
Proportion receiving financial assistance
Proportion receiving sickness benefit (disability/sickness pension)
City as a whole Tensta
810 120
7 281
28.1%
85.9%
434 030
10.1%
1.9
76.7%
SEK 307 100
1.9%
88.9%
4.1%
6.7%
6 203
1.7%
2.8
49.4%
SEK 171 100
4.6%
69.6%
21.5%
12.7%
(Source: Stockholms stads Utrednings- och Statistikkontor AB. All figures are from 2008, apart from those
regarding the proportion of gainfully employed, average income and qualification for upper-secondary school,
which are from 2007.)
31 December each year
Number
1998
0 years
390
5-Jan
1 747
15-Jun
2 739
16-19
954
20-24
1 314
25-64
8 380
65-79
988
80-89
191
90 46
2008
321
1 498
2 870
1 118
1 453
8 558
1 140
290
33
Forecast
2013
302
1 486
2 715
1 123
1 562
9 015
1 344
348
57
2018
300
1 378
2 690
1 066
1 566
9 295
1 567
371
70
%
2008
1.9
8.7
16.6
6.5
8.4
49.5
6.6
1.7
0.2
2018
1.6
7.5
14.7
5.8
8.6
50.8
8.6
2.0
0.4
Men
Women
8 438
8 311
8 677
8 604
9 106
8 847
9 309
8 993
50.2
49.8
50.9
49.1
All
16 749
17 281
17 952
18 302
100
100
* 31 December each year
Inhabitants with non-Swedish background 20081
31-Dec
0-15 yrs old
16-64
65All
Born abroad 2
680
8 520
929
10 129
Born in
Sweden, both
parents born
abroad 3
Born abroad 2
Nordic region,
excl. Sweden
EU excl. Nordic
region 4
Rest of Europe
Asia
Africa
South America
North America
Other 5
All
Born in Sweden, both
parents born
Total non-Swedish
abroad3”
background”
3 431
4 111
1 279
9 799
0
929
4 710
14 839
Total nonSwedish
background”
Financial assistance 20081
% of population
87.7
88.0
63.5
85.9
%
..
..
507
3.4
776
202
978
6.6
560
4 607
3 237
458
41
..
10 129
96
2 333
1 829
159
9
..
4 710
656
6 940
5 066
617
50
25
14 839
4.4
46.8
34.1
4.2
0.3
0.2
100
1 31 December.
Children 3
18-24 years old
25-29
30-39
40-49
50-64
65All
Financial assistance per household and
month, in Swedish kronor
Assistance period per household,
months per year
Population
31/12
5 237
2 023
1 368
2 531
2 327
2 332
1 463
17 281
7 458
Recipients of
assistance 2
1 530
456
242
512
472
404
94
3 710
% of
population
29.2
22.5
17.7
20.2
20.3
17.3
6.4
21.5
7,2
The management of Spånga-Tensta city district has created a long-term model for helping children and young
people who are in trouble or in the risk zone. Staff from
preschools, schools, social services, police and extracurricular activity centres cooperate on this work, along
with parents and clubs.
The name ‘Samtidigt Först’ stands for Samverkan
(Cooperation), Tidigt (Early), Förtroendefullt (Trustingly) and Strukturerat (Structured).
The problems of children and young people manifest
themselves in different ways in different contexts. Those
of us who work on such issues depend on each other’s
support in helping to find solutions to the problematic
situations children and young people find themselves in.
At city district level there is a steering committee
consisting of the district directors and heads of these
departments: preschool and leisure, individuals and families, and urban environment and citizens’ services. This
group also includes the local chief of police for Södra
Järva, and representatives of school management from
upper-secondary and compulsory schools in the area.
There is an operational management group with divisional managers responsible for schools, social service
investigations, family support, youth clubs, field units, the
police’s Tensta group, and local drug and crime prevention.
A prevention group is attached to each school. The
head teacher convenes the group, which is made up of
contacts from the police, representatives from the social
services’ investigations section and field workers.
There is also a reference group consisting of parent
representatives from various ethnic associations that acts
as a resource for those engaged in a professional capacity.
‘Samtidigt Först’ is to gain an overview of the situation and be responsible for managing the city district’s
youth work and projects. The rest of the work on crime
and drug prevention is managed by Spånga-Tensta’s local
Crime Prevention Council.
This Council includes representatives of the police
and local property owners, along with the district director
and departmental managers from the Spånga-Tensta city
district administration.
The aim of the Crime Prevention Council is to work
in a structured way to reduce crime and increase security
in Spånga-Tensta. The long-term aim is for the district to
be seen as clean, attractive and safe.
1 Previously called ”socialbidrag” (social allowance)
2 All those in a household who have received financial assistance at some point during the year.
3 Excl. children aged 18-21, who are included in the ”18-24years old” group.
Incomes 2007*
Earners
Average income
16+ years old
9 705
160 100
20-64 years old
Men
Women
7 922
4 048
3 874
171 100
187 300
154 200
65+ years old
Men
Women
1 305
562
743
143 200
170 300
122 800
2 First generation.
3 Second generation.
4 EU with 25 countries excl. Denmark and Finland.
5 Oceania, former Soviet Union (ceased in 1991) and unknown.
Those who obtained the grades required for admission to
upper-secondary school 2007*
Boys
Girls
65.1
73.7
Backround
Swedish
Non-Swedish
78.6
69.0
* Total income from gainful employment
Total
69.6
Unemployment 2008*
18-19 years old
20-24
25-54
55-64
Unemployed
2007
32
92
500
43
2008
25
64
354
38
% of population
2007
2008
5.7
4.4
6.7
4.4
7.0
5.0
3.0
2.7
Men
Women
383
284
283
198
7.2
5.5
5.3
3.8
All
667
481
6.4
4.6
* Excl. pupils without relative grades.
Grades in year 9 (end of compulsory schooling) 20071
Spring term
Swedish2
English
Mathematics
Distribution of grades, %
Pass
Pass with
Pass with
Distinction Special
Distinction
42.7
33.5
4.4
46.7
26.4
10.1
52.4
17.6
5.3
1 Excl. pupils without relative grades.
2 Incl. Swedish as a second language.
4
Number
Lack
final
grade
19.4
16.7
24.7
Total
100
100
100
227
227
227
* Unemployed (and seeking or able to seek work), 31 October
Photo: Jasmina Alkasab
5
Youth work and projects in the city district
Safe in Tensta and Tensta Against Crime
The departments of leisure and social services in the
Spånga-Tensta city district administration, along with
representatives from the police and schools, have discussed and analysed the situation of children and young
people in Tensta at a number of meetings. At these meetings, the parties have defined a group of young people
along with a group of young adults who negatively influence this younger group to a relatively large extent. To
address this issue, two youth projects have been started
in 2009: Safe in Tensta and Tensta Against Crime. One of
the aims is for more players to assume responsibility and
evolve the projects in a way that can serve as a model for
the future.
The projects are managed by a steering group, along
with the local chief of police, representatives of participating departments in the city district, representatives of
schools in the area and parents. The district director is
chair of the steering group.
A project manager from the preschool and leisure department has been appointed to manage the work, along
with three operational project managers. They are in
charge of planning and managing the ongoing youth work
in the Safe in Tensta and Tensta Against Crime projects.
Safe in Tensta offers four young people between the
ages of 18 and 20 the chance to be part of district work
on safety and security. The youngsters work during the
evening and at night to prevent trouble and vandalism
in Tensta and the neighbour district Hjulsta. During the
course of the project, they are given support in improving their self-esteem and in structuring their daily lives.
It is important to be a positive role model to other young
people in the risk zone. This work is time-consuming and
the operational project managers are given coaching on
a continuous basis. When the young people are ready to
take the next step in their development, they get the opportunity to do work experience, where they can try out
working in professions that they are interested in. After
one year they choose whether to resume studies that supplement their existing education, look for work or take up
a job placement.
Tensta Against Crime works with young people aged
14 to 17. Tensta Against Crime focuses on supporting
participants so that they can succeed at school, increase
6
their self-esteem, and identify and try out meaningful
leisure activities, in close cooperation with parents. After
their time at Tensta Against Crime, the young people
should feel secure in several different environments, have
broadened their network of adults and have developed
positive leadership qualities in relation to their friends.
They are selected based on their own will to work on
themselves and improve the area for friends and younger
siblings.
5.
They are in contact with the supporting organisations and can maintain contact independently in
order to achieve the goals they have set.
6.
They can name three new people independent of
their former network who are part of their personal positive network after the project period has
expired.
7.
They formulate a joint description of what makes
a positive role model for young people and evaluate themselves based on this description during the
project period. When making an evaluation they
can give examples of what progress they themselves and other people in the group have made.
8.
Participants are well known in Tensta as positive
role models after the project period has expired.
Aims of Safe in Tensta and Tensta Against Crime
1.
Develop new work methods and forms of cooperation in the areas of leisure activities, social services, school, the police and parents.
2.
Help participants develop so that they can identify
and make positive choices to increase their chances
of succeeding in the educational programmes they
are linked to. Give participants opportunities for
personal development through leisure activities,
study trips, etc. so that they can become positive
role models.
3.
New forms of cooperation with external parties
such as Stockholm Transport (SL), municipal and
private property owners, and housing companies.
4.
A safer area to live in.
These demands are made of the participants:
1.
Those who accept a place must fulfil their personal
commitments during the agreed period.
2.
They formulate some of their own long-term goals
for the project period, of which at least one is
achieved.
3.
They carry out their work experience tasks and can
describe how they correspond to the demands set
by the workplace.
4.
They can describe their circumstances and formulate short-term and long-term goals for areas in
which they wish to improve.
Photo: Jasmina Alkasab
7
SALUT
SALUT is part of Ross Tensta Gymnasium upper-secondary school and aims to help young people aged 16 to 20
who need special support because they have not met the
knowledge requirements of compulsory school or the demands of society in terms of social skills. They are given
BlåHuset – The Blue House
the chance to develop the knowledge and social skills
needed to continue on to further study or work. SALUT
offers 60 places for young people and is run in new,
tailor-made premises in Vällingby, an adjacent district in
west Stockholm.
Photo: Jasmina Alkasab
8
BlåHuset is a youth centre in Tensta that aims to be an
attractive meeting place for all young people in the city
district. It’s located in the very centre of the district, next
to the shopping mall and the Metro station. The centre
is to have an open atmosphere and foster a climate of
cooperation.
The activities at BlåHuset assume commitment from
those who participate in them and the content is based
on the needs of the young people, who are required to
play an active role and obliged to take responsibility. The
centre functions as a multi-activity centre and is an open
meeting place for young people and youth groups of various ages and with wide-ranging interests.
BlåHuset’s activities prevent destructivity and encourage creative development among the young people.
The work on prevention is based on four interlinked
requirements: mapping, dialogue, relationships and continuity, while the encouragement gives the young people
the opportunity to strengthen and develop good ideas,
creative abilities and interests.
Work at BlåHuset is founded on positive contact with
young people. We believe that by offering opportunities
for such positive contact with the adult world, we stimulate positive development. We make a point of engaging
the young people in a dialogue. Too often, they encounter
the monologues of the adult world – people talk at them,
not with them. The long-term approach to these relationships creates opportunities for positive development in
terms of norms and behaviours.
All contact at BlåHuset is based on respect, trust
and responsibility. Respect for each other as individuals.
Trust by being clear, consistent and credible in our contact with young people. Our expectation that the young
people will play an active part in designing the activities
leads to them taking responsibility.
In addition to the city district’s youth activities,
Blåhuset is the venue for lessons offered by Kulturskolan
(the City’s cultural school) in music, dance, singing, percussion, theatre, art and design. The Assyrian association
hosts activities for children and young people, educational activities, Taekwondo and dance. Tensta Boxing Club
and Café Mafé also use the premises.
The public section of BlåHuset, Café Mafé, is open
on Mondays between 4 pm and 9 pm, Thursdays
between 4 pm and 11 pm, Fridays and Saturdays between 5 pm and 12 midnight, and Sundays between
1 pm and 8 pm.
It has around 25,000 visitors annually, 85% boys and
15% girls. The lessons offered by Kulturskolan are
attended by around 140 young people per week, 50%
boys and 50% girls. Tensta Boxing Club has around
24,000 participants per year, 80% boys and 20% girls.
Photo: Jasmina Alkasab
9
Tensta Community Centre
JÄRVALYFTET – THE INVEST IN
JÄRVA PROGRAMME
Tensta Community Centre is a unique project under Ross
Tensta Gymnasium and is fully financed by Invest in
Järva Programme.
Tensta Community Centre is not a youth club. There
are no table tennis tables, video games or pool tables. The
Centre is not open late at night. It aims to act as an extension of school, clearly focusing on development, both in
typical school subjects such as maths and Swedish and in
areas such as culture and civic information. The activities
at Tensta Community Centre have attracted more girls
than boys since their inception.
The absolutely fundamental issue has been to form a
strong, united group of staff who back each other up and
work towards the same goals. Through regular staff meetings, feedback and handpicked personnel, the premises or
activity become less important in the context.
The two mainstays of Tensta Community Centre are
help with homework and activities for girls. By working
with various local associations and voluntary organisations, the students at Ross Tensta Gymnasium uppersecondary school can receive help with their homework
at the Centre four days a week. Adult volunteers spend a
few hours in our classroom on each occasion and provide
support to those students who ask for it. We also offer
help with homework in different languages, which is a
highly valued part of our work. Homework assistance
forms the core of our activities, and although we focus on
the core subjects of maths, Swedish and English, we also
offer support in other subjects where needed and in the
run-up to major exams.
Together with Ross Tensta’s teaching staff, Resurscentrum (Resource Centre) and staff at SALUT (read
more on page 8), we work to be able to provide as flexible
support as possible to our young people.
We see a need among many of our girls for a forum
where they can bolster their self-esteem and self-confidence. Young people encounter a great deal of pressure
on a daily basis where their physical appearance is concerned, and we want to play an active role in offering the
girls an oasis where they can simply be themselves.
Current youth initiatives in Tensta are all part of the
Invest in Järva Programme – a comprehensive city initiative launched in autumn 2007 following a decision by the
local council. The aim of the programme is to give the
districts surrounding Järvafältet a lift, economically and
socially. This is to be achieved by mobilising all sections
of the city’s organisation that are involved in these issues, centrally and locally, by working with players from
central government and the county council, such as the
police and public transport, and last but not least, with associations and the business community in the local area.
The work is based on a politically established set of
goals that concern improving housing and the urban environment, safety and security in daily life, education and
language tuition, and creating more jobs and businesses. In
broad dialogue with residents and others active in the area,
this set of goals was compiled in autumn 2008 into Vision
Järva 2030, approved by the City council in April 2009.
10
We have students who are expected to shoulder a
great deal of responsibility in the home, or whose parents
do not allow them to attend ordinary youth clubs, but by
targeting some of our activities at girls only, Tensta Community Centre helps them gain more room for manoeuvre.
The Centre offers a leadership programme for
potential leaders of girl groups, in which girls from
the second and third years of the programme are
trained in leadership roles, group dynamics, girl
group methods and values exercises. On completion
of the programme, the girls are given the opportunity to themselves lead girl groups made up of younger
upper-secondary students. In collaboration with
the voluntary organisation United Sisters, girls from
Ross Tensta are offered places on a programme
for night patrollers, including courses in safety and
security and law and order. After completing the
programme, the girls will serve as positive role models, creating a safe atmosphere for other girls at their
school during breaks and in school corridors.
The long-term nature of the vision aims to stress that
the initiatives in Järva are part of a long-term commitment by the City of Stockholm and its partners in the
area. This applies both to housing and the urban environment and to youth initiatives in Tensta, etc. We know
from experience that there are no simple solutions and
quick fixes where challenges such as these are concerned,
but we also know that perseverance gives results.
To sum up by quoting Churchill’s famous words from
World War Two, “This is not the end. It is not even the
beginning of the end. But it is, perhaps, the end of the
beginning.”
We wish you a warm welcome to Tensta and the rest
of Järva, and you are more than welcome to visit us again
in the future to see the progress in our work on realising
Vision Järva 2030.
Tensta Community Centre is open Monday to
Thursday between 2 pm and 7 pm, and Friday
between 2 pm and 4.30 pm.
It is visited by around 250 students per week,
70% girls and 30% boys.
11
City of Stockholm Executive Office
Staben, Stadshuset
105 35 STOCKHOLM
Tel: +46 8 508 290 00
Spånga-Tensta City District Administration
Box 4066, 163 04 Spånga
Tel: +46 8 508 03 000, fax: 508 03 099
www.stockholm.se/jarvalyftet
www.stockholm.se/spanga-tensta