Health and welfare promotion in Helsinki
In Helsinki, the goals of health and welfare promotion are to improve the well-being, health and safety of the city residents in everyday environments. The health and welfare work promotes fairness, equality and residents’ opportunities for participation. It is used to prevent health and welfare disparities, social exclusion and loneliness as well as to promote the use of knowledge-based prevention methods and models. It also supports the development of a socially, ecologically and economically sustainable city. The health and welfare work is an activity focused on the individual, family, communities, populations and their living environments carried out by the various city divisions and partners working together.
According to the Helsinki City Strategy 2021–2025 “A place of growth”, everyone should be able to live a good and safe life as who they are in Helsinki regardless of their age or state of health. Residents have the opportunity to realise their full potential and create opportunities to increase their well-being. Parity, equality, human rights and experiences of participation are prerequisites for a good life. Helsinki residents have the opportunity to live safely in a cosy and beautiful urban space in neighbourhoods enriched by unique positive characteristics.
According to the revised legislation, the municipality must promote the health and welfare of its residents and set objectives for the health and welfare promotion in its strategic planning and define actions to support these objectives. The municipality must monitor the living conditions, health and welfare of the residents and the factors affecting them by area and population group. The municipality must report annually to the council on the health and welfare of local residents, the factors influencing them and the actions taken. In addition, the municipality must prepare a welfare plan and report on the above issues for the council during each council term.
Work to promote health and welfare will be led through priorities selected for each council term.
To be promoted in 2022–2025
- Mental well-being
- Opportunities for leisure and recreation activities
- Physical activity
- Healthy lifestyles
- Formation of good relations
- Development of a safe and beautiful city
The management and coordination structure for health and welfare promotion in Helsinki was renewed at the beginning of 2025. The primary responsibility for the promotion of wellbeing, health and safety lies with Municipal Helsinki (the Culture and Leisure Division, the Education Division, the Urban Environment Division and the City Executive Office). They promote wellbeing, health and safety in active cooperation with the Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division.
Each division and the City Executive Office manage their own services to promote the wellbeing, health and safety of the residents. The reformed management and coordination structure manages and coordinates wellbeing challenges in the city that require cross-administrative management. The City’s operative management group is responsible for the cross-administrative management, policy-making and monitoring of the promotion of wellbeing, health and safety and acts as the responsible body in accordance with section 6 of the Act on Organising Healthcare and Social Welfare Services.
To promote equity for all age groups, the City has set up three strategic lifecycle working groups: the HYTE working group for children, young people and families with children; the HYTE working group for working-age people and the HYTE working group for older people. The core task of the working groups is to manage, monitor and implement cross-administrative preventive work at each lifecycle stage, taking into account the priorities set for each council period of office.
The wellbeing services counties of Uusimaa and the City of Helsinki are responsible for the coordination of wellbeing, health and safety at the Uusimaa level in close cooperation with the HUS Group. The Social Services, Health Care and Rescue Services Division is the main responsible operator of the City of Helsinki in the HYTE cooperation with the HUS Group.
The Strategy Department of the City Executive Office is responsible for coordinating the cross-administrative work on health and welfare promotion in cooperation with all divisions.