Awareness of segregation in a welfare state : a Finnish local policy perspective

Segregation is a relatively recent issue in larger Finnish cities. The existence of segregation contradicts the Nordic welfare model, and segregation has been raised to the national policy level in Finland to combat a slowly widening gap between social groups on a spatial level. Local municipalities are central actors in urban policies. Therefore, we look at segregation from a local policy perspective. Our results confirm that segregation has not been seen as a burning issue in Finland on a local level, and recognition depends on the size of the city. Where segregation is acknowledged, it is often named a problem in city strategies but does not translate into anti-segregation policies locally. In mid-size cities, ‘spatial deprivation’ rather than segregation is acknowledged, rendering systematic interventions aimed at segregation even more difficult.