DC HÖGSBO
www.hogsbo.goteborg.se
The trend has now reversed for Högsbo, which enters 2003 with balanced finances and positive equity. An activity centre that crosses the generations to promote an independent and self-reliant lifestyle could become a reality with the conversion of Högsbotorpshemmet home for the elderly. Increased drug use among young people in the community is a source of concern.
| HÖGSBO | ||
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| The first figure is for the district and the second for Göteborg in total during 2002, unless otherwise stated. | ||
| No. of inhabitants | 16,672 | (474,877) |
| Percentage of children 0–15 | 12.4 | (17.3) |
| Percentage of pensioners over 65 | 25.1 | (14.7) |
| Average income, KSEK (over 16) 2000 | 157.6 | (174.6) |
| Percentage of job applicants 18–64 | 3.5 | (4.1) |
| Percentage of people with higher education (20–64) 2001 | 35.3 | (38.9) |
| Percentage of gainfully employed (20–64) 2000 | 71.2 | (69.5) |
| Percentage on social security benefits | 7.0 | (9.5) |
| Social security benefits paid, SEK per inhabitant* | 1,508 | (2,128) |
| * Excl. introduction remuneration. | ||
The favourable location and the good infrastructure mean that this is an attractive district in which to live and work. There is both demand for and plans to build new housing that will benefit Högsbo, which is in need of more housing with better access.
Högsbo has some way to go before it can offer pre-school places to all children who have been on the waiting list for at least four months. However, the goal is to achieve this during 2003. In March, a new, temporary department was opened, adding a further 10 places to the 38 new pre-school places that were added in 2002. Little interest has been shown by residents of Högsbo in the public pre-school that was opened at year end. This is being integrated with existing services. Places in after-school centres are available for all children who wish them.
Schools in Högsbo have promoted themselves very successfully over the years. Extensive improvements are currently being made to Flatåsskolan, involving consolidating and extending the school’s current profile as well as converting the school premises. Högsboskolan is collaborating with other organizations, including the District Committee of Styrsö, on a natural science project – the marine field school. As part of the development project “Inclusive schooling in Göteborg” the compulsory special school has been working to extend cooperation between special schools and compulsory schools. The purpose is to give children and young people who have learning difficulties greater involvement in school and society as a whole.
The number of visitors to the district library is increasing. Inviting in one-year-olds to story-telling sessions was a very popular feature of the adult education programme that the library is running in collaboration with the child health centre. Äppelhyllan, a department providing media for children with disabilities, was opened during the year. It provides books in Braille, audio-books and tactile books.
The youth initiative in the western districts has made it possible to set up a popular and well-frequented IT room at Axel-Huset. One of the steps towards promoting physical activity was an exercise programme for overweight children, which has yielded positive results. All teenage girls in the western districts have been offered a “girls’ card” that allows them to sample a variety of activities at specially reduced rates.
Heavy drugs have become increasingly common, and many young people are now registering themselves for care in treatment homes. This drug trend is worrying and it is extremely important to provide effective preventive measures as well as access to professional open care initiatives. The drug addiction care service for the western districts set up two projects during the year that are intended to combat drug abuse among young people. One project is aimed at young people in the 16 to 18 age group and involves cooperation with schools and parents. The other is an intermediate care project for older young people.
Collaboration leads to better quality careAt the start of summer 96 pensioners moved into the newly built home for the elderly at Kaverös Äng. The district now has 348 accommodation places in four homes for the elderly. At year end there was no-one on the waiting list for homes for the elderly in Högsbo. The home help service and development assistance unit are working with primary care and home nursing care to ensure that the care chain works effectively. The relatives support service is being developed in collaboration with other western districts. From January 2003 the District Committee of Högsbo will be responsible for providing hospice places in Göteborg. Home nursing care provides palliative care in the home, but individual patients can be offered hospice places if they wish. Long-awaited accommodation for people with mental health problems was opened on Bankogatan during the year. Plans are underway to create more accommodation of this type in the western districts, as well as additional occupational activities for people with mental health problems.
The trend has reversed for Högsbo, which now has balanced finances. Maintaining balanced finances is a strategic issue and is necessary in order to provide good services. One long-term goal is that Högsbo should build up an equity of SEK 30m. The financial control measures taken in recent years have made it possible to turn what was a negative equity into a positive equity of around SEK 19m.
The organization and promotion of schools, flexible intake into pre-schools and clearer government of special schools are examples of prioritized development areas for 2003. Increased investment in prevention work for children and young people, the drug addiction care project in the western districts, and the development of teamwork in the home help service are further examples of priority areas. During spring a local disability plan will be produced for Högsbo. This will describe the measures that the district committee intends to take to achieve the targets of the City of Göteborg’s goals and action plan. Quality improvements and a deliberate commitment to making the work place more attractive are further examples of important strategic issues for the future.
The Högsbotorpshemmet home for the elderly, which is to be converted, will become an integral part of the area around Axel Dahlström square. It will include an activity centre that bridges the generations and provides the pre-requisites for a better quality of life, giving elderly people greater opportunities to live an independent and self-reliant life.
Through cooperation with housing companies and other partners, elderly people will be given the opportunity to continue living in their own homes or local housing. An initiative to make the square a more attractive place and changes in traffic organization will make it possible for residents of Högsbo to carry out their day-to-day activities more freely. A public square will also encourage greater interest in the development of commercial activities and thus give residents of Högsbo the opportunity to shop locally.