Safety and preparedness coordination

The Safety and Preparedness Team in the City Executive Office coordinates the city’s general safety and security matters, steers the preparedness of the city and takes initiatives to find new solutions and practices.

The team cooperates closely with the city’s divisions and enterprises, the Helsinki Police Department, The Finnish Defence Forces, other cities and municipalities, the state administration as well as various organisations and residents. The team’s operations help to lay the foundation for a safe and pleasant city.

The team’s key responsibilities are:

• Steering of local safety and security planning in Helsinki. Local safety and security planning is implemented in extensive cooperation with other actors. This is done with careful consideration to the guidelines of national decisions in principle and national plans of action.
• The steering emergency preparedness as well as steering and supporting the central administration’s and the divisions’ actions and preparations related to crisis containment and management.
• Cooperation between the City and other safety and security authorities. The team develops cooperation between the safety and security authorities of the City and the State administration. The team’s main partner is the Helsinki Police Department, and employs a police coordinator who has a background with the police force.
• Promotion of multidisciplinary cooperation to prevent social exclusion of young people. The team cooperates with youth work authorities and organisations.
• Development and implementation of practices that improve everyday resident safety and participation in cooperation with other actors.
• Support for local networks and actors in situations requiring multidisciplinary cooperation to solve local problems related to safety and quality of life.

The team also functions as an expert organisation that deals with questions related to the development of the City’s safety and security operations.