My Espoo on the Map: The places named by youth as best in Espoo are close

When completing the survey, carried out in cooperation with schools, children and young people marked places on a map that they felt were important to them, should be developed and that felt safe or unsafe. The majority of the respondents were in lower secondary school, and responses provided by all of Espoo’s major districts.

The results will be utilised, for example, in updating the Espoo story, i.e. the City of Espoo strategy, as background material in the preparation of the Espoo master plan 2060, as source data in the city planning for the coming years and in Aalto University research.

The responses indicate that the most important everyday places for children and young people in addition to their own home and school are large shopping centres with shops and services as well as various sports and recreational activity facilities. Friends’ homes and different neighbourhoods were also often mentioned as important places where young people hang out. Libraries and youth facilities are also important services that combine hanging out and hobbies. Nature is also an important place for recreational activities for children and young people in Espoo.

Children and young people travel to everyday places the most by foot, public transport, and bicycle. Approximately 63% of the respondents go to school daily or almost daily by foot for bike, while about 24% travel to school by public transport. The average commute to school varied from hundreds of metres to more than six kilometres. The longest commutes were those of upper secondary school students and pupils of Swedish-speaking schools.

In addition to everyday places, the survey also asked for “Places in Espoo that slay”, i.e. the best places in the city in the respondent’s opinion. The responses revealed that children and young felt that the best places were more ordinary and near-by than those that adults thought were the best.

While adults referred to more well-known sites such as Tapiola, Rantaraitti trail and Nuuksio, the children’s most popular answer was their own home or that of a friend, a nearby sports or physical activity facility, a shopping centre, a nature site or a place to hang out such as a youth centre and library. Almost 40% of children and young people in Espoo also reported visiting the best place daily or almost daily, mostly by foot or by public transport. In other words, unlike adults, children and young people clearly find everyday places special.

Children and young people marked more safe places on the map than unsafe places, unlike adults who responded to the same survey. Private spaces, such as one’s own home and their friends’ homes, felt safe according to most people. In particular, one’s own home was the most commonly marked safe place. Many schools, libraries, youth facilities and neighbourhoods and the forest were also mentioned often.

However, many public spaces, young people experience both feelings of safety and insecurity in places such as shopping centres that are important for young people. The idea of safety and insecurity was also strongly linked to the perceived images of different neighbourhoods among young respondents.

Respondents felt that the following factors created a sense of security in the urban environment: a clean, cared for, refreshing and relaxing environment, well-maintained terrain and people who get along with one another. According to the responses, factors that caused insecurity for children and young people included in particular people’s disruptive behaviour, a messy and littered environment, and the threat of violence or robbery. These labels were clearly concentrated in some areas, such as city centres or individual neighbourhoods.

Children and young people wish for a peaceful, pleasant, nature-centred and developing Espoo

Children and young people were also asked how they perceive the future of Espoo and what places they felt should be developed. Respondents felt that the most important thing was for Espoo to remain calm, pleasant, safe, and close to nature in the future. Respondents also indicated that they want the city to be sustainable and responsible, growing, developing and prosperous.

Children and young people most wanted to develop sports and physical activity opportunities, public transport, schools, and construction. Respondents also felt it was important to develop green areas and renovate their local buildings.

In autumn 2024, a total of around 5,000 Espoo residents responded to the My Espoo on the Map survey. View the survey and follow the progress of the analysis and utilisation of the results on the My Espoo on the Map website. We will publish more results news on the material at a later time.