Beyond Policy: Problematising “Vulnerable Areas” in Swedish Planning Practice

In the context of Swedish policymaking, the notion of “Vulnerable Areas” has risen to prominence, shaping policies aimed at addressing social exclusion, alongside issues related to crime and immigration. The term is widely employed as an alternative classification for segregated urban areas, significantly influencing strategies and practices to mitigate spatial inequality. This study explores how the emphasis on safety and security in public policy translates into planning practices in Fittja, one of the designated Vulnerable Areas in Stockholm. The aim is to examine how planning practices in these areas incorporate a narrow, security-oriented representation of the problem, excluding more comprehensive understandings of the situation. Drawing on a problematisation approach, this study employs thematic analysis of in-depth interviews with local practitioners, together with policy and planning documents. It examines how governing practices define problems and legitimise spatial interventions. The findings reveal that the recent policy shift has led to securitised planning practices, which are implemented through immediate spatial solutions, prioritising visibility, control, and surveillance in public spaces. Planners involved in these practices recognise the tension between this security-oriented framing and the structural challenges they observe, such as widening gaps in education, barriers to immigrant employment, the disparities in quality of built and open environments, and the pressing issue of housing affordability. Yet this urgency constrains the development of long-term strategies to address these challenges. The study ultimately calls for more critical planning approaches that resist the reproduction of inequality by centring residents’ lived experiences and voices in envisioning alternative urban spaces.