General welfare is a prerequisite for being able to live in safety, shape our lives and develop. When we face difficulties in the different stages of life, additional efforts may be needed. Social work is the ultimate safety net in the welfare society. As citizens, we should be guaranteed reasonable living conditions. No one should have to fall into poverty and misery. As general welfare has been dismantled and the gaps between people have increased, more and more tasks have ended up in social services. Social services must operate at both individual and societal level, be familiar with living conditions in the municipality and participate in community planning.

Preventive measures for children and young people are crucial for as many people as possible to have a good upbringing. In Sweden, child poverty is increasing and reports show that it is greater than in our neighboring countries.

During the term of office, a home for care and housing, Ulleberg, for people with substance abuse problems in the municipality has been dismantled, before any plans to replace it have been found. The municipality currently buys places in other municipalities or in private companies. The cost of investments has increased.

The “housing first” principle is part of a form of treatment in which homeless addicts do not have to show a sober life before they get somewhere to live. It is humane and effective. However, the allocation of housing from housing companies is far too small. The users’ influence over the treatment is important for them to be able to influence their life and to follow up that the interventions given are effective and relevant.

In many places in Sweden, major problems have arisen around the sale of drugs on a large scale with deadly violence as a result. Criminal groups compete in the illegal market. In our municipality, too, such phenomena have begun to appear. The Left Party believes that broad preventive activities have an important task to fulfill.
A society that dismantles social services, schools and leisure activities has fewer opportunities to catch and curb tendencies towards antisocial behaviors.

For people who have already entered destructive contexts, there should be defector activities that can provide support and concrete efforts to get out of the situation. Such efforts can be built up in collaboration with other municipalities, the region and other societal actors.

Men’s violence against women is one of our biggest societal problems. Violence takes many forms and affects women in the home as well as in public. We must work to put an end to the violence. It is important that we have a safety net that captures, supports and helps when the violence occurs or has occurred. Karlstad municipality has both Alla Kvinnors Hus Karlstad, which is a non-profit women’s and girls’ shelter with municipal financial support, as well as a municipal activity.
Abused women who have addiction problems would need a form of care than the one that currently exists.

Some people with mental health problems and disabilities need support in their everyday lives, special housing, employment and coordination of efforts from different actors.
In the Left Party, we are keen on good quality and access to housing and support, as well as effective cooperation for coordinating efforts for users.

Vänsterpartiet has for many years pointed out shortcomings in the welfare area. In elderly care, the pandemic has made these problems even more obvious despite the fact that employees made good efforts to cope with the situation. The sickness rate in the staff group must be reduced and the conditions for recruiting new staff must be improved. Staff density needs to be increased and the work environment improved. The municipality has an obligation to meet the needs of the increasing group of elderly people.
The elderly’s need for housing and home care must be secured. The loneliness of the elderly, and then also those who do not need special housing or home care, needs to be noticed and met up with offers of community in various forms.

According to the Act on Support and Service for Certain Disabled Persons, abbreviated LSS, the municipality has the obligation to arrange housing, personal assistance in the home, daily activities, relief housing and more. There is a need for more of these initiatives within Karlstad municipality both in the short and long term. A few years ago, all personal assistance in Karlstad was privatized.
Thus, it is not possible to choose the municipality as the provider of the service.

We want to:

• invest in field assistants for outreach who can guide children and young people in need of intervention to the right body
• offer interventions to parents so that they can provide support to those children who have specific difficulties
• work for children and young people to have access to leisure activities throughout the municipality
• draw attention to child poverty in Karlstad
• increase user influence through continuous contact with social workers for people placed in homes for care and housing
• ensure that Karlstads Bostads AB increases its allocation of housing to “housing-first” in order for the treatment idea to work
• assess the consequences of the closure of Ulleberg
• reduce the number of placements in private homes for care and housing and increase placements under the auspices of the municipality or other public actors
• safeguard and strengthen core activities in schools, social services and leisure activities
• ensure that defector activities are available
• ensure that there is long-term support for Alla Kvinnors Hus and Victim Support Finland
• develop the elderly’s opportunities to influence what their day and life should look like
• establish a plan for the reunalization of privatized operations
• pay attention to problems of loneliness in the elderly
• establish a plan for both short and long term LSS efforts
  More LSS homes being built
• ensure that an increased need for personal assistance is met

1. Introduction
2. You should be able to rely on welfare
3. Focus on quality for employees and citizens
4. We are all citizens of Karlstad
5. A climate-smart municipality
6. School – the most important thing we have to secure our future
7. Health and social care – a municipality that takes care of everyone
8. A municipality where everyone can fit
9. Public transport for mobility and climate
10. Karlstad city centre – a place to gather
11. Culture and leisure that benefits everyone
12. Conclusion

Uppdaterades: 06 aug 2022