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    Getting it Right for Young Gypsy/Travellers

    Survey Research Report

    May 2010

    Beth Cadger

    Policy & Research

    YGTL Article 12 in Scotland

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    Executive Summary

    The purpose of this report was to ask young Gypsy/Travellers, their peers from the settled

    community and those working in a professional capacity to: tell us what you think that we,the government and other organisations, should be doing to make sure that young

    Gypsy/Travellers can exercise their rights to voice and opinion on matters that effect them,

    and to live free from prejudice? In order to achieve this, Article 12 in Scotlands Young

    Gypsy/Travellers Lives (YGTL) Projectutilised, over a year long period, various methods of

    research including: conducting online surveys, holding and attending various conferences,

    and face-to-face interviews. It was our intention, that by doing so, we would gain a wider

    spectrum of answers, include those with literacy issues or without access to the internet in the

    process and provide the young Gypsy/Travellers involved in the management of the YGTL

    Projectan invaluable insight into the different types of research methods available a coreskill which will hopefully prove to be extremely useful throughout the course of their lives.

    Various questions and common themes have been raised throughout the course of our

    research, which will be hugely important and influential in deciding our future course of

    action.

    Every stage of our research highlighted a strong sense of shared views. The major issues at

    the forefront of concern are: the development of better partnerships, consultation and

    networking between young Gypsy/Travellers, their peers, professionals and the national/local

    government; an increase in funding; greater provisions for health-care and education; a huge

    emphasis on increasing the quality and number of council and privately run sites; and a

    positive action campaign highlighting all the many amazing aspects of the Gypsy/Traveller

    culture.

    Above all, it has been widely agreed that we all need to work together in order to end the

    racial discrimination faced by the Gypsy/Traveller community in Scotland today. We must

    help give a real voice to young Gypsy/Travellers after all, it is their culture that we all wish

    to safe-guard.

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    Introduction

    The vibrant culture of Gypsy/Travellers, their nomadic way of life and their strong family ties

    are all part of a tradition in which many of us can find our roots indeed, settled life is a

    relatively modern phenomenon. Despite this, discrimination and harassment towards

    Gypsy/Travellers on the grounds of their ethnic background is rife in our society, leaving

    many feeling cut-off and cast-out from main-stream culture. Article 12 in Scotlandhas been

    working with young Gypsy/Travellers from all over Scotland, alongside their peers from

    settled society and professionals in the field, in order to ask the question what needs to be

    done? Our policy is to ensure that young Gypsy/Travellers can exercise their rights and

    voice their opinions on important matters which effect them, allowing them to live their lives

    free of prejudice and helping to put an end to the last socially acceptable form of racism in

    Scotland today.

    The findings of this report were sourced via answers logged at The Young Gypsy/Travellers

    Lives Conference which took place in May 2009; a questionnaire which was posted on the

    Survey Monkey website between the months of April and December 2009; the March 2010

    Race Equalities Conference which was initiated by the Scottish Government; the Young Scot

    Were Here Conference which was held in March 2010 and finally through consultations

    with Universal Connections, also taking place in March 2010. Numerous methods of

    research were implemented in order to give our young participants experience, and indeed aninsight, into some of the various methods of gathering information - ranging from conducting

    face-to-face interviews and informal chats, to giving presentations and electronic voting.

    It is hoped that by asking the key question what needs to be done, we have succeeded in

    highlighting the major areas which really need to be worked on and improved, in order to

    help achieve a fairer society for all - without reference to individual lifestyle choices or

    bigotry towards different cultures.

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    The Survey Monkey questionnaire

    April December 2009

    Survey Monkey is an online resource whereby agencies, organisations and individuals can

    upload their own survey electronically. It is hoped that by doing so, relevant questions may

    travel further, allowing more varied and informative results. Article 12 in Scotlandcreated a

    survey which centred around the question what needs to be done? This survey was posted

    on various websites including the Travellers Times site, with a total of 30 participants

    taking part. Answers were received via the Survey Monkey questionnaire website, and also

    by hand-written responses logged on-site, which were carried out by our young

    Gypsy/Traveller Co-ordinator Karen Balfour, allowing those without internet access or with

    literacy issues to take part in the survey and voice their opinions. The nature of the survey

    meant that the responses received online were completely anonymous, encouraging honest

    opinions and real answers. It also gave a modern twist to proceedings and indeed it was

    hoped that by posting a relevant questionnaire online, a greater number of young

    Gypsy/Travellers would start to use the internet as a tool for information.

    Responses were received from both female and male participants, with ages ranging from 13

    years old and upwards, from all over Scotland. Around 60% of respondents were young

    Gypsy/Travellers, with the remaining 40% comprising of those in a professional capacity

    who are working towards helping to end the discrimination faced by Gypsy/Travellers on an

    all too real level, every day.

    There is a strong sense of common themes evident in the Survey Monkey responses.

    Primarily, young Gypsy/Travellers want help in establishing their own voice - a well

    informed and represented voice. This can be achieved through consultation with, and indeed

    by listening to, the Gypsy/Traveller community. Keeping this process jargon free will

    prevent alienation and enable everyone to take part and reach the decision makers through

    direct participation, giving the Gypsy/Traveller community greater representation andfunding opportunities within local authorities. It was also stated that there should be

    discussion sessions between professionals and Gypsy/Travellers before research is carried

    out, in order to ensure that relevant areas and issues are being highlighted. A progressive

    campaign which would promote the lifestyle and culture of Gypsy/Travellers in a positive

    light was also mentioned, helping to alleviate racial discrimination and promote alternative

    lifestyles.

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    Several key areas for improvement were also noted: more decent pitches and/or land

    available for rent; greater equality within education and healthcare; aid in stopping control of

    current sites; needs assessments for future provision of sites and services; better on-site

    facilities such as nurseries, creative and sporting pursuits etc; social spaces for young

    people; investment in on-site education, and more school visits in order to raise awareness inthe up-and-coming generation. There is also a need for help in improving working rights and

    ensuring that human rights in general are being met.

    In short, the results of the survey highlight a shared voice, asking for safer and more

    thoughtfully planned sites, decent health care and education, better rights for workers, better

    facilities for child-care, socialising, creativity, more choice of land and pitches, and help with

    technical skills. These requests are not unreasonable and are, in fact, commonplace within

    the settled community. We need to ask ourselves: why is this not the case for

    Gypsy/Travellers?

    NB: A visual representation of these findings is available in appendix 2

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    TheRace Equalities Conference

    March 2010

    The Race Equalities Conference, initiated by the Scottish Government, took place in

    Glasgow during March 2010. The primary aim of the conference was to promote racial

    equality and tackle the racism and discrimination which is rife in Scotland today, as part of

    the One Scotlandcampaign. Article 12 in Scotlandwas present at this conference and used it

    as an opportunity to askwhat needs to be done?

    Participants were given a list of 8 key areas of improvement from which to choose, with the

    list of objectives being presented via the process of e-voting (electronic voting). The results

    echo those of the Young Gypsy Travellers Lives Conference and the Survey Monkey

    questionnaire.

    The top two issues highlighted were: better provisions for education, and access to decent

    health care facilities. The nature of a transient lifestyle dictates that families will generally

    have no real settled address, this results in sporadic bursts of mainstream education if any,

    and a reluctance from GP surgeries to have Gypsy/Travellers signed up to their practices.

    This further alienates the Gypsy/Traveller community from the rest of society and is, quite

    frankly, putting the lives of vulnerable people at risk. All babies, children, pregnant women

    and the elderly or infirm should have regular access to good medical services if they so wish.

    Those who live in settled society take education and the National Health Service for

    granted, considering these facilities as part of their human rights. Again, we must ask

    ourselves: why this is not the case for those living within the Gypsy/Traveller community?

    Further, participants indicated that addressing the issue of racial discrimination was of

    upmost importance. Raising cultural awareness was also a key concern, which many felt

    could be tackled through consultation with Gypsy/Travellers themselves, capacity building

    (helping to build upon existing skills and develop new ones in order to help alleviate social

    and economic problems) and community engagement. This would also help

    Gypsy/Travellers to know their rights and be able to defend themselves in a confident and

    informed manner, backed up by professionals and indeed the local authorities.

    Finally, the need for better sites was again highlighted. This is a real problem for many

    Gypsy/Travellers in todays society. Access to decent, dedicated sites for Gypsy/Traveller

    are few and far between many council sites are erected in dubious areas, for example, close

    to council dumping grounds, or busy roads.

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    The majority of Gypsy/Travellers will have young children to consider and, quite

    reasonably, would not want their families living in such conditions. Private sites are often

    completely full, and many holiday parks do not want Gypsy/Travellers on-site this leaves

    many families with little choice but to park up in lay-bys, or on waste ground. This is one of

    the major factors that has led to people from mainstream society rejecting Gypsy/Travellersand their culture, and in some cases subjecting them to harassment. It would make sense

    then, to allocate funding to creating new sites sites in desirable areas, with good facilities

    and large amounts of pitches. This would also cut down on the number of families being

    moved on by the police and might help to alleviate the mistrust which is so evident between

    Gypsy/Travellers and the law, indeed, police relations were also indicated as an area which

    needs to be improved upon. However, in order to do this, we need to raise the profile of

    Gypsy/Travellers, helping the general public to see the many positive aspects of their culture.

    NB: A visual representation of these findings is available in appendix 3

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    Universal Connections

    March 2010

    Universal Connections is an initiative run by South Lanarkshire Councils Youth Learning

    Service and is a place for young people designed by young people to go in order learn,

    use the internet, socialise with friends, meet new people and access a range of advice - free

    from prejudice. It is one of the few resources available that really caters for young

    Gypsy/Travellers. Article 12 in Scotlandvisited the centre at Larkhall on the 24th of March

    2010 in order to carry out consultations with some of the young Gypsy/Travellers in

    attendance. This enabled face-to-face interviews within a relaxed atmosphere, while the

    interviewees were in a situation which was both familiar and comfortable to them. Eight

    young people and three members of staff were in attendance to answer our question.

    These consultations centred on the all important issue of providing more thoughtfully planned

    out sites for Gypsy/Travellers. Again, it was put forward that there is a huge need for secure,

    well-lit council sites in more desirable areas, preferably on a good bus route. The group paid

    particular attention to discussing the differences between privately run sites and the sites

    provided by the council. Council sites tend to be erected on areas of land deemed unsuitable

    or unusable for other, more profitable ventures. Usually these sites are located in undesirable

    or unsafe areas. As there is a huge emphasis on family within the Gypsy/Traveller culture, it

    is no wonder many families are less inclined to stay on these sites, especially with young

    children and women to take into consideration. It was also stated, backing up what has

    already been said, that these sites need much better on-site facilities including (but not

    exclusively): facilities for cooking and washing utensils; disabled access; youth activities and

    support; adult learning centres for those with literacy issues; support for those wishing to

    enter employment, in particular for females, and safe play-areas for children. Many

    Gypsy/Travellers also feel that, if no pitches are available either on council or privately run

    sites, they should be able to camp wherever they choose without fear of being moved on or

    charged by the police - within reason, obviously.

    It is extremely important to understand that living a transient lifestyle makes keeping in touch

    with educational activities, friends and current affairs much harder, therefore, it has been

    suggested that an initiative to supply young Gypsy/Travellers with personal laptops would be

    hugely beneficial for educational purposes, access to information and indeed keeping in

    contact with other Gypsy/Travellers and friends from the settled community. By providing

    this service we can help build relations between those who travel around, and those who

    dont.

    NB: A visual representation of these findings is available in appendix 4

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    The Young Scot Were Here Conference

    March 2010

    The Young Scot Were Here Equalities Conference took place on the 24th of March 2010.

    Article 12 in Scotlandcarried out two workshops which included presentations, involving 22

    participants. These workshops - centred on our key question - were again aimed at getting to

    the core of the issues which lie at the forefront of the concerns of young Gypsy/Travellers,

    and allowed for face-to-face question and answer sessions. The purpose of the Young Scot

    Were Here Equalities Conference was to help raise awareness, within the more

    conventional settled community, of the plight of young Gypsy/Travellers. By focusing on

    groups of young people, it is hoped and intended that the up-and-coming generation our

    future - will carry with them, the message that racism and discrimination towards

    Gypsy/Travellers is not okay in todays society.

    Interestingly, the same issues indicated previously in this report, were once again brought to

    the fore. It was strongly felt that a positive action campaign concentrating on the problems

    faced by young Gypsy/Travellers, alongside a constructive marketing campaign aimed at

    introducing much of the general public to the wonderful culture, history and traditions of the

    Gypsy/Traveller community is needed. Ideas put forward in order to implement this

    included; more visits to schools in order to raise awareness and making podcasts.

    Participants also reiterated the need for more government recognition in order to implement

    and reinforce equality laws. Policies need to be put in place to safeguard Gypsy/Travellers

    and their culture and traditions, with an emphasis on better council sites and provisions for

    one-stop-shop health-care services.

    Contributors were then requested to state which areas of the workshops and presentations

    they had found to be the most useful, informative and in some cases, surprising. Participants

    indicated that they found the use of statistics to be very interesting and easy to digest

    backing up our view that bite-size visual graphics can make more of an impact on certain

    audiences than pages and pages of text. They were also surprised to learn that the true level

    of Gypsy/Travellers in Scotland today is unknown, and were saddened to hear of the low

    levels of school attendance. Satisfyingly, we found that not only had participants

    acknowledged the high levels of discrimination faced by Gypsy/Travellers on a widespread

    basis every day, but it was stated that prior to our workshops, many of the young people

    involved admitted that their opinions of Gypsy/Travellers had been quite negative, but after

    our presentations, this had now changed.

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    Conclusions

    In short, the findings of this survey indicate through the views and suggestions of a

    substantial cross section of both the Gypsy/Traveller community, and also participants fromsettled society in both a personal and professional capacity that we are merely at the start

    of our campaign to help alleviate, and eventually aim to end, the discrimination faced on a

    daily basis by the Gypsy/Traveller community in every aspect of their lives. The groundwork

    has indeed been started, but we still have a long way to go in order to start to make a real

    difference.

    Firstly, there is a real need to try and get young Gypsy/Travellers involved from across

    Scotland as a whole, as this would really bring focus to our campaign into all areas of thecountry. By working with these young Gypsy/Travellers, we are helping them to develop

    important skills which will benefit them in both personal and work-based situations

    throughout the course of their lives, and indeed giving them scope to help others. Secondly,

    findings indicate that by reaching out to young Gypsy/Travellers and getting them involved,

    through online resources and face-to-face interaction at events, conferences and on-site visits,

    we can inspire them to fight for their culture and perhaps help to change attitudes in time for

    their own children growing up. By engaging them and giving them a voice, we will be able

    to get more young people involved, and also convince those who are unsure about campaign

    work to give it a chance. The provision of personal laptops is perhaps a means of

    maintaining contact, offering support to and gaining an insight into the Gypsy/Traveller

    community?

    Our findings show that professional opinions are strongly backed up by the opinions of young

    Gypsy/Travellers, and indeed from young people within the settled community. There is a

    clear and unanimous voice indicating the key issues that need to be addressed. Our main

    focus initially, should centre on the fundamental issues which have come up time and again

    throughout the course of our research. It has been proved that we need to concentrate on:

    creating a positive action campaign, aimed at informing the general population of all the great

    aspects of Gypsy/Traveller culture; more consultation between ourselves, the

    Gypsy/Travellers community, parliament and local authorities in order to ensure that the

    needs of Gypsy/Travellers are being properly and fairly met for example: more sites, better

    facilities, access to healthcare, education and on-site help and support, and finally, we all

    need to work together to help young Gypsy/Travellers to have a voice of their own, a voice

    which we actually listen to and understand.

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    In conclusion then, through listening, visiting and helping to give a voice to these young

    Gypsy/Travellers, and indeed their community in general, we can start to challenge the

    evident racism towards this group: Gypsy/Travellers are considered to be an ethnic minority,

    yet discrimination against them still seems to be all too prevalent, and indeed socially

    acceptable, in our society. This must change, and by promoting their traditional way of lifein a positive manner and helping to provide better representation for this community, perhaps

    by visiting more schools, campaigning, and lobbying governing bodies, we can help to bring

    the views of much of our society out of ignorance and into the 21st century. We need to

    stand behind young Gypsy/Travellers, and allow them to inform and enlighten the youth of

    today in order to educate past and indeed future generations, and help end discrimination

    towards Gypsy/Travellers the last socially acceptable form of racism in Scotland.

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    Recommendations

    Increasing funding for safer and better equipped sites. Improve working rights. Better on-site facilities such as education, nurseries, disabled access and social

    spaces for young people.

    Provision of activities, such as sport, computer skills and creative pursuits such asart.

    More direct participation from the community itself. More land/pitches available for rent. Better health provisions. A big push for greater government and local authority support. A marketing campaign aimed at positively promoting the history, traditions and

    culture of the Gypsy/Traveller community.

    Support for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendercommunity. Personal laptops for young Gypsy/Travellers. Implementation and enforcement of equalities laws. Literacy classes for adults. Help in gaining employment. Policies put in place to stop the police from pressing charges against families who

    are parked-up in lay-bys etc, when suitable private or council pitches are not

    available.

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    Appendix 1: Young Gypsy/Travellers Lives Conference, May 2009

    Whatneedstobe

    done?

    Betterpartnership

    andnetworking

    21% SupportyoungGypsy/

    Travellers

    throughmorefunding21%

    Promotediversetyandacceptance

    17%

    MoreGovernmentBillsandsupport

    7%

    Raiseawarenessoftheissues

    facingyoung

    Gypsy/Travellers

    10%

    Moresites

    7%

    Betteraccessto Education

    3%

    MoreconsultationwithyoungGypsy/

    Travellers

    14%

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    Appendix 2: Survey Monkey questionnaire results

    Whatneedsto

    be

    done?

    Helpustoreachdecisionmakersthrough

    directparticipation

    Weneedindividualpitches

    and/orland

    availablefor

    rent

    Worktogethertoensureequalitywithin

    educationandhealthcare

    BetterrepresentationoftheGypsy/Traveller

    communitywithinLocalAuthorities

    ConsultGypsy/Travellersbefore

    researchiscarriedouttoensurethatthecorrectissuesarebeing

    addressed

    Avoidjargon

    and

    keep

    everyoneinformedandinvolvedinany

    progress

    Worktowardsstoppingracism,andhelpotherstoleadtheirlivesastheychoose

    Helpstopcontrolon

    sites

    Helpwithfunding

    PromotethelifestyleofGypsy/

    Travellersina

    positiveway

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    Survey Monkey questionnaire results (continued)

    Whatneedsto

    bedone?

    FightfortherightsofGypsy/

    Travellers

    ProvidetrainingtohelpGypsy/Travellers

    haveavoice

    oftheir

    own

    CarryoutaproperNeedsAnalysis,for

    futureprovisionofsitesandservices

    Better

    facilitieson

    site

    Socialspacesforyoungpeople

    Betterfacilitiesfor

    young

    people

    Investment

    ineducation

    onsite

    Visitmoreschools

    Helpustotelloursideof

    thestorytoa

    public

    forum/raisemore

    awareness

    Betterhealth

    provisions

    Listenmore

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    Appendix 3:Race Equalities Conference

    Areasofimprovement

    Bettersiteprovision

    13%

    Education

    18%

    Policerelations

    2%

    Accesstohealthcare

    17%Addressingtheissuesofracismand

    discrimination

    14%

    Consultation,capacity

    buildingandcommunityengagement

    15%

    Rightsandequality

    12%

    Raisingcultural

    awareness

    7%

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    Appendix 4: Universal Connections

    What

    needs

    to

    bedone?

    Moreemphasisontheprovisionofsitesacross

    Scotland

    Ifthereisawaitinglistforcouncil/privatesites,

    we

    should

    beabletosetupcampwhere

    wewish

    Weshouldnotbechargedbythepoliceiftherearenoplacesin

    council/private

    sites

    Sitesshouldbemoresecurewithbetterlightingandalsoonabus

    route

    Betteron

    site

    facilitiesforyoungandold

    Adult

    learning

    facilitiesforthosewith

    literacyissues

    Programmestohelpwith

    gainingemployment,especiallyfor

    females

    Safeplayareasforyoung

    childrenonsite

    Councilsshouldbe

    developingsitesinmore

    desirableareas

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    Appendix 5: The Young Scot Were Here Conference

    Whatneedstobedone?

    Raisemoreawarenessin

    schools

    Apositiveimage

    campaign

    Podcasts

    Implementandreinforceequalitylaws

    'Onestopshop'health

    careprovision

    providedin

    eacharea

    Moregovernmentrecognition,andrelevantpoliciesputin

    place

    Amarketingcampaignaimedatpromotingculture,

    historyandtraditions

    Councilsneedto

    identifyand

    provide

    bettersites

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    Questions raised by participants at the Young Scot Were Here Conference

    Why dont the government build dedicated sites on decent land? Why do some Gypsy/Travellers dislike using council run sites? Why cant Gypsy/Travellers register with a GP? How can we interact more with the Gypsy/Traveller community? How can we help to stop the police from unfairly moving on Gypsy/Travellers

    camped on unauthorised sites?

    What are the religious beliefs of Gypsy/Travellers? What are the differences between Water Gypsies and the rest of the Gypsy/Traveller

    community?

    How many Water Gypsies are there in Scotland/Britain? How have things changed for the younger Gypsy/Traveller community? What sort of work do Gypsy/Travellers do? Are there sub-cultures within the Gypsy/Traveller community? How is the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community treated within the

    Gypsy/Traveller culture?

    There was also discussion about the way in which Gypsy/Travellers are represented inthe media.