::Young Gypsy-Traveller:: Boring Bit! ::

Whether you are putting together a report, doing research, or new to Gypsy Traveller issues, these are the statistics and quotes you need:

For more quotes and policies, see the Government Policy page

- The 2003 Pupil Level Annual School Census (PLASC) for England and Wales recorded almost 4,000 Irish Traveller pupils and 6,000 Gypsy/Roma pupils.

- In England, there are about 1,100 Irish Travellers and 2,300 Gypsy/Roma students in secondary schools, fewer than half the number registered in primary schools
James Foley, ‘Pupil characteristics and class sizes in maintained schools in England, January 2006 (provisional),’ National Statistics: First Release [DfES, London, April 2006]

-“The average attendance rate for Traveller pupils is around 75%. This figure is well
below the national average and is the worst attendance profile of any minority ethnic
group.”
Ofsted, Provision and support for Traveller pupils, HMI 455 [Ofsted, London, 2003] p. 5

-Ofsted considers that about 12,000 Traveller children are not registered with a school and that at Key Stage 4 this represents about 53% of these pupils.

- "Both Gypsy/Traveller groups have extremely low attainment. Although it is estimated that many children from these groups are not recorded in the Annual School Census, are not present during key stage assessments and/or do not continue in education up till Key Stage 4, for those that have a recorded result, attainment is very low:
* At Key Stage 1, 28% of Travellers of Irish Heritage and 42% of Gypsy/Roma pupils achieved Level 2 or above in Reading compared to 84 percent of all pupils.
* At Key Stage 4, 42 percent of Travellers of Irish Heritage and 23 percent of Gypsy/Roma pupils achieved 5+ A*-C GCSE/GNVQs compared to 51 percent of all pupils."
Ethnicity & Education: The Evidence on Minority Ethnic Pupils
DfES Research Topic Paper (RTP01-05) published January 2005. p.9

- The project tracked 44 Traveller children from the age of 11 to 16 and found that only three (7 per cent) achieved five or more A*-C GCSEs this summer (the national average was 61 per cent). In total, 10 of the 44 gained five or more A*-G GCSEs (23 per cent, compared with a national average of 98 per cent).

Only 13 of the 44 had completed key stage 4. The other 31 youngsters had dropped out for a range of reasons.
Gypsy Traveller Students in Secondary Schools: Culture, Identity and Achievement, by: Chris Derrington and Sally Kendall, published by Trentham Books

-The results below (taken from one LEA and thought by Ofsted to be typical) demonstrate the extent of Traveller acheivement and highligts the transition between primary and secondary education

Average	Travellers	National
KS1 English gaining L2 or more	33%	84%
KS1 Maths gaining L2 or more	44%	91%
KS2 English gaining L4 or more	66%	75%
KS2 Maths gaining L4 or more	44%	71%
KS3 English gaining L5 or more	16%	64%
KS3 Maths gaining L5 or more	16%	66%

-“The vast majority of Traveller pupils linger on the periphery of the education system. The situation has persisted for too long and the alarm bells rung in earlier reports have yet to be heeded”
Provision and support for Traveller pupils, HMI 445, London: Ofsted, 2003, p. 6.

- Ofsted (1999) found that Gypsy and Traveller families still feel that formal education at secondary level has little relevance to their children’s lives. Young women are not getting the education they need.
Ofsted, Raising the attainment of ethnic minority pupils [Ofsted, London, 1999]

-In 2003 the Department for Education and Skills (DfES) produced Aiming High: Raising the Achievement of Gypsy Traveller Pupils as a guide to good practice. It recommends that schools respect and address Gypsy and Traveller pupils’ needs. It calls for training to raise staff expectations, knowledge and understanding and calls for a culturally relevant and affirming curriculum. It advises schools to include parents in the development of the school and to address race equality and equal opportunities within schools. DfES also recommends a close working relationship with the Traveller Education Service (TES) who have been successful in improving young Gypsy and Traveller women’s access to education.

“Any school, anywhere, may have Gypsy Traveller pupils on roll. Raising the achievement of Gypsy Traveller pupils is the responsibility of everyone within the education system and significant measure of the effectiveness of polices to combat educational and social exclusion. Foisted has shown that Gypsy Traveller pupils, mostly Gypsy/Roma or Travellers of Irish Heritage, have the lowest results of any ethnic minority group and are the groups most at risk in the education system.”

- Evicting a group of families and their 17 children from their own land at Leatherhead would be 'disastrous' a head teacher warned. Many of the children attend All Saints' School and Jane Gorescka, the head, appealed for them to be alowed to stay. "I just dont understand how the local authority can consider kicking them out. The Government's Every Child Matters clearly states that every child is entitled to a healthy, safe environment and to a good education. There is no exclusion clause for Traveller children".
Travellers Times, Spring 2006, Issue 27, P.2

- Eight Travellers are being evicted from Dalewood Gardens and Bewbush West Playing fields, Crawley. David Birtwhistle, deputy head at Bewbush School, which some of the Traveller children attend, attacked the decision. "The children are very settled into the school and if they are moved it will be to the detriment of their education. The longer they are with us the greater the benefit to their education".
Travellers Times, Spring 2006, Issue 27, P.3