Policy & Publications
This section will help you to search for policy, publications and information on issues affecting Gypsies and Travellers. Use the filter on the left hand side to refine your search.
Wake-up call for a giant: The EU must end discrimination against Roma
In April 2013, Amnesty International called for the European Union to sanction governments that are failing to tackle discrimination and violence against the estimated six million Roma in Europe.
Access the resourceCouncil of Europe – Roma and Travellers
This page links to numerous European initiatives working on initiatives affecting Gypsies, Roma and Travellers. It includes the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance’s recommendations on combating anti-Gypsyism.
Access the resourceEuropean Commission against Racism and Intolerance General Policy Recommendation No. 13 on Combating anti-Gypsyism and Discrimination Against Roma
The European Commission against Racism and Intolerance made a list of recommendations to the governments of member states of the Council of Europe regarding Roma and Gypsy treatment and inclusion. This list of recommendations was formally adopted in Strasbourg in June 2011.
Access the resourceHaving Somewhere to Live: An Introduction to the Issues
A brief overview of the issues in having somewhere to live.
Read moreAssessing local authorities’ progress in meeting the accommodation needs of Gypsy and Traveller communities in England and Wales: 2010 Update
There is a recognised national shortfall in Gypsy and Traveller site provision. This report is the 2010 update of an earlier report which assessed the requirements for pitch provision in England and set out the need for a new strategic approach to site provision to meet the national shortfall.
View the reportCommon Ground: Equality, good race relations and sites for Gypsies and Irish Travellers, 2006
The Commission for Racial Equality launched an inquiry in October 2004 to examine local authorities’ arrangements for planning, providing and maintaining sites. This report summarises the findings and recommendations which arose as a result.
View the reportThe Human Rights Act 1998 and its impact on Gypsies and Travellers
Marc Willers of Garden Court Chambers and Alex Pickles of Travellers Aid Trust outline how the Human Rights Act 1998 impacts upon Travellers.
Read moreHistorical Laws affecting Gypsies and Travellers
An overview of historical laws affecting Gypsies and Travellers.
Read moreChannel 4’s “Bigger Fatter Gypsier”
An overview of Channel 4’s “Big Fat Gypsy” series, its negative characterisation of the Gypsy and Traveller communities and landmarks in the battle to have fairer and more accurate media representations of Gypsies and Travellers
Read moreThe Sun Apologises
In 2009, the Sun newspaper published an inaccurate article suggesting that a group of Gypsies had damaged a police helicopter which, it claimed, had been carrying out surveillance of an encampment. Emma Nuttall of FFT checked the facts with the police and discovered that, not only was there no evidence linking the damage to the helicopter with Gypsies but the police had not been carrying out surveillance of the site as the paper had claimed.
Read moreGypsies, Travellers and the Media: A Good Practice Guide
A breif overview of basic principles to follow when reporting on Gypsies and Travellers in the media.
Read moreGypsies, Travellers and the Media: You Can Do Something!
This fantastic leaflet has been put together by a group of Gypsies and Travellers in Devon, working with Plymouth & Devon Racial Equality Council and Community Council of Devon.
View the reportRoma Rights: An Overview
An overview of Roma rights and legal frameworks which can be used in the event of discrimination. This resource is extracted from ‘Using EU law to tackle anti-Roma discrimination by Marc Willers and Siobhin Lloyd.
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Using EU law to tackle anti-Roma discrimination by Marc Willers and Siobhan Lloyd, Part 1
Marc Willers and Siobhán Lloyd consider how Roma peopel have been able to address the discrimination they face and assert their rights at a European level. This article focuses on Roma experience of taking complaints to the European Court of Human Rights and the European Committee of Social Rights.
View the reportUsing EU law to tackle anti-Roma discrimination by Marc Willers and Siobhan Lloyd, Part 2
Marc Willers and Siobhán Lloyd consider how Roma people have been able to address the discrimination they face and assert their rights at a European level. This article focuses on Roma experience of taking complaints to the European Court of Human Rights and the European Committee of Social Rights.
View the report