| | | | | | | | Welcome to the February edition of Spotlight: Partnerships and Advocacy Bulletin | | | | Welcome to our February Spotlight! Read on to find out about our work over the last month and remember to follow us on social media for regular updates. X, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn and TikTok
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We began this month by celebrating St Brigid a powerful Irish woman whose legacy represents courage, social justice, and protection of the most marginalised.
St Brigid’s Day is not simply a cultural marker. It is a reminder that leadership rooted in community, dignity, and equity has always existed even where institutions have fallen short.
We were delighted to attend the celebration at the Irish Embassy marking the occasion and feature in their spotlight publication. Recognition of Irish heritage at national level matters. But recognition must be matched with structural reform particularly at a time when Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Irish Traveller communities continue to experience entrenched inequality across education, mental health, housing, and public services.
This month, our work here at TM has focused on advancing that change. We have engaged directly with national education stakeholders, contributed to Department for Education discussions on inclusive practice, and ensured that young people from Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Irish Traveller communities were present, and heard in national policy forums. We are also progressing our to strengthen culturally competent mental health first aid and suicide awareness provision led by our amazing community advocacy and partnerships team with key stakeholders. The demand for support is increasing. The gaps in culturally responsive services remain stark. Early intervention, community-based training, and accountability in public systems are no longer optional they are necessary.
Our position is clear: The Traveller Movement exists to ensure policy is not done to communities but shaped with them.
Yvonne MacNamara
Chief Executive Officer
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Advancing Inclusive Education: From Consultation to Accountability | |
Our Education and Advocacy Caseworker, Olivia Hammond, has been representing Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Irish Traveller communities at national level speaking at the National Teachers’ Union conference this month and participating in the York education conference on inclusive practice.
Pupil engagement, structural barriers, and what meaningful inclusion must look like in practice, not theory.
We also participated a Department for Education roundtable alongside 12 young people from across the country, who shared first-hand insight into what inclusive education should look like for their communities from curriculum representation to anti-racist safeguarding approaches and culturally competent engagement.
We extend special thanks to all these young voices ranging in age from 12 to 16 and Mission 44 who participated in the consultation. The young peoples contributions were rigorous, solutions-focused, and grounded in lived experience.
This work directly strengthens our school's inclusivity and good practice programme aimed at addressing Diversity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism through our Flags initiative, promoting measurable standards for inclusion, attendance, and community engagement within schools. The programme is being rolled out as a polite scheme this month and next. If you are a school that would be interested in receiving the training, then please do get in touch with us. Olivia Hammond: education@travellermovement.org.uk
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Strengthening Community Health and Wellbeing | |
We are in the final stages of developing an innovative online training course designed to equip talking therapy professionals with the skills and cultural insight to better support Romani (Gypsy) and Irish Traveller clients accessing talking therapy services in London.
The course content is grounded in extensive community consultation with Romani (Gypsy) and Irish Traveller men and women across the city, exploring mental health experiences, barriers to access, and the quality of care received. These lived experiences have shaped every aspect of the training, ensuring it is relevant, culturally responsive, and practical for professionals in clinical and community settings. Our work has been strengthened by the guidance of our amazing steering group, comprised of experts from talking therapy services, public health, and community support organisations. The group will convene for one final meeting in early April to review and finalise the course, ensuring it meets the highest professional standards and best practice guidelines. This work is led by our wonderful community development officer Annalise Corcoran who can be contacted on the below details. In parallel, The Traveller Movement has been commissioned by Brent Council to support the development of the Council’s Gypsy and Traveller Health Needs Assessment. This project will provide crucial evidence to inform local health planning and service provision for Traveller communities. We are extremely grateful to everyone who has participated in interviews so far. If you are a Romani (Gypsy) or Irish Traveller resident in Brent and would like to contribute your experiences to this important work, please contact Annalise at: communitydevelopment@travellermovement.org.uk Your insights will directly influence local health strategies and ensure services better reflect community needs. | | | |
Know Your Rights: Information Guides and Webinars | |
Due to ongoing funding constraints and reductions in service hours, we are currently unable to accept any casework other than emergency domestic abuse casework.
However, to continue supporting our communities and the wider sector, we are delighted to share that our Know Your Rights webinar links and accompanying information guides are now available to view on our website here or on our YouTube channel.
Thanks to the generous support of The Tudor Trust, The Traveller Movement has been delivering a series of webinars titled “Know Your Rights” over the past few years. These sessions are designed to improve communities’ understanding of their rights and ensure individuals are treated fairly across a range of circumstances. Each webinar features a panel discussion and Q&A between The Traveller Movement and a specialist law firm, covering critical topics including: To make these webinars accessible to all at any time, clips from each session have been uploaded to our YouTube channel, providing a flexible, on-demand resource for individuals and professionals alike.
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The Traveller Movement has collaborated with the Women’s Budget Group (WBG) to produce a joint briefing ‘Socio-Economic and Structural Inequalities Facing Women from Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Irish Traveller Communities.' on the socio-economic and structural inequalities facing Romani (Gypsy), Roma, and Irish Traveller women. This briefing now available on our website highlights intersecting challenges in health, employment, and access to services, providing vital evidence to inform national policy and funding decisions. We also co-hosted a webinar with WBG which was a great success . We hope to continue this partnership going forward.
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We are always open to strategic collaboration, commissioning opportunities, and funding partnerships that advance equity for Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Irish Traveller communities.
If you are interested in collaborating, commissioning our expertise, or supporting our work financially, please contact: Olivia Morrison, Head of Advocacy & Partnerships on business@travellermovement.org.uk
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We are pleased to share that we have now published our pan-London evaluation report. This report lays bare a truth that should shame every public body in London: Inclusion of Romani (Gypsy), Roma, Irish, Scottish Traveller Communities in Equality, Diversion and Inclusion Strategies
The findings presented here are stark, consistent, and utterly damning. They paint a picture of profound institutional neglect, where communities are rendered invisible by outdated data, excluded by ‘one-size-fits-all’ strategies, and silenced by a lack of meaningful collaboration. In housing, education, health, and youth services, the pattern is the same: promises of inclusion dissolve into a reality of exclusion, inequality, and missed potential. The report touches on some London boroughs who are actively showcasing good practice. We think it’s important to highlight these positive case studies, so we have shared these on our website. You can access these via the links below: Enfield Lewisham
| | | | Opportunities to get involved in our work | | Advisory board ongoing recruitment – find out more here.
TM are also recruiting for a new Intern for the Partnerships team. Find out more here. This is an ideal opportunity for anyone with an interest in film making, social media and/or digital design. | | | | | | | | | | Contact TM's Community Advocacy Caseworker on 07908433413
| | Contacts TM's Domestic Abuse Helpline on 07541637795
| | | | Follow our EventBrite page to keep up to date on what Events we are holding | | Visit our Women's microsite for information and support for Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Irish Traveller Women
| | Visit our Education microsite support Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Irish Travellers in the UK to navigate Education
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