Traveller Movement launches new education campaign in parliament

 TM calls on UK Government to mandate Gypsy Roma Traveller History Month on national school curriculum, stop bullying and introduce more vocational courses.

Last week, the Traveller Movement held an event in parliament to launch a new education campaign strategy for the year ahead, with the aim of raising attainment and outcomes for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children nationally. The event was hosted and chaired by the Traveller Movement’s patron Baroness Brinton, who is chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) that looks at stopping bullying and is highly supportive when it comes to issues relating to Gypsies, Roma and Travellers.

It’s widely known that Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children have the poorest outcomes at the end of each key stage going through education. They are also far more likely to get excluded, and more likely to experience discrimination as a result of their ethnicity when compared to other children.

A wide range of stakeholders were present at the launch of the campaign, including Traveller Education Support workers, a number of MPs and peers, fellow GRT activists and community members.

There were a number of highly engaging community speakers at the roundtable, who along with Baroness Brinton, usefully steered the discussion towards productive outcomes.

Cassie-Marie McDonagh (campaigns officer at the Traveller Movement and Irish Traveller) discussed her own experiences of education, noting that she would like to see Gypsy, Roma, Traveller History Month (GRTHM) celebrated in all schools.

Henry Chapman, a Romany Gypsy man currently at university, spoke on his own experiences. Henry raised the important point that Gypsies, Roma and Traveller people are not ethnically recorded at university admissions, and that this needs to urgently change.

Pauline Anderson, a trustee of the Traveller Movement and herself an Irish Traveller and ex-head teacher, also spoke on the importance of fairer access for GRT children, and has committed to helping Traveller Movement and other campaigners in making contact with key education stakeholders moving forward.

We also heard from Kealey Sly, a Romany Gypsy, on the need to ensure that vocational courses and alternative provision needs to be made available to Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children who are not necessarily on school registers within their local authorities.

The Traveller Movement will be working on these important campaign points moving forward in the fight for better outcomes and attainment for all Gypsy, Roma and Traveller children, particularly in working to mandate the national government to support GRTHM. We will also be working with schools and the government to ensure that GRT children do not face racist bullying whilst at school, and we will be working on various initiatives to raise attainment more directly at each key stage.

By the Traveller Movemen