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Ireland's political and cultural magazine
42 — village July - August 2012
A
NATIONAL accommodation strategy
for Travellers was developed, following
the enactment of the Housing (Traveller
Accommodation) Act 1998, for imple-
mentation by 2000. This strategy was seen by
Travellers as a step towards recognition of their
cultural needs and, most importantly, as a step
away from past policies of assimilation to become
settled people.
The 1998 Housing Act provided for establish-
ment of the National Traveller Accommodation
Consultative Committee to advise the Minister.
Local versions were set up to advise local author-
ities. Each local authority was to develop a five
year Traveller Accommodation Plan which would
meet the cultural needs of Travellers in their areas.
This would include provision of transient sites to
allow for the nomadic culture of Travellers and of
halting site bays and group-housing schemes com-
prising not only the dwelling unit but also facilities
to cater for their culture such as horse-keeping,
the Traveller economy and nomadism.
At the time there was a commitment to the
provision of 3600 units of Traveller-specific
accommodation, including 1000 transient bays.
But in fact the total number of new permanent
units built from 2000 to 2011 was 849, with
only 47 transient bays which are often not used
as such but rather as emergency accommodation
for Travellers. Since the inception of the national
accommodation strategy the population of
Travellers has grown, rendering the commitments
deficient anyway.
We know from the annual count of Travellers
compiled by the Traveller Accommodation Unit
of the Department Environment, Community and
Local government that there were 5150 families
in 2001 but this had increased to 9535 fami-
lies by 2011. There are currently 327 families
on the roadside and 492 families sharing with
other families.
Local authorities develop plans to accom-
modate Travellers on the basis of consultation
methods that could be viewed as bad practice.
They have continuously failed to meet their own
targets and what happens? Nothing. They are
allowed to develop a new plan in the next phase
of the strategy, while Travellers continue to live
in Third World conditions.
In recent times what really scares me is that
Traveller-specific accommodation seems to be
being phased out. Halting sites across the coun-
try are being closed down and nomadic facilities
are still not being provided. Standard hous-
ing and private-rented accommodation are the
accommodation options being provided. The
accommodation we really want is not being pro-
vided, so we settle for what we can actually get.
One Traveller woman summed it up very well
recently at a consultation with the Irish Traveller
Movement: “Councils take us away from Traveller
sites by putting us into group housing schemes as
training for standard housing, trying to wash the
Traveller out of us, train us to be settled people, so
we are ready for standard housing, But this will
never happen, If I could travel like I used to I would,
and I know lots of Travellers are the same”.
In 2001 there were 293 families in private-
rented accommodation and in 2011 there were
2595 families. These figures may look very posi-
tive as at times we face discrimination when trying
to access the private-rented sector. But for me as a
Traveller these figures are very frightening.
Travellers want culturally-appropriate
accommodation yet we are being placed in pri-
vate-rented accommodation. This is not meeting
our permanent accommodation needs and, most
importantly, not meeting our cultural needs.
Young Travellers in particular are being placed
in private-rented
accommodation. They
are often isolated from
their families, taken
away from their culture
and Traveller identity.
Older Travellers
fear that their families
are being stripped of
their identity and that
their children are being
forced to be settled peo-
ple and to feel ashamed
of who they are. In
private-rented accom-
modation Travellers
can’t be nomadic, can’t
be themselves.
So I ask you, is this
the answer to accommodating Travellers? How
can we continue to be Travellers within this sec-
tor? This is not the answer. I am calling on the Irish
State to recognise us as the Irish ethnic minority
group that we are. I am calling for the Traveller
Accommodation agency that was recommended.
This would oversee the implementation of the
national Traveller accommodation strategy and
ensure the cultural needs of Travellers are met.
I am proud to be a Traveller and like most
Travellers I will not rest until our ethnicity is rec-
ognised and provided for. It is in the interests of
everyone - the Irish state, Irish settled people, new
communities and Irish Travellers - that our cul-
tural needs are finally met.
Rose Marie Maughan is Accommodation Officer with
the Irish Traveller Movement
Killing
the way
of life
National Traveller
strategies are quietly
binned as local
authorities force private-
rented accommodation
on them
Öʽ®ã®Ý
Trying to wash
the Traveller
out of us,
train us to be
settled people.
But this will
never happen,
If I could travel
like I used to I
would
¨
ÙÊÝÃÙ®Ã禫Ä
Halting site, Ballymun
