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Traveller Movement Annual Conference: FUTURE VOICES

Thank you to everyone who attended the Traveller Movement Annual Conference 2023:  Future Voices.  Please find the 2023 Annual Conference Report here

Charity Excellence Framework Quality Mark

The Charity Excellence Framework quality mark achieved by the Traveller Movement, provides demonstrable evidence to stakeholders and funders, of the Traveller Movement commitment to excellence, reassurance our trustees that our charity is well run and recognition for TM staff and volunteers for what they are achieving.

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This recipe book has both tradition and modern, sweet and savoury Traveller and Gypsy recipes from our Facebook group ‘Traveller and Gypsy Recipes and Tips’!

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We offer professional training and resources to Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Irish Traveller service providers

We address inequalities and discrimination that Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Irish Traveller people experience through our campaigns

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For a small organisation they punch well above their weight

Promoting a diverse range of futures for GRT members is vital in gaining greater visibility and wider societal change. The tutoring programme sounds like a great step in that direction!

Thanks so much to all involved; it was excellent training. It was eye-opening and I learned so much. The film was so powerful; I can see how much effort has gone into the film and the training.

Upcoming events

Know your rights session with southwark law centre external link icon.

Join The Traveller Movement and Southwark Law Centre on Tuesday 7th May 2024 between 2-3:30 PM. …

Know Your Rights Session with Howe & Co External Link Icon

Join The Traveller Movement and Southwark Law Centre on Thursday 23rd May 2024 between 2-3:30 PM. …

Know Your Rights Session with Simpson Millar External Link Icon

Join The Traveller Movement and Simpson Millar on Monday 29th April 2024 between 11-12:30 PM. …

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A TOOLKIT BY THE COMMUNITIES FOR THE COMMUNITIES

2023 Annual Conference Report released

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The Traveller Movement launched #OperationTravellerVote to ensure Gypsies, Roma and Travellers are registered to vote and most importantly, have their voices heard during elections.

Stop Shaming

We challenge ‘shaming’ as the rise of social media channels allow public humiliation to persist which has been particularly harmful to young women

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Social barriers faced by Roma, Gypsies and Travellers laid bare in equality survey

British community study finds groups experiencing high levels of poor health, racist assault, job insecurity and deprivation

The barriers which Roma, Gypsy and Traveller people face in modern Britain have been laid bare in unprecedented survey data, which reveals extremely high levels of racial assault, poor health, precarious employment and socioeconomic deprivation.

The figures were recorded as part of the Evidence for Equality National Survey (Evens) of ethnic and religious minorities, which included the largest number of Roma, Gypsy and Traveller participants in any national survey to date.

The research found that 62% of Gypsy or Traveller people had experienced a racial assault . The percentage exceeded that for any other ethnic minority group. One in three experienced a physical racist attack.

Of Roma people, 47% had experienced a racist assault, while 35% had been physically attacked.

The survey also revealed shocking health disparities between Roma, Gypsy and Traveller people and the rest of the population. Gypsy or Traveller men were 12.4 times as likely to suffer from two or more physical health conditions than white British men, while Roma men were five times as likely – both were higher figures than for any other ethnicity.

Access to health and social care services was found to be a larger issue for Roma people than any other ethnic group, who were 2.5 times more at risk of not having access than the white British population.

The survey also found that people from Roma, Gypsy and Traveller ethnic groups experienced the highest levels of socioeconomic deprivation. About 51% of Gypsy Travellers and 55% of Roma had no educational qualifications. They were also less likely to be in the highest occupational positions, and also had high rates of financial difficulties and benefit receipts.

Roma, Gypsy and Traveller people were also among the least likely of ethnic groups to be in employment, and when they did have jobs during the Covid-19 pandemic they were the most likely to be in precarious employment. After adjusting for age, 85% of Gypsy or Traveller men and 65% of Roma men were in precarious employment, compared with 19% of white British men.

The study was funded by the Economic and Social Research Council and undertaken by the Centre on the Dynamics of Ethnicity, in collaboration with community groups and charities. To reach such high numbers of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller people, academics trained and employed six Roma and Traveller researchers to go out and record responses from community members.

Sarah Mann, director at Friends, Families and Travellers, said: “We are hugely proud of and grateful to the Romany, Roma and Traveller people that came forward and took part in the Evidence for Equality National Survey, the largest ever participation of Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community members in a survey.

“As the data shows, the devastating experiences of people from Romany, Roma and Traveller communities are no longer just anecdotal. The racism, hate, discrimination, and gross marginalisation across the board is actively damaging Romany, Traveller and Roma people’s life chances.

“The government needs to listen to Romany, Traveller and Roma people, and concrete steps must be taken so that everyone can live healthy lives with dignity, respect, and free from hate.”

Prof Nissa Finney, who led the project, said: “Evens allows us to compare the pandemic experiences of Roma and Traveller people to other ethnic groups, which hasn’t been possible before now. The disadvantage that we’ve found with the data is striking.

“Rigorous, robust, reliable data like that in Evens is essential for designing appropriate and effective policies and interventions. There’s still work to do to improve data and data collection – marginalised communities can be mistrustful of research and of its ability to bring change.

“A clear message from our study is the need for political commitment to better monitoring and measurement of the full range of ethnic groups. This is how we’ll make visible in evidence and policy those people who have been invisible.”

• Roma, Gypsies and Travellers
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New anti-Traveller laws set to criminalise nomadic way of life

The Government has announced new laws that will make trespass with vehicles a criminal offence – in a move that has caused fury among Gypsy and Traveller campaigners.

The Home Secretary, Priti Patel, said yesterday, that the new laws will target trespassers “who intend to reside on any private or public land in vehicles without permission, and where they are causing significant disruption, distress or harm to local communities.”

“This new offence will enable the police to fine or arrest those residing without permission on private or public land in vehicles in order to stop significant disruption, distress or harm being caused to the law-abiding majority,” she added.

The new law also gives the police the powers to seize and impound vehicles whose owners fail to comply with the new law and who refuse – or can’t – leave.

Gypsy and Traveller campaigners reacted with fury saying that the new laws were racist.

“You are criminalising a problem that has been created by the failings of a political will to deliver appropriate accommodation,” said Joseph P Jones from the Gypsy Council, in a Facebook comment left on Priti Patel’s Facebook page .

Joseph P Jones also pointed out that to get planning permission to develop their own permanent legal Traveller site, Gypsies and Travellers have to obtain ‘gypsy status’ , the only requirement of which is to prove that they are – and will - continue to travel.

“Travellers are told they have to prove they travel to gain planning permission for their own private sites,” he added.

“But locally, Councils refuse to provide public sites. Well, racism is alive and well in the Home Office. Through political failure. Be proud of your right-wing achievement.”

The Government say that the new offence of criminal trespass will target:

• A person aged 18 or over resides or intends to reside on land without consent of the occupier of the land;
• They have, or intend to have, at least one vehicle with them on the land;
• They have caused or are likely to cause significant damage, disruption or distress;
• Fail to leave the land and remove their property following a request to do so by an occupier of the land, their representative or a constable; or
• Enter or, having left, re-enter the land with an intention of residing there without the consent of the occupier of the land, and with an intention to have at least one vehicle with them, within 12 months of a request to leave and remove their property from an occupier of the land, their representative or a constable.
• Reasonable suspicion that a person has committed this offence confers power on a constable to seize their vehicle/other property for up to three months from the date of seizure or, if criminal proceedings are commenced, until the conclusion of those proceedings.

The new law will affect England and Wales - but not Scotland.

Responding to the news, Abbie Kirkby, Public Affairs and Policy Manager at Friends, Families and Travellers  said :

“The Government seems hell bent on introducing tougher police powers for people living on roadside camps, even though all the evidence is stacking up against them – in their own consultation it is clear that most respondents don’t want tougher powers. The views of the majority of consultation respondents have been ignored, opening the door to a harsh and unfair set of proposals which punish some of the UK’s minority ethnic groups, who already face some of the starkest inequalities.

Our research shows that the majority of police respondents are against the proposals and also that there is a chronic national shortage of places to stop. The Government should not imprison people, fine them and remove their homes for the ‘crime’ of having nowhere to go. Another way is possible. Through negotiated stopping and by identifying land where Traveller sites can be built, councils can ensure nomadic families have a safe place to stop, save money on evictions and improve relations between travelling and settled communities. Everybody needs a place to live.”

Responding to the proposals, Jenny, a Romany Gypsy, said:

“My daughter is trying to get a pitch, but loads of families trying, she’s feeling depressed. Her and her partner don’t know where they’re going to go. It’s not right to criminalise us all. We don’t leave any rubbish, we respect the other residents, we clean up after ourselves, but we’re going to be stopped from travelling. There aren’t enough sites for Travellers. We’re being treated like animals. They’re always building more houses but no more sites. She can’t get a site, she can’t stop on the road. She’s tearful, she’s crying a lot. She just wants to settle down and make a life for herself like anyone else.”

TT EDITORIAL

The laws are pretty much what campaigners were fearing and what was promised in the Conservative manifesto at the last election - the criminalisation of trespass with vehicles.

By focussing on vehicles the Government has side-stepped opposition from ramblers and homeless charities. However that makes the new laws easier to challenge under equalities laws as Romany Gypsies and Irish and Scottish Travellers are protected ethnic groups. We understand that lawyers are already geared up to challenge the new laws.

The surprise is that the number of vehicles needed to trigger the new laws has dropped from the promised two to one. This then brings lots of the new single vehicle 'van-lifers' parking up on private or public land within the scope of the new law.

On the face of it, the new laws are only triggered if the senior police officer attending the camp believes that the camp "has caused or are likely to cause significant damage, disruption or distress."

However, "likely to cause" is open to wide interpretations and the powers, and the resulting seizure of vehicles if the camp refuses to disband, will be reliant on the whims and prejudices of the police officers present - and some police officers are more racist than others...

Mike Doherty/TT News

(Main picture: Stock image from Stow Fair (c) Natasha Quarmby)

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"The Romani Gypsy and Traveller Team at Garden Court is the only such dedicated team in the country. We do not know what we would do without their expert, friendly and efficient advice for our clients."

Chris Johnson, Community Law Partnership

“The first point of call for any Gypsy or Traveller planning matters.”

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Garden Court is the leading set of chambers in the UK specialising in Romani, Gypsy and Traveller rights. We are the only such dedicated team of barristers in the UK

To contact the  Romani Gypsy and Traveller Rights Clerks , please email  [email protected]  or phone +44 (0)20 7993 7600

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We have a proud history of defending the rights of Romani Gypsies and Travellers. Our barristers have won many landmark cases in the courts over the last 20 years.

Our barristers have authored the leading legal textbooks and articles in this field. We regularly advise bodies such as the Equality & Human Rights Commission and the Council of Europe and also work with the European Roma Rights Centre, Friends Families and Travellers, London Gypsies and Travellers, the Traveller Movement and Derbyshire Gypsy Liaison Group.

OUR EXPERTISE

Our team offers advice and representation in all areas of law relating to Romani Gypsies and Travellers including:

• Planning inquiries and hearings following the refusal of planning permission or the service of enforcement notices
• Statutory challenges and appeals to the High Court under sections 288 and 289 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990
• Criminal planning enforcement proceedings in both the Magistrates’ and Crown Court
• Proceedings relating to removal directions issued under the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994
• Possession proceedings
• Both injunction and committal proceedings relating to the breach of planning control
• Judicial review proceedings relating to the enforcement of planning control and the eviction of Romani Gypsies and Travellers from land by other means
• Other cases concerning the provision of caravan sites, housing, health and education and services to members of the Romani Gypsy and Traveller community
• Cases relating to discrimination faced by Romani Gypsies and Travellers

SEMINARS, PUBLICATIONS AND TRAINING

Our barristers regularly speak at conferences on Romani Gypsy and Traveller law and provide training on the various aspects of the subject in both the United Kingdom and Europe. 

Three of our members are co-authors of the main textbook on the subject, Gypsy and Traveller Law (LAG). 

Marc Willers QC, Joint Head of Garden Court Chambers, is the editor of the Council of Europe’s handbook for lawyers defending Roma and Travellers, Ensuring access to rights for Roma and Travellers – The role of the European Court of Human Rights (2014). 

Our barristers also regularly contribute articles to Travellers Times . 

Recent notable cases and news

Government to be challenged in High Court over ‘discriminatory’ PCSC Act

FFT will be represented by Stephen Simblet KC and Nadia O’Mara of Garden Court Chambers. Wendy Smith will be represented by Marc Willers KC and Ollie Persey of Garden Court Chambers.

16 January 2024

Supreme Court rules wide injunctions have negative impact on Gypsies and Travellers' ability to pursue traditional nomadic way of life

Marc Willers KC, Tessa Buchanan & Owen Greenhall represented London Gypsies and Travellers (LGT), Friends Families and Travellers (FFT) and the Derbyshire Gypsy Liaison Group (DGLG). Stephanie Harrison KC, Stephen Clark & Fatima Jichi represented FFT.

29 November 2023

Welsh Ministers concede appeal of planning inspector's decision brought by a Traveller

Tim Baldwin of the Garden Court Romani Gypsy & Traveller Rights Team acted for the appellant Traveller, instructed by Michael Imperato of Watkins & Gunn Solicitors.

13 November 2023

Garden Court secures top tier rankings in the Legal 500 UK 2024

Garden Court Chambers is proud to be recognised as a Top Tier set again in the Legal 500 UK 2024 rankings.

4 October 2023

High Court in Cardiff grants Traveller permission to appeal planning inspector's decision

Tim Baldwin of Garden Court Romani Gypsy & Traveller Rights Team acted for the appellant, instructed by Michael Imperato of Watkins & Gunn Solicitors.

3 October 2023

Marc Willers KC delivers oral submissions to UK Covid-19 Inquiry Module 4

Marc Willers KC leads Chris Jacobs of Landmark Chambers, instructed by Martin Howe of Howe & Co.

14 September 2023

Permission granted in High Court challenge to law that criminalises Gypsies, Roma and Travellers

The claimant, Ms Smith, is represented by Marc Willers KC and Ollie Persey of Garden Court Chambers, alongside Richard Drabble KC of Landmark Chambers. They are instructed by Chris Johnson of Community Law Partnership (‘CLP’).

20 July 2023

High Court issues declaration of incompatibility with the Human Rights Act 1998

Stephen Cottle of the Garden Court Housing Team represented the first defendant, instructed by Chris Johnson of Community Law Partnership.

6 July 2023

Kathryn Cronin and Danielle Manson shortlisted at Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards 2023

We are delighted to announce that Kathryn Cronin and Danielle Manson of Garden Court Chambers have both been shortlisted for the Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards 2023 (LALYs).

19 May 2023

Tom Wainwright and Justine Compton appointed as Recorders

We are delighted to announce Tom Wainwright (Call: 2003) and Justine Compton (Call: 2005) of Garden Court Chambers have been newly appointed as Recorders by the Queen on the advice of the Lord Chancellor and the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales.

18 May 2023

Irena Sabic KC appointed Deputy King’s Bench Master

Garden Court Chambers is delighted to announce that our colleague Irena Sabic KC has been appointed by the Lord Chief Justice as a Deputy King’s Bench Master, based at the Royal Courts of Justice.

11 May 2023

Court of Appeal quashes an unlawful notice served by Local Authority seeking eviction of Irish Travellers from a temporary site in Ramsgate Harbour

Tim Baldwin of Garden Court Chambers acted on behalf of the Claimant, SO, leading Lara Simak of 12 Old Square Chambers.

14 April 2023

DLA Briefing: Planning definition of Gypsies and Travellers unlawfully discriminatory

Marc Willers KC and Tessa Buchanan of Garden Court Chambers appeared for the successful appellant, instructed by Keith Coughtrie of Deighton Pierce Glynn.

6 March 2023

Government’s planning definition of Gypsies and Travellers unlawfully discriminatory

Marc Willers KC and Tessa Buchanan of Garden Court Chambers appeared for the successful appellant.

7 November 2022

"The Gypsy and Traveller way of life is being legislated out of existence" - Legal opinion commissioned by Good Law Project

Marc Willers QC, Tessa Buchanan, and Owen Greenhall of Garden Court Chambers were commissioned by the Good Law Project to survey the legal landscape for Gypsy and Traveller groups to assess whether it complies with the UK’s legal obligations.

30 June 2022

Garden Court secures number one rankings in Chambers UK Bar Guide 2022

21 October 2021

Tessa Buchanan wins Legal Aid Barrister of the Year and Audrey Cherryl Mogan wins Legal Aid Newcomer of the Year at 2021 LALY Awards

Garden Court Chambers is delighted to announce that two of our barristers won awards at the annual Legal Aid Lawyer of the Year Awards on 6 July 2021.

8 July 2021

Gypsy and Traveller injunctions against 'newcomers’ ruled unlawful

Marc Willers QC, Tessa Buchanan, and Owen Greenhall, of the Garden Court Chambers Romani Gypsy and Traveller Rights Team, acted for the three Interveners, instructed by Chris Johnson of the Community Law Partnership.

12 May 2021

Government in court today over planning rules for Travellers

Marc Willers QC and Tessa Buchanan of the Garden Court Chambers Romani Gypsy and Traveller Rights team represent Lisa Smith, instructed by Keith Coughtrie of Deighton Pierce Glynn.

10 December 2020

Garden Court Chambers welcomes Paul Powlesland as a new tenant

4 August 2020

Landmark Court of Appeal judgment criticises the use of wide injunctions which target Gypsy and Traveller encampments

Marc Willers QC and Tessa Buchanan of Garden Court Chambers were instructed by Chris Johnson of the Community Law Partnership. London Gypsies and Travellers intervened in the case with Liberty.

21 January 2020

New edition of 'Gypsy and Traveller Law' published by Legal Action Group

'Gypsy and Traveller Law' is edited by Marc Willers QC of Garden Court Chambers. Garden Court co-authors are Marc Willers QC, David Watkinson, Stephen Cottle, Desmond Rutledge, Owen Greenhall and Tessa Buchanan.

6 January 2020

Ripping the heart out of the Nomad Nation

By Marc Willers QC, Garden Court Chambers and Chris Johnson, Travellers Advice Team at Community Law Partnership.

18 November 2019

Discrimination facing Gypsies, Roma and Travellers in the UK today

Marc Willers QC and Tim Baldwin, Garden Court Chambers, set out an overview of the discrimination and socio-economic disadvantages experienced by Gypsies, Roma and Travellers in the UK which, despite equality legislation and legal protection for their tra

4 July 2019

Marc Willers QC named Times Lawyer of the Week

We're delighted to announce that Marc has been named Times Lawyer of the Week

31 May 2019

High Court rules against local authority encampment ban

London Gypsies and Travellers were the interveners, represented pro bono by Marc Willers QC and Tessa Buchanan, both of Garden Court.

17 May 2019

All we need are sites

By Chris Johnson of CLP and Marc Willers QC of Garden Court Chambers

20 September 2018

Marc Willers QC appointed as trustee of the European Roma Rights Centre

The ERRC work to combat anti-Romani racism and protect human rights of Roma through strategic litigation, research, policy development, advocacy and education.

5 December 2017

Bach Commission report calls for Rights to Justice Act and far wider eligibility for legal aid

Garden Court Chambers contributed evidence to the Bach Commission.

22 September 2017

Proof magazine #3: ‘Life in the Justice Gap: Why legal aid matters’ launch supported by Garden Court Chambers

Garden Court Chambers is proud to sponsor Proof magazine. The third issue of Proof was co-produced by the Justice Gap and the Justice Alliance.

20 July 2017

Garden Court Chambers extends condolences and solidarity to all those affected by Grenfell Tower tragedy

Garden Court Chambers is horrified by the fire at Grenfell Towers. We extend our condolences and our solidarity to all those bereaved, injured or rendered homeless.

16 June 2017

Vital times for human rights lawyers as we face attacks on fundamental rights at home and abroad

In these difficult times, human rights lawyers have a vital role to play in challenging prejudice, discrimination and the unlawful exercise of power.

6 February 2017

All notable cases and news

Past Notable Cases

Mulvenna and Smith v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government (SSCLG) and the Equality and Human Rights Commission  (EHRC) [2017] EWCA Civ 1850 These two judicial review claims followed Moore and Coates v SSCLG and EHRC [2015] EWHC 44 (Admin) in which Gilbart J found the Secretary of State had unlawfully discriminated against Romani Gypsies/Irish Travellers by recovering all Gypsy/Traveller caravan site planning appeals for his own determination in breach of the Equality Act 2010 and Articles 8 and 14 of the European Convention on Human Rights (the Convention). The claimants argued that the Secretary of State’s unlawful recovery of their appeals had a ‘domino effect’ which rendered his own appeal decisions unlawful. The EHRC supported that argument but Cranston J rejected it and the Court of Appeal upheld his decision.

Wetherspoons discriminated against Irish Travellers, 18 May 2015 

High Court finds the Government discriminated against Romany Gypsies and Irish Travellers, 21 January 2015

R (Mary Michelle Sheridan and Others) v Basildon BC  [2011] EWHC 2938 (Admin) The Irish Traveller residents of Dale Farm were unsuccessful in their judicial review challenge against the local authority’s decision to take direct action to evict them from their plots on the site. The case was heard at first instance by Ouseley J. Lord Justice Sullivan who refused a renewed application for permission made to the Court of Appeal.

Secretary of State for Environment Food and Rural Affairs v Meier and others  [2009] UKSC 11 This was a case concerning a claim for a wide possession order and a supporting injunction brought against New Travellers encamped on woodland managed by the Forestry Commission. The Supreme Court held that an injunction which restrained the Travellers from camping on the land they occupied and other parcels of land in the area could stand but that a wide possession order which covered land which it owned but was not subject to unauthorised occupation at the time when the order was made, should be discharged. In so doing, the Supreme Court also overturned the Court of Appeal’s decision in this case and its decision in the earlier case of Drury v Secretary of State for the Environment [2004] EWCA Civ 200.

Leeds City Council v Price  [2006] UKHL 10 The House of Lords concluded that the eviction of Romani Gypsies and Irish Travellers from public land did not breach their human rights. It held that in a case where there was an inconsistency between a judgment of the House of Lords and a judgment of the ECtHR, domestic courts were bound to follow the House of Lords’ decision.

South Bucks DC v Porter (No.2)  [2004] 1 WLR 1953 This was the second House of Lords case concerning the Porter family. Their Lordships upheld the decision to grant the family planning permission and gave guidance to planning inspectors on the extent to which they needed to give reasons for their decisions.

R (Margaret Price) v Carmarthenshire CC  [2003] EWHC 42 Admin The court quashed a decision to evict an Irish Traveller from her land. She had made a homelessness application and the council had failed to consider whether she had a cultural aversion to bricks and mortar and, if so, whether there was any other suitable accommodation.

South Bucks DC v Porter (No.1)  [2003] 2 AC 558 It was decided by the House of Lords that a court determining an application for an injunction to stop Romani Gypsies and Travellers living in caravans on their land, without planning permission, should take account of a variety of considerations, including the personal circumstances and human rights of the defendants.

Clarke v Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and Regions  [2002] JPL 552 In this case the Court of Appeal held that when a Romani Gypsy sought planning permission for a caravan site and had a cultural aversion to bricks and mortar, it could breach his human rights to take account of an offer of conventional housing that had been made to him.

Coster v United Kingdom [2001] 33 EHRR 20 One of four Gypsy cases that were heard together with the lead case of Chapman v UK. The ECtHR decided that planning enforcement action did not breach the human rights of the Romani Gypsy families concerned, but that the State had a positive obligation to facilitate the Gypsy way of life.

R v Lincolnshire CC ex parte Atkinson  (1995) 8 Admin LR 529 A case concerning the need for local authorities to take account of considerations of common humanity and to carry out welfare enquiries before deciding whether to evict Romani Gypsies and Travellers from their land.

.cls-1 { fill: none; stroke: #afafaf; stroke-linecap: round; stroke-width: 2px; } .cls-2 { fill: #afafaf; fill-rule: evenodd; } Contact team

Marc Willers KC

Year of call: 1987, year of silk: 2014.

Irena Sabic KC

Year of call: 2002, year of silk: 2023.

Stephen Cottle

Year of call: 1984.

Valerie Easty

Year of call: 1992.

Tim Baldwin

Year of call: 2001.

Year of Call: 2007

Paul Powlesland

Year of call: 2009.

Owen Greenhall

Year of call: 2010.

Tessa Buchanan

Year of call: 2012.

Ollie Persey

Year of call: 2017, we are top ranked by independent legal directories and consistently win awards..

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The rights of travelling people. Includes your rights to stop legally, park and live in a camp, and how to access services such as healthcare and education.

Information provided applies to England & Wales

Top picks a quality controlled selection of all the best legal information from a wide range of providers hand picked from the best websites by  advicenow, gypsies and travellers.

Gypsies and Travellers have different rights depending on whether they are staying on a council site, an unauthorised site, or a private site. Links to information about when and how gypsies and travellers can be evicted from land they have stopped on. (Content applies to England only.)

Gypsy and Traveller sites

Gypsies and travellers have different rights depending on whether they are staying on a council site, an unauthorised site, or a private site. Information on what these rights are. (Content applies to England only.)

A short guide to the Policing Act 2022

Information for anyone currently living or planning to live roadside on police powers on roadside camps.

Eviction from a site: Gypsy and Traveller communities

There are different eviction rules depending on the type of site you are staying on. Explains the rules in different situations.

Evictions from authorised sites

Guide to eviction for gypsies and travellers, covering evictions from public land, private land and by planning authorities. Includes contact details for the Traveller Advice Team.

Help if you’re homeless: Gypsies and Travellers

Gypsies and travellers are entitled to help from the council if they have nowhere safe and permanent to live. This page looks at your rights in those circumstances. (Content applies to England only.)

Report racism and discrimination

Explains types of hate crime, harassment and discrimination faced by gypsies and travellers, and how this can be challenged in law. Provides case study examples and further contact details for more advice and information.

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What is the uk's registered traveller program.

UK Registered Traveller program allows foreign passengers to breeze through passport control similar to UK, EU, and other citizens.

Border control is one of the more tiresome parts of the process for frequent travelers. To ease the pain for some passengers, the UK offers a program known as 'Registered Traveller,' allowing the use of ePassport gates. Here's a look at the process.

Open to some countries

As world borders open up, don't reach out to sign up for Registered Traveller just yet. Tt's essential to understand the eligibility for the program. This is restricted to select nationalities , listed here:

• Africa: Botswana, Namibia, Seychelles
• Asia: Brunei, Hong Kong (SAR passport only), Macao (SAR passport), Malaysia, Maldives, Taiwan (passports with personal ID number)
• Europe: Andorra, Monaco, Vatican
• Middle East: Israel
• North America: Bahamas, Mexico, St. Vincent and Grenadines
• Oceania: Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Tonga
• Central and South America: Argentina, Belize, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay

To be eligible, passengers must have entered the UK four times in the last 24 months. This does not apply to transiting the airport and must have entered the country, passing the border. Additionally, passengers must also have a UK visa, biometric resident permit (BRP), or entry clearance (such as visa-free access).

Benefits of the program

If you meet the requirements of the program, the Registered Traveller program brings a host of benefits. Those with ePassports, including a chip at the bottom, can use the dedicated ePassport queues at airports around the UK and other ports of entry such as railway stations. In case you do not have a chip, eligible holders can use the UK Passports section at the border, allowing you to reach the front much faster than other passengers.

With Fast Track still suspended at airports due to COVID and staffing shortages, Registered Traveller can mean the difference of hours when clearing the border at busy times. Let's take a look at the application process and cost of the program.

Application steps and price

Applications for Registered Traveller are made online and take ten working days for a response. If successful, you will still need to use the 'other passports' queue the first time to be approved by a border force agent who will recheck eligibility requirements. After that, you are free to use the benefits.

The program costs £70 ($92) for the first 12 months and £50 ($66) for renewal every year. If you are unsuccessful, you will get a £50 ($66) refund for your application. Children can be added for £20 ($26), but traveling with a child means you cannot use an ePassport gate upon entry.

The £50/year fee makes Registered Traveller far more expensive than US' Global Entry program, which only costs $100 for five years and includes TSA PreCheck at all airports. However, for those who fly to the UK often, the convenience of breezing through might be worth it.

What do you think about the UK's Registered Traveller program? Would you sign up? Let us know in the comments!

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Rights of Travellers

There are laws in place that have a direct effect on the lives of Gypsies and Travellers, some which work in their favour and some which do not.

Caravan Sites

Gypsies and Travellers have historically been nomadic, and in recent years they have tended to make caravan sites their homes. This has been allowed, most notably by the Caravan Sites Act 1968, which made all county councils duty-bound to provide caravan sites for Gypsies and Travellers.

However, many county councils didn’t comply with this duty, and the duty was subsequently repealed by the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act 1994. This act also gave police the power to evict Gypsies and Travellers who park their caravans on other sites without authorisation.

County councils are still allowed to provide special caravan sites for Gypsies and Travellers under the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960, but not many public authorities do so.

Eviction and security of tenure

Travellers have more protection from eviction than you might think. Legal advice should be sought if needing to evict travellers from your land.

Racism and discrimination

Certain types of Traveller, such as Romany Gypsies and Irish Travellers, have successfully proven themselves to be a protected ethnic minority in the past, and as such, have the right to be free from racial harassment and discrimination. This gives Gypsies and Travellers the same protection from discrimination that all other ethnic minorities receive under UK and European human rights law.

There are certain situations in which indirect discrimination against Gypsies or Travellers could be allowed – for instance, if registration with a school or another organisation required applicants to have a fixed address, thereby disqualifying Gypsies and Travellers due to their way of life.

However, this kind of treatment is only acceptable if the organisation has a justification, beyond simply wishing to exclude Travellers.

Human rights to education

Regardless of how they live, Gypsies and Travellers are of course entitled to the same human rights that everyone under the umbrella of the European Convention on Human Rights has.

For instance, young Gypsies and Travellers are as entitled to an education as any other child before school leaving age – in fact, failure by a parent to ensure that their child gets a good education would constitute breaking the law.

However, the law recognises that a regular school education would be very difficult to access for a Traveller, their nomadic lifestyle being inherently incompatible with the idea of settling at a school for an extended period of time.

Most local councils have a Traveller Education Service operating in the area, which works to provide support for Travellers and ensure that their children can get a good education. Like all parents, Gypsies and Travellers also have the option of educating their children themselves, away from school.

However, if the local education authority is not satisfied that the child is receiving an adequate education, they can take action, such as serving a school attendance order (requiring the child to attend a school) or an education supervision order (assigning an education social worker to work with the parent and child, making sure that the child is being educated to a reasonable standard).

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My flight was delayed for more than 3 hours, my flight was cancelled, i missed a connecting flight (not my fault), i was denied boarding due to overbooking.

The UK left the EU at the end January 2020. And even though EC 261/2004, or in other words EU Flight Compensation Regulation, doesn’t apply to many UK flights anymore, you are still protected. Because the UK Government has written Regulation 261 into UK law – Regulation UK261 . If your flight is delayed, cancelled or overbooked you might be entitled to UK flight compensation.

You only have to know which law to refer to when submitting a compensation claim. In some situations you will be protected by the EU law, in others — UK law. And you have to file a claim.

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If an ATOL licenced travel company collapses, it ensures that your money is protected and you can get home.

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Fresh travel misery for rail passengers

Aslef members will stage a third consecutive day of strike action in their long-running pay and conditions dispute.

Rail passengers face a third consecutive day of disruption on Thursday because of a strike by train drivers which will again cripple services.

Members of Aslef at LNER, TransPennine Express and Northern Trains will walk out for the day following similar action over the past two days at other operators.

Aslef is embroiled in a near two year long dispute over pay and conditions, which is now the longest ever in the railway industry.

TransPennine urged people not to attempt to travel as it will not be running any services on its routes.

Disruption is also likely on the day after strike action and services may start later and finish earlier than usual.

Northern said it will also not run any services on Thursday.

LNER will run more than 40 services between London, Edinburgh and West Yorkshire, equivalent to around a quarter of its usual timetable.

Aslef members at 16 train operators are continuing with a week-long ban on overtime which will also cause disruption to services until the weekend.

The Rail Delivery Group (RDG) has invited Aslef to a meeting to try to find some common ground before negotiations can restart, raising tentative hopes of a breakthrough.

The two sides have not met formally for over a year despite a wave of strikes which is causing huge damage to the economy, especially in the hospitality industry.

Mick Whelan, general secretary of Aslef, said pay deals at the 16 Train Operating Companies (TOCs) involved in the dispute ran out in 2019, adding: “Train drivers at these TOCs have not had an increase in salary for five years. That is completely wrong.

“The employers and the Government think we are going to give up and run away. They’re wrong.”

Pubs close to railway stations are suffering losses on strike days, often having to cancel music gigs and other events.

None of the train companies involved in the dispute are using the new law aimed at ensuring a minimum level of service during strikes.

Unions have warned that the law is unworkable and potentially dangerous if rail passengers believe a certain number of trains will run on strikes days.

The RDG said the strikes were inflicting more damage to the rail industry, which it added was receiving up to an additional £54 million a week in taxpayer money.

The Department for Transport said the Transport Secretary and Rail Minister had facilitated a pay offer that would take train drivers’ average salaries up to £65,000 a year, almost twice the UK average.

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Taliban's quest for tourists to see the wonders of Afghanistan

Troubled country wants to become a 'tourism powerhouse' – but how safe is it?

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Holidaying in a country torn apart by warfare and ruled by fundamentalists won't be top of everyone's bucket list but the number of foreign tourists visiting Afghanistan rose 120% in 2023, reaching nearly 5,200.

Travel officials want Afghanistan to become a "tourism powerhouse", said AP , an ambition backed by the Taliban's top leaders, who assured The Times that "attention has been paid to peace and order in the areas where tourists go."

But why are visitors returning to Afghanistan and how safe is it?

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'Bragging rights'

During the 1960s and 1970s, Afghanistan was part of the overland "hippy trail" route across Asia, with "hundreds of thousands of Western tourists" passing through, said Sky News , although as its "complicated modern history unfolded", the "steady stream of travellers stopped". But now, foreigners are visiting the country again, encouraged by the "sharp drop in violence", increased flight connections with hubs like Dubai, and the "bragging rights that come with vacationing in an unusual destination", said AP. Although the numbers aren't huge, they "never were" and there's still "a buzz around Afghan tourism".

The visitor revival is thanks to efforts by the nation's tourist officials, who are working hard to overcome numerous obstacles. There are problems with the road network, which is "half-paved or non-existent in some parts of the country", said the outlet, and the fact that airlines "largely avoid Afghan airspace".

"Decades of conflict" have made tourists in Afghanistan "extremely rare" in recent times, said Al Jazeera , and although most violence has now abated, visitors are "still confronted with extreme poverty, dilapidated cultural sites" and "scant hospitality infrastructure".

Tourists who visit will "holiday under the austere control of the Taliban authorities", without consular support, and they must also comply with a strict dress code and submit to searches at checkpoints.

The Taliban has an infamous track record of oppressing women and has even banned women from a national park, ruling that "going sightseeing is not a must for women". Untamed Borders, which runs mixed-gender tours to Afghanistan, told Sky News that although women travellers can "spend time with women in homes", there "are other things that women are not allowed to do and certain places they're not allowed to visit".

Stefanie Meier, a 53-year-old US citizen who spent a month travelling from Kabul to Kandahar via Bamiyan and Herat in the west, told Al Jazeera she did not face any issues as a woman on her own.

The country's only five-star hotel, the Serena, has reopened its women's spa and salon for foreign females after a closure of several months, but foreigners must show their passport to access services and women with "born in Afghanistan" on their ID are barred.

The biggest foreign-visitor market is China, thanks to its proximity and large population. Afghanistan and neighbouring Pakistan are both "attempting to convince Beijing" that their countries are "safe enough and stable enough to be part of, or remain part of, its global infrastructure embrace", said The Times.

'Unique experiences'

Although the UK Foreign Office currently advises against all travel to Afghanistan, highlighting its "volatile" security situation and an "ongoing and high threat of terrorist attacks", some "adventurous tourists aren't letting this stop them", said Sky News.

There are hoops to jump through. Just a "handful" of embassies around the world are able to issue visas and at all but one, you must apply in person, said Sky News. You will need specialist insurance, as regular providers do not cover travel to countries on the Foreign Office's red list.

"Unique sights, history and cultural experiences await" those willing to take the risk, said the broadcaster. Tourists can visit Bamiyan, an ancient route between India and China, the famous minaret of Jam, the cities of Herat, Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif, and the site where two gigantic sixth-century Buddhas stood until the Taliban destroyed them in 2001.

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  Chas Newkey-Burden has been part of The Week Digital team for more than a decade and a journalist for 25 years, starting out on the irreverent football weekly 90 Minutes, before moving to lifestyle magazines Loaded and Attitude. He was a columnist for The Big Issue and landed a world exclusive with David Beckham that became the weekly magazine’s bestselling issue. He now writes regularly for The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Independent, Metro, FourFourTwo and the i new site. He is also the author of a number of non-fiction books. 

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