Gypsy and Traveller Working Group
ACTION PLAN 2024
Updated: April 2024
Housing
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Action |
Information |
Update |
Timescale |
Owner |
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1. Surveys. |
· Complete the stock condition and energy efficiency surveys.
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Work is commissioned |
Information expected May 2024 |
Head of Housing Delivery |
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2. Providing Grants |
· Provide grant funding to York Travellers Trust to enable the hosting of three family fun dates at the three travellers’ sites to encourage engagement in energy retrofit, and to undertake a workshop providing energy retrofit advice to the housed Traveller community. |
Approved by Executive in April 2024 – draft funding agreement to be finalised in coming weeks with events to take place this year. |
Funding agreement to be finalised in May 2024 |
Head of Housing Delivery |
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3. Accommodation Officer |
· Employ a dedicated accommodation officer who will be responsible for delivering new pitches and developing a business case for investment into existing sites and pitches.
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Recruitment process underway |
Successful candidate to begin this Summer |
Head of Housing Delivery |
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4. Future Site Investment |
· Developing the business case and bringing an investment proposal to Executive noting the agreement in principle to forward fund £5m of investment into our G+T accommodation offer.
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There are likely to be a number of decisions relating to investment. The first of these will be to respond to any issues identified in the stock condition survey followed by further reports covering general improvements to existing sites the creation of new pitches. |
First investment report due in Autumn 2024 |
Head of Housing Delivery |
Communities & Equalities
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Action |
Information |
Update |
Timescale |
Owner |
|
1. Anti Racism |
· Ensuring that the Anti-Racism Work being undertaken in the Council and in partnership across the city has a specific focus on racism toward Gypsy and Traveller Communities. |
· Work ongoing to look at system transformation, asking ourselves if our practices, policies, processes, and services are actively anti-racist.
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Ongoing to April 2025. |
Assistant Director Customer, Communities and Inclusion |
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2. Human Rights |
· Making sure that the specific culture and way of life of these groups is considered when making changes to policies or services that may impact on their human rights. · Recognising this when developing the new Human Rights and Equalities Analysis Tool. |
· Reconvened Human Rights and Equalities Board me for the first time in April. · The Human Rights and Equalities Analysis Tool in currently under development and being tested on a live issue in collaboration with the Centre for Applied Human Rights. |
Ongoing to April 2025 |
Assistant Director Customer, Communities and Inclusion |
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3. Mapping |
· Working with York Travellers Trust begin a mapping exercise to better understand where our Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities are in York. |
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Ongoing to end of 2024 |
Cultural and Integration Partnership Manager
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Health
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Action |
Information |
Update |
Timescale |
Owner |
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1. Strengthen our partnership approach to health protection |
· Work to increase knowledge and awareness of national seasonal vaccination campaigns and childhood immunisation schedule, and support community members to access vaccination · Increase uptake of key cancer screening programmes – cervical, bowel and breast. · Engage with York Travellers Trust as part of outbreak planning and during local outbreaks and incidents, to build community trust |
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Ongoing to Feb 26 |
Nurse Consultant in Public Health |
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2. Build culturally-sensitive approaches to improving the health of people in the Gypsy and Traveller community |
· Implement an outreach model of child health, delivered by an Advanced Nurse Practitioner, from the Family Hubs specifically working with the community. · Build on the HNA to gather further data and evidence on improving health and wellbeing, in order to recommend effective interventions for reducing health inequalities |
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Ongoing to Feb 26 |
Director of Public Health |
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3. Influence Health partners around access to care |
· Work with York Travellers’ Trust to ensure health settings in York have resources and information that can be easily accessed by the Gypsy and Traveller communities. These may include resources written in simple English, photographs representative of the communities, or delivered in different formats, such as audio and information 24 sessions. Topics would include various health topics, including accessing the most relevant health services for a specific health condition, information around diseases and conditions commonly experienced by the communities, and immunisation and vaccination. · Build a greater awareness amongst health care professionals of the challenges an increased reliance on technology can pose to the communities for appointment-making, test results, and other communication. Advise that more traditional forms of communication should still be offered |
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Ongoing to Feb 26 |
Director of Public Health |
Community Safety
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Action |
Information |
Update |
Timescale |
Owner |
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1. Roadside Stopping/unauthorised encampments.
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· Work with York Travellers Trust to review our approach to Roadside Stopping/Unauthorised encampments.
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· Meeting to be held with York Travellers Trust to review the existing unlawful encampment enforcement procedure. · Look to identify a parcel of that land might be used for Negotiated Stopping arrangements |
Ongoing to Feb 2025 |
Community Safety Manager |
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2. Multi-Agency work on static sites
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· In partnership with York Travellers Trust produce an accessible version of the Travellers Site licence agreement. · Work to improve relationships and increase trust between the GT community and enforcement agencies such as the council’s Neighbourhood Enforcement Team and North Yorkshire Police. · Have a regular and supportive presence on the static sites, taking an educational approach to ensure people are aware of their responsibilities for issues such as waste management, fly-tipping, Scrap Metal Dealing and dogs, while at the same ensuring people are aware of the penalties for non-compliance.
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· A framework document has been produced. Pending York Travellers Trust availability. · These arrangements will commence in tandem with the launch and promotion of the accessible licence agreement. · Improving relationships and increasing trust should increase as a result of this work. |
Ongoing to Feb 2025 |
Community Safety Manager |
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3. Hate Crime |
· York Travellers Trust is a member of the multi-agency York Hate Crime Partnership and a Third Party Reporting Centre. The group will work with YTT to identify and address any specific needs in relation to the Gypsy Traveller community. · To ensure coordination of work to address issues such as misogyny across the Domestic Abuse and Violence Against Women and Girls work-streams.
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Ongoing to Feb 2025 |
· Work to review accessibility and raise awareness of Third Party Reporting Centres is to be undertaken. · Work with Public Health/All About Respect initiative (positive Healthy relationships 18-25 year olds) |
York Hate Crime partnership/Community Safety Manager |
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Education
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Action |
Information |
Update |
Timescale |
Owner |
|
1. Provision |
· Work to support development of Education Provision at YTT for English and Maths for G&T Children and Young People who are Home Educated |
Exam Centre identified
York College offer has been removed pre 16 |
Already ongoing |
Scott Butterworth/Abigail Darton/Dan Bodey |
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2. Partnership |
· Funded supported work between CYC Education team and YTT to support interactions with schools |
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Scott Butterworth/Abigail Darton/Dan Bodey |
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3. Research |
· Provided information to YTT funded research project led by York St John University around the experience of G&T Children and Young people in York schools |
Report and recommendation to be published in May 2024 |
|
Scott Butterworth/Abigail Darton/Dan Bodey |