Travellers’ Times Online reports that Gypsies and Travellers are amongst England’s most disadvantaged groups, that they have fallen further behind the rest of the population, and risk being increasingly locked out of opportunities, according to a major new report released by the Equality and Human Rights Commission.
‘Is England Fairer’ is an in–depth analysis of how people’s equality and human rights have been realised in practice over the past five years. It reveals that the gap has grown between the life chances of a range of groups – homeless people, those with learning disabilities, Gypsy, Roma and Travellers, migrants, refugees and asylum seekers – and the rest of the population. It also shows how inequality has become more entrenched.
Gypsies and Travellers are one of the four groups that the Commission focusses on in its wide–ranging report, saying that:
“Some people in our society are being left further behind because they face particular barriers in accessing important public services and are locked out of opportunities. There are several factors that may contribute to this, including socio–economic deprivation, social invisibility, poor internal organisation of the group, distinctive service needs that are currently not met, cultural barriers, stigma and stereotyping, small group size, and very importantly, a lack of evidence which limits us in our ability to assess the multiple disadvantages these people face.”