8 - Community social work with a marginalised minority ethnic group: Gypsy and Traveller communities in England

Summary

Introduction

While the Black Lives Matter movement that originated in the US has brought about a welcome focus on the lasting impact of slavery and helped progress the postcolonial narrative as a cornerstone of social work with people of colour, this has barely touched the UK's oldest minority ethnic group: Gypsy, Romani and Travellers (the preferred term rather than the convenient abbreviation ‘GRT’, which fails to describe quite distinct cultures and backgrounds), as well as associated groups facing similar issues: Boaters, Show People and New Age Travellers.

A recent study on social work with Gypsy, Romani and Traveller children in the state system found pejorative and ill-informed attitudes, as well as oppressive actions that flowed from them (Allen and Riding, 2018). This triggered a further study that discussed the concept of ‘aversive racism’; this, the authors argue, is found among social workers who will claim to be non-discriminatory and to support notions of equal opportunity but nonetheless harbour prejudices (Allen and Hulmes, 2021). This results in practice with Gypsy, Romani and Travellers that fails to take account of culture and custom, seeing safeguarding issues where there are none and basing decisions on false premises. Out of such work grew the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller Social Work Association (GRTSWA), established through the British Association of Social Workers (BASW) in 2019/ 20, with the aim of improving communication and understanding and breaking down barriers between social workers and Travelling communities. The BASW (2022) consequently published a statement on anti- Gypsyism and Gypsy, Romani and Traveller rights.

This chapter will look at the work of one individual, Wiltshire County Council social worker Chris Kidd, who applies his GRTSWA knowledge and commitment through both his work as a children's safeguarding social worker for his local authority and his role as lead for their Traveller Reference Group (TRG). The chapter therefore focuses not on a geographical community but on one based on ethnic identity and culture, spread across a large area and sharing issues with others throughout the UK. The chapter will also cover the essence of good practice with this community in a more general way.