18.5 The Cumbria Study Area authorities have important, strategic and facilitating roles to play in order to support local authorities and each other in developing pitch provision for Gypsies and Travellers. It is important that partnerships between the authorities are maintained after the assessment of need and this is linked into work of
neighbouring authorities, both with Lancashire and the North East. Both within and across authorities fora for planning for Gypsy and Traveller accommodation issues already exist. This is particularly the case for the Cumbria wide Joint Agency Strategic Planning Group which is currently composed of a wide and diverse stakeholder base (see p. 61).
Recommendation 1: The Joint Agency Strategic Planning Group
will provide a useful vehicle for change in ensuring that the authorities develop a meaningful and co-ordinated approach to Gypsy and Traveller accommodation and related issues.
Consideration should be given to providing this group with the resources required in order to enable the joined-up process needed.
Recommendation 2: All authorities should ensure an internal working group exists within each authority, which cuts across service areas, in order to better co-ordinate the response and approach on Gypsy and Traveller issues and avoid potential duplication of work. Each group should then feed into the Joint Agency Group.
18.6 Although, in comparison to other areas, some local authorities had access to much more information around the make-up of the local Gypsy and Traveller communities, there is a need to improve information collection and sharing.
Recommendation 3: Each authority needs to ensure that there is a standardised and centralised method of recording occurrences of unauthorised encampments and the needs of households on these encampments. Steps should be taken to produce a Cumbria wide Caravan Count in order to take a much more strategic and accurate view of accommodation need, travelling patterns and trends. Each authority should be party to joint protocols in order to respond effectively and fairly towards unauthorised encampments. Recommendation 4: In order to adhere to the Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000, and to ensure the high quality of on-going monitoring, authorities should ensure that Gypsies and Travellers are recognised as separate categories (i.e. Romany Gypsy and Irish Traveller) in all their ethnic monitoring forms, most urgently in relation to housing and planning applications.
18.7 With an increase in the provision of pitches and sites for Gypsies and Travellers, there will be a need to ensure that access to these sites embrace transparency and equality. It should be noted that Gypsies and Travellers are one of the most diverse groupings in UK society. This diversity can at times lead to potential conflict.
Recommendation 5: If socially rented accommodation is to be made available the waiting lists for these sites should be:
• Accessible to all resident Gypsies and Travellers in Cumbria
• Available to be accessed in advance and outside the area via telephone or ICT systems
• Clear and transparent in terms of allocation policies
• Formalised
• Centralised
• Standardised
Recommendation 6: Authorities should ensure that principles of equality, in relation to Gypsies and Travellers, are embedded in the wide range of services provided. In particular this includes:
• Housing policies
• Homeless polices
• Harassment
• Communication and engagement
• Statement of Community Involvement
• Site management • Housing-related support • Choice-Based Lettings • Allocation policies • Planning policies • Absence policies
• Equality Impact Assessments
Recommendation 7: Authorities should be sensitive to the different cultural and support needs of Gypsies and Travellers who may present as homeless and those who may require local authority accommodation.
Recommendation 8: All authorities should ensure they take a common approach to the Welfare Needs Assessment; this should be grounded in good practice and be pro-active in meeting the needs of Gypsies and Travellers. The assessment should also be broadened to include a range of issues such as travelling patterns, reasons for visiting etc which could help to better monitor
accommodation need from unauthorised encampments within the Study Area.
Recommendation 9: Housing officers, site managers and other relevant personnel should liaise to ensure that advice on allocation policies and procedures is always up-to-date and that site
managers or other liaison staff can assist people through the system.
Recommendation 10: For residential sites the practice of licensing
pitches should be discontinued and replaced by more formal tenancies. A tenancy would assure the resident of greater security and encourage feelings of ownership in their site/accommodation.
18.8 Although there are currently no socially rented sites in the area the experience of socially rented provision in other areas has
demonstrated that inappropriate management can foster and
encourage a perception of partisanship and divisiveness, doing little to build social cohesion on sites and lessen social exclusion for members of the Gypsy and Traveller communities.
Recommendation 11: If socially rented sites are created within the Study Area the authorities should:
• Implement the principles contained within the emerging guidance for site management published by the CLG.
• Evaluate the management of sites at regular intervals