Feuds impact on Traveller accommodation

FEUDING among some Clare Traveller families is the prime cause of much of the dysfunction in their accommodation, rather than the shortcomings of various Traveller accommodation programmes, it has been claimed.
According to Clare Traveller Accommodation Committee chairman and Green Party Councillor Brian Meaney, a 2008 report, entitled Experiences and Perspectives of Ennis Travellers, contains serious shortcomings, including the lack of detail on the impact of feuding within the Traveller community.
Councillor Meaney’s observations put the expenditure of €20 million on Traveller accommodation in Clare back in the spotlight.
Ennis Community Development Project, who commissioned the 2008 research, which recently came to light, described it as a “unique report” and stated “it is the first time that the voice of Clare Travellers has been captured formally and independently regarding their experiences and views of the Traveller Accommodation Programme (TAP) 2000 to 2004”.
Conflicting views have been expressed about the significance of the first formal study of TAP, with claims the issues highlighted again in 2008 still remain unresolved.
According to the 2008 report, Travellers interviewed highlighted significant weaknesses in the consultation process and requested more appropriate mechanisms be put in place so that accommodation provided could more fully take into account their needs and preferences.
“Travellers interviewed from the permanent and temporary sites built in Ennis under Clare TAP 2000 to 2004 felt strongly that they had not been adequately involved in the selection of location, families to be accommodated or in the design and management of these sites,” the report stated.
“Travellers were unhappy with the two-metre high walls or fences placed around sites and several families spoke of how they felt Traveller accommodation was designed to exclude them and place them out of sight.
“Travellers expressed concern at the lack of understanding shown by the council, on occasions, on the importance of family compatibility among Travellers and gave examples of incompatible families being accommodated together, causing unnecessary stress and conflict for the families involved.
“Travellers wished to see the barriers at the entrance of sites removed or, at the very least, wanted residents to be involved in the management of the barriers,” the report further stated.
Councillor Meaney has described the report as an “extremely poor, outdated, one-sided document detailing a list of complaints that are taken as fact without any investigation and, in many cases, contradict each other”.
Even though this report is mainly based around “biased, unsubstantiated recollections”, Councillor Meaney pointed out some of the suggestions, such as the need to increase Traveller membership on the Traveller Accommodation Committee, were implemented, despite little or no take-up.
He claimed this report contains serious shortcomings, including the lack of detail on the impact of feuding within the Traveller community.
“Feuding within families and between families is the prime cause of much of the dysfunction in Traveller accommodation, not the shortcomings of TAP.”
A member of the research steering committee, Heather Rosen, claimed the burning issues identified in the study have not been seriously tackled.
The main concern in relation to this report is the claim from Ms Rosen and Ennis Community Development Project chairman, Dermot Hayes, the council didn’t take the findings of this independent evaluation into account in the most recent Traveller accommodation programme and amendment, which was adopted at a recent council meeting.
Mr Hayes said Travellers are still finding it difficult to get accommodation in local authority schemes and wonders if the quota system of one in 15 local authority houses for Travellers is being adhered to.
Ms Rosen claims that if some of the design issues highlighted in the report were taken into account, it would have resulted in smaller sites and would have not resulted in the high vacancy levels in some Traveller sites.
“The segregation named in the research is still epitomised in the barriers erected outside group schemes, the high walls and the refusals to allow transfers. The effects of these polices are very real and dangerous. Barriers have blocked emergency services from accessing schemes; the high walls have blocked the witnessing of harm being done. The refusal to allow traditional activities to happen on, or next to, schemes persists and an example of a devastating outcome of this has been the repeated impounding of horses.
“For many Traveller families on the housing lists, the only accommodation ever suggested to them is a place on a group scheme, each respective family proffered the same vacant places. The “good estate management” principles of compatibility do not appear to be adhered to,” she said.
Ms Rosen expressed concern about the level of payments to a security firm at the entrance to an almost “empty Beechpark Scheme” and proposed that the idea of a new working group mooted by elected representatives to identify concrete solutions to problems should be pursued.

Clare County Council has insisted that each Traveller housing scheme constructed over the past decade or so has been the subject of close consultation with prospective Traveller tenants and has fully adhered to department guidelines on the design of Traveller-specific accommodation.
“None of the group schemes with high vacancy rates is bigger than six units. The reality of the situation on the ground and what is being reported to the council, is that the accommodation is not driving the vacancy rates but rather, very adverse dynamics within a minority of the Traveller community,” said acting senior executive officer, Fiona Mooney.
Acknowledging the results for Clare County Council from spending €20m on small-scale, quality housing developments have been disappointing, Ms Mooney pointed out the council has always been cognisant that accommodation provision needs to be accompanied by other public services.
“The council took the lead in developing integrated public services plans for Travellers and has been to the forefront of successive strategies for public service delivery to Travellers, under the auspices of the County Development Board.
“The council will continue to work in partnership with all agencies and with Travellers, towards the goals of sustainable quality of life,” she said.
She said many issues were considered during the 2010 to 2011 review of the programme over a series of meetings, while the recent amendment adopted by the LTACC was based on the outcomes of previous Traveller accommodation programmes.
Those involved in the Ennis Community Development Project included head researcher, Anita Pannell; the steering committee included Maura Adshead, Department of Politics UL; Neil Haran, independent researcher; Peter Shields, architectural consultant; Michael Neylon, Clare County Development Board research officer and Daudi Kutta, volunteer from the immigrant community.
The report was referenced at a recent council meeting by Councillor Johnny Flynn, who highlighted the importance of providing emergency accommodation for Travellers.
Describing some of the behaviour of some Travellers in local authority and private accommodation as unacceptable, Councillor Flynn stressed it is important that the findings of an independent report are taken into account when it comes to spending taxpayers’ money on Traveller accommodation.