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GUIDELINES FOR MANAGING UNAUTHORISED CAMPING BY GYPSIES/TRAVELLERS IN SCOTLAND
CHAPTER 3 MANAGING UNAUTHORISED CAMPING
32. Local authorities, the police and other partners should work pro-actively to manage encampments to minimise any disruption; facilitate access to services for Gypsies/Travellers and to keep all parties informed of decisions and actions.
33. To facilitate integrated management of sites and unauthorised camping, officers should have information about vacancies on sites in their own, and neighbouring, areas. Where short stay pitches are provided, then turnover should be maintained if these sites are to contribute to the management of unauthorised camping. Local authorities should consider facilitating the sharing of information about unauthorised encampments, noting the condition of the site as well as numbers, welfare needs etc. These activities will have to comply with data protection legislation.
34. A pro-active approach to managing unauthorised encampments involves keeping encampments under review. Police and local authorities should be prepared to re-assess their decision if circumstances change.
Box 7 - examples of good practice in proactively managing unauthorised encampments
Aberdeenshire Council - staff from the Traveller Education and Information Project (TEIP) and council staff visit unauthorised encampments, assessing needs, providing refuse sacks and providing ongoing monitoring of the site
Stirling Council - the site manager visits all unauthorised encampments, offers site pitch if available, provides refuse sacks, gives advice about local services and will negotiate a leaving date, updating others on what has been agreed.
Highland Council's Housing Service contact visits the camp within 1 working day (or 2 in rural areas), advising the police of the camp's existence. The Housing Service contact obtains information about the camp as necessary; will advise the Gypsies/Travellers of relevant information on services and will give recommendations for future action.
City of Edinburgh Council - the site manager is the first point of contact for unauthorised encampments, with first hand information on pitch availability, waiting lists etc being made available to Gypsies/Travellers. The council is looking at developing an electronic solution to monitoring site activity and movements through a password protected site on the Council Intranet.
GYPSY/TRAVELLER BEHAVIOUR AT ENCAMPMENTS
35. Local authorities may wish to set out a Code of Expected Behaviour on encampments. Issues to be covered in a Code could include:
- Large encampments, which by their very size can have a disproportionate effect on the immediate area
- Aggressive or threatening behaviour towards local authority staff, the police, landowners, officers of other public bodies or members of the public
- Failure to control dogs and other animals
- Persistent noise which disturbs others, particularly at night
- Littering or fly-tipping on or near the site, which causes a build up of rubbish which is unsightly, hazardous to health and expensive to clear
- Damage to the immediate or surrounding area
- Guidance to Gypsies/Travellers on reporting harassment experienced by them
36. A basic principle in establishing such a Code is to ensure that the same standards are applied to Gypsy/Traveller communities and to the settled community. It is important to tackle unacceptable behaviour towards encampments by members of the settled community.
37. Criminal behaviour by or towards Gypsies/Travellers in unauthorised encampments is a matter for the police.
Box 8 - examples of developing Codes of Behaviour
Angus Council - the Gypsy/Traveller Liaison Group has developed a leaflet (attached at Annex E), which sets out what is acceptable behaviour for Gypsies/Travellers when in Angus. The visiting housing officer will read through the leaflet with the Gypsies/Travellers if required.
POLICE LIAISON OFFICERS
38. Unauthorised encampments can be subject to abuse/vandalism by the settled community. There may be issues about community safety to take into consideration. To ensure that there is a point of contact for Gypsy/Traveller groups, it is recommended as good practice for police forces to nominate specific Gypsy/Traveller Liaison Officers whose role it would be to establish links with Gypsies/Travellers and ensure that the Gypsy/Traveller community (settled or travelling) benefits from all of the services of the police enjoyed by the community as a whole, which includes support and guidance on community and personal safety matters, home security, how to report incidents to the police, racist incident monitoring etc.
DEALING WITH WASTE DISPOSAL AND FLY-TIPPING
39. Accumulations of rubbish and waste represent one of the most common problems associated with unauthorised camping. They can be unsightly, hazardous, smelly and costly to clean up. Prevention of waste, as well as action to remove it, should be one of the elements in a policy of pro-active management of encampments.
40. Local authorities should supply refuse sacks and arrange regular collection of rubbish. The use of skips or wheelie bins might also be appropriate in some locations and may be cost effective if the alternative is a build up of refuse, which can sometimes act as a magnet for other fly tipping by members of the settled community. It might also be useful to discuss what form of toilet provision the local authority might be able to assist with. Regular monitoring visits to the encampment may help reinforce the message about keeping the site clean and tidy. These could be cost effective ways of reducing the need to spend large sums on cleaning up sites.
41. It is an offence to drop litter or leave waste on land that is not licensed for waste disposal. Local authorities should ensure that Gypsies/Travellers are at least made aware of the nearest Civic Amenity Site facilities for disposing of their waste.
Box 9 - examples of a strategy for managing fly-tipping at unauthorised encampments
Angus Council has recently introduced 'Green Teams', which are quick response teams that clear up fly tipping, litter etc. Refuse bags are provided at encampments and Gypsies/Travellers are advised of the location of the nearest Civic Amenity site.
West Dunbartonshire Council provides plastic sacks and, on one occasion, a skip for a large encampment. They are exploring the provision of toilet facilities.
FACILITATING ACCESS TO SERVICES
42. Local authorities may have obligations towards members of an encampment under other legislation (regarding homelessness, children, young people and education). Some form of welfare enquiry is necessary to identify whether needs exist and the local authority should liaise with other services that might have responsibilities towards the Gypsy/Traveller families.
KEEPING PEOPLE INFORMED
It is important that all agencies/departments, Gypsies/Travellers, landowners and members of the settled community are kept informed about what is happening, both in terms of the wider policy and with individual encampments. It would normally be the local authority, in its role as the lead agency in dealing with unauthorised camping, who would co-ordinate communications with the public and the press through their media strategy. An encampment may be of concern to local residents and businesses. So that councillors can handle queries from their constituents, council staff may wish to consider briefing them about encampments in their local authority area, the legal rights and responsibilities of all parties and the existence of this set of guidelines.
43. Gypsies/Travellers should also be clearly informed about what is expected of them and what is going to happen. Information should be provided in an appropriate format.
SITE PROTECTION
44. Protection of land vulnerable to unauthorised camping is a valid part of a strategy. Local authorities can take appropriate action to protect their own land and can advise private landowners how best to secure their land. However, site protection can have the effect of leading Gypsies/Travellers to camp in other locations. Experience and practice suggests that the police and the courts, when deciding on an appropriate course of action to take at an encampment, may consider what steps have been taken to prevent unauthorised encampments in areas where there has previously been a problem.
MASS GATHERINGS
45. Mass gatherings would usually cover family gatherings, for bereavement/celebration purposes, and traditional gatherings. Although some gatherings are spontaneous in response to immediate circumstances, some are to a certain extent planned, such as celebrating family occasions, and, where possible, Gypsies/Travellers should be encouraged to give the local authority some advance notice of these events, so that preparations can be made, in conjunction with the local police, for managing the gathering. This could include waste disposal, a water supply and portable toilets. A mass gathering is not necessarily defined by the number of caravans - the local authority should instead consider the impact on the immediate area and available resources.
Box 10 - examples of managing mass gatherings
Fife Council's appointed housing officer and the police visit any mass gathering regularly. The Council has implemented measures to protect areas of recreational ground and has improved the monitoring of encampments and the sharing of cross-boundary information.
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