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COUNCIL SITES

The chronology of site development across Scotland

The 1971 study of Travelling People identified the principal problem as the availability of adequate places where they could stay legally, with access to services. Between 1971 and 1998 a Scottish Office grant scheme assisted Councils to provide properly serviced sites for Gypsies/Travellers.

Table 1 summarises, chronologically, the way in which a total of 37 sites developed under the first funding programme. Although funding was available from 1971, the first site was not achieved until 1978 and the network of sites susbsequently grew slowly, often with uncertain progress and setbacks. While most sites had been provided by 1997, the last two were not opened until 2002.

Twenty-six Councils have provided sites (East and Midlothian Councils jointly operate a single site). Of the other six Councils, no requirement for site provision has been identified within any of the three Islands Councils and three mainland Councils (East Ayrshire, East Renfrewshire and Inverclyde) have never provided sites. Following site closures (see below) Moray and Renfrewshire no longer have any site provision.

Most sites are open throughout the year, but three Councils have developed sites to meet specific summer need and open only from April to September. Highland has a small seasonal site at Newtonmore, a main Gypsy/Traveller route between Edinburgh and the Inverness/Fort William areas. Another through route is that between Scotland and north-eastern England through the Scottish Borders and there is a small site, associated with a conventional tourist site near Peebles. In Aberdeenshire a 20-pitch seasonal site has been provided Banff which Gypsies/Travellers use as a base throughout the summer months, generally while working in that part of north-east Scotland

The original grant scheme also enabled some of the earlier sites to be upgraded to meet changing standards and needs, particularly in the light of site development guidelines developed by the Advisory Committee. In June 2005 the Scottish Executive announced new funding for sites over three years to 2005 March 2008. Grants have already been awarded for upgrading and improving facilities at 22 sites ⁴. Fourteen of these had not previously been upgraded and although the other eight had some improvements under the original scheme, all dated from before 1990 and nearly all the earlier work had been undertaken some ten to fifteen years ago. By their nature, these sites also lead a hard life not just in terms of general wear and tear but also, over the years, there have been many reports of damage and vandalism, particularly to the amenity units. Much of this has resulted from inter-family disputes or visiting groups of Gypsies/Travellers from other areas.

Column A in Table 1 shows that, on the basis of their intended ( i.e. funded) size, the 37 sites which were developed provided a total of 580 pitches (including the 37 seasonal pitches);

Column B highlights three instances (Aberdeen City, North Lanarkshire (Motherwell) and Angus) in which upgrading projects also involved the provision of additional pitches, thus increasing the total number of available pitches to 599;

Column C shows that despite the growth in the number of sites over the years, there have also been significant losses. Over the past ten years, the following five complete sites have been permanently closed;

• In North Lanarkshire two out of three sites (Motherwell [26 pitches] and Coatbridge [16]) have been closed following local problems, leaving that Council - initially with the highest pitch levels of all Scottish Councils - with only a single 16-pitch site at Airdrie, itself empty in January 2007.
• The Paisley site in Renfrewshire [16], closed following major vandalism in 1998.
• The site at Elgin [20] in Moray had a history of vandalism over a number of years. Although there were some repairs, it continued to function. However, it is now permanently closed as the land is required for Elgin flood alleviation works.
• The most recent loss is that of the small North Ayrshire site on the island of Arran. Throughout its time it has never been fully occupied and for the last ten counts of its life occupancy ranged between none and three pitches. It has been officially closed over the past year.

Apart from the loss of these complete sites, on other sites that have been occasional losses of individual pitches, mostly to provide some community facilities in response to changes in local circumstances (two in Stirling; one in Highland [Inverness])

Table 1 - Chronology of Gypsy/Traveller site provision in Scotland since 1971
(Sites now permanently closed are shown in italics)

Column D of the table shows the net effect of these changes. Despite the addition of 19 pitches to give a total of 599, the loss of five complete sites with a total of 85 pitches and the loss of four individual pitches has now reduced pitch provision for Gypsies/Travellers in Scotland to 510, of which only 473 are available through the winter months.

Who lives on the sites ?

Within the returns as a whole, it is the Council sites which provide the richest and most robust data, drawn from site management records and enhanced by site managers' extensive experience of local situations and events. Data includes numbers and size of households. While no information is given on individual households, the number of people on the site and duration of stay on the site are available at a level of detail not possible on private sites or unauthorised encampments. Patterns of movement on and off sites over the six months since the previous count can also be assessed. As well as data on household totals it is possible to assess their structure in terms of numbers of people within different age bands ( NB - no individual household or person is identified within the count). From this, mean household size and population profiles can be built up for each site.

In January 2007, just over half (56%) of all recorded Gypsy/ Traveller households lived on one or other of the 27 official Council sites tenanted at the time (this excludes the empty Glasgow and N. Lanarkshire sites and the summer-only sites). This represents a total of 295 households or 885 people with a mean household size of 3.0.

These figures are almost identical to the previous year's pattern. While mean household size across the Council site population has hovered between 3 and 3.3 over number of years, it varies markedly between individual sites, ranging in 2007 from a single individual on one site up to a mean of 4.5 people on another.

Figure 1 shows the numbers of people on each of the 27 sites.

Figure 1 - People on Council sites in January 2007
(Base = 27 sites - excluding Glasgow and North Lanarkshire)

Within the total population, the age-structure is almost identical to that in the previous winter and remains broadly as in previous counts. Once again there is little difference in pattern between males and females:

• 113 children (13%) of pre-school age;
• 140 children (25%) of school-age (aged 5-16);
• 496 adults (58%) (aged 16-64/59);
• The smallest group, 55 (6%) are older people (aged 65/60+).

These returns continue to emphasise the differences in population structure between Gypsy/Traveller communities and the general Scottish population. These are most marked in the much higher share in the former of pre-school and school-age children and the very small proportion of older people (aged 64/60+), though the proportion in the 'adult' or working age population is only marginally lower.

How are sites used ?

The original funding scheme envisaged that sites of around 15 pitches would provide the most effective balance between need and the costs of development. In practice, site size varies depending on the scale of local need identified in each area at the outset and while many are around the original notional size, some have only a handful of pitches (East Kilbride in South Lanarkshire (6); S.Ayrshire and N. Ledaig in Argyll & Bute (each 8)), whereas the largest (Aberdeen City) has 30.

Sites are based on individual pitches, each normally able to accommodate a large residential trailer caravan together with space for a lorry or other vehicle. Each pitch has its own amenity unit with bath/shower and toilet facilities together with space for domestic appliances and household storage. Pitches also allow for trailers to be connected to both mains electricity and water.

Sites usually include a manager's office and, in a few cases, residential provision for the manager on or adjacent to the site. Over recent years there has been increasing provision of some kind of community facility on a few sites, sometimes taking over one or two pitches for this purpose where demand for residential pitches has allowed.

Sites are managed through a variety of Council departments, generally housing, social, community or environmental services.Depending on the availability of vacant pitches, any Gypsies/Travellers coming to an area may apply for a tenancy on a site, provided they are not already tenants elsewhere.

Although each pitch is intended for one household, in practice occasional variations occur as a pragmatic and generally short term response to local circumstances; a very large household may have to spread across two adjacent pitches, though constituting a single tenancy; alternatively, two closely related households may have joint tenancy on a single pitch or visitors staying with tenants may lead to more than one household being recorded on a single pitch at the time of a count. Occasionally more than one caravan may be allowed on a pitch, for example if a large household needs separate sleeping accommodation for some of its members or where it is needed for travel off-site for short periods, while part of the household remains on the site.

A total of 28 sites, providing 473 pitches were officially open for use in January 2007. The proportion of these pitches falling into each of four categories at the time of the count gives a measure of how effectively the sites are being used. Occupancy levels on these can be summarized as follows:

• Of 473 pitches on 28 sites, 314 (66% of the total) were tenanted at the count date;
• Of these tenanted pitches, 289 (61% of the total) were currently occupied by their tenants;
• 25 pitches (5% of the total) were let but with their tenants temporarily absent;
• Most of the untenanted pitches (92 or 19%) were still classed as 'vacant (available)';
• 63 pitches (13%) were classed as 'not available'.

Overall occupancy levels were lower than the previous winter (71%) but closer to the 2005 figure (63%). However, within this mean figure, levels vary markedly from site to site.

Table 2 groups occupancy levels on individual sites under five headings: Full; High, Medium and Low Occupancy and, finally, Empty sites, based on descending proportions of tenanted pitches (Column A) ( Within this it identifies the proportions of tenants actually present at the count date (Column B) and those temporarily off-site (Column C). The two remaining columns show the proportion of empty pitches either available for prospective tenants (Column D) and those which for some reason, discussed further below) are not available for use (Column E).

At one end of the spectrum, seven sites were fully tenanted. While most of these were medium to large-sized sites they also included two of the smallest sites (E. Kilbride in S. Lanarkshire and S.Ayrshire). A further 11 sites had at least three quarters of their pitches tenanted. At the opposite end of the spectrum a number of sites had low occupancy levels including West Lothian with only one of its 21 pitches tenanted at the time, while two sites were completely empty.

Overall one in five pitches (19%) were vacant but still available for prospective tenants. However, on this occasion there was a substantially higher proportion (13%) than in the previous year (4%) of pitches classed as unavailable . Two sites were completely empty at the time of the count but while the Glasgow site was in a position to take on tenants, none of those on the remaining North Lanarkshire was said to be available for use.

To a large extent the levels of 'unavailable' pitches reflects the on-going programme of upgrading across a number of sites as a result of the grant funding made available in 2005 by the Scottish Executive. However, as comments made by site managers below reveal, it continues to include the results of vandalism on some sites.

Occupancy levels on sites can be very volatile, sometimes changing very rapidly. Inter-family disputes, arrival of new and perhaps unwelcome family groups or sudden vandalism often lead tenants to move elsewhere. When the situation has been resolved they may eventually begin to drift back to the site and take up tenancies again though some have led to lengthy or even permanent closure of sites. Comments from site managers at the time of the 2006 winter's count suggested that the higher levels of occupancy on that occasion reflected quieter and more settled conditions over preceding months following a number of incidents over a couple of years, involving vandalism and Travellers to come on to sites at all. violence, leading to tenants leaving sites and being afraid to return. Equivalent comments in 2007 suggest a resurgence in problems on some sites causing tenants to move off and in some areas even a reluctance on the part of some Gypsies/ Travellers to come on to sites at all.

Table 2 - Occupancy of Council sites in January 2007
(Percentage pitch status) (Base = 29 sites)

'A definite lack of interest in the site - still stemming from the belief/superstition that the site is jinxed'.

'Disputes between families. Assault on staff member.'

'Family causing disruption on site with their anti-social behavious towards manager and other tenants - now under eviction notice. Two [amenity] units under survey procedures for subsidence.'

'Internal feuding within the travelling community throughout the central belt has caused low tenancies on this site.'

'Once again due to feuding between Scots and Irish Travellers we have had mass exit from site.'

'Travellers frightened to move back on to site in case they get caught up in any disputes.'

'Severe vandalism putting six pitches out of use.'

Length of stay on sites

Over the life of the counts, the tendency for many tenants on Council sites to stay for longer and longer periods has become clearer. With the introduction of more detailed tenancy bands from July 2006 onwards this can be illustrated more easily. Up to January 2006, 'long-term' tenancy was defined as 'more than two years' and at that date accounted for just over half of all tenancies (54%). While the January 2007 proportion is similar (57%), the new bands show that more than half these were now in a new 'very long term' category with a substantial proportion more or less static having been on site for more than ten years. Across the 27 tenanted sites in January 2007 length of tenancy is summarized below:

Very long term

• 12% of tenants had been there for more than ten years;
• 20% had been there for between five and ten years;

Long term

• 25% had been for between two and five years;
• 15% had been there for between one and two years (16%);

Medium term

• 13% had been for between six months and a year (15%);
• 7% had been there for between three and six months (12%);

Short term

• 8% had been there for three months or less (13%).

At a more detailed level, Table 3 shows the pattern across all the tenanted sites in descending order of very long term tenancies, i.e. those of five years or more. Within this category, certain sites stand out both in terms of high occupancy levels and particular tenancy longevity, i.e. percentage over 10 year duration. These are mostly larger and longer established sites with a history of stability and a population which has settled on a long-term basis, often now ageing. Examples include Fife (Kirkcaldy), Perth & Kinross and West Dunbartonshire with between 56% and 40% of 10-year-plus tenants, and South Lanarkshire (East Kilbride), Edinburgh City, and Argyll & Bute (Lochgilphead) with between a fifth and third of such tenancies. However, it must be remembered that the other end of the scale sites with higher proportions of short or medium-term tenancies may have suffered from some of the upheavals which occasionally occur or, in the case of Fife (Kelty) and East Dunbartonshire, are the newest of all the sites.

Tenant Movement

As shown above, some tenants on Council sites have become much more settled than perhaps was envisaged at the time the council site network was proposed and which assumed more continuous movement from area to area within Scotland. Nevertheless, it has also always been assumed that a degree of movement should be possible without sacrificing a tenancy. From an early stage, tenancy conditions have generally permitted temporary absence of up to 12 weeks in the year.

Absence is more common in summer months, traditionally a time of greater mobility, though it may occur at other times of the year for a variety of reasons, whether seeking work, visiting relatives or just simply 'travelling'. In January 2007 only five percent of tenants were 'off site' in this way, slightly below the previous year's figure. Eighteen sites had no absent tenants and of the 11 which did, with the exception of two (Highland [Spean Bridge] and E./Midlothian), none had more than a quarter off-site at the count date. The returns also record the numbers of tenants having availed themselves of this option during the previous six months but here, even so, four sites recorded no such absences and on two thirds of all sites absence was only in single figures.

Tenancy change

Although, as shown above, many tenants stay for increasingly long periods with occasional absences, some move off the site and relinquish their tenancy. This happens for a variety of reasons, such as work pressures or to be near to other family members. As noted earlier, other permanent moves may be triggered by changes in the mix of tenants on a site or by events within the wider Gypsy/Traveller community. Occasionally too, a household may leave or be asked to go for breaching tenancy conditions. As with waiting lists, other factors, such as the perceived desirability of particular sites may encourage both outward and inward movement.

Table 3 - Tenancy duration on individual sites in January 2007
(Bracketed figures beside site names show number of tenancies at the count date)

( NB Percentages across may total more than 100 due to rounding)

Out of a total of 406 usable pitches ( i.e. those either currently tenanted or available for prospective tenants), only 57 had (14%) had changed hands over the previous six months. Of the 29 sites, 12 recorded no changes of tenancy. On the others changes were minimal, accounting for only between one and five pitches in each case, with the exception of eight on the Highland (Inverness site) and ten on the Aberdeen site. However, even the small numbers could be substantial as a proportion of a site's usable pitches, particularly on the small sites.

Waiting lists for pitches were recorded on only 15 sites, a total of 118 applicants. Although this figure was higher than in the two preceding winters (82; 62), comment about such lists from one site manager highlighted the probability that in some areas, applicants might be on the waiting list for more than one site, expressing a preference for being within a general area rather than necessarily a specific site. At the same time, a small number of sites appear to have a high desirability level, tying in with the earlier comments about tenancy duration, which leaves few probabilities of vacancies arising. Most notable amongst these is Larkhall in S. Lanarkshire with a waiting list equivalent to more than 150% of the site's capacity, while others apparently in great potential demand include Edinburgh City, North and South Ayrshire, Perth & Kinross, Kirkcaldy in Fife and Falkirk, all of which frequently are high on the waiting list scale, generally being seen as stable sites with few of the local difficulties that affect some other places.

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